This and That
Issue: 1.07  
May 1, 2000
The First Mother's Day

I am always fascinated by the derivation of certain events and holidays. Have you ever wondered how Mother's Day got started? Well.. here's the answer!
Mothers Day first observed in Grafton, W. Va., and in the churches of Philadelphia on May 10, 1908, in response to a suggestion by Miss Anna Jarvis. Mothers Day is dedicated to paying tribute to mothers. In 1914 President Woodrow Wilson, following a resolution by Congress the preceding year commending Mothers Day Observance, issued a proclamation designating the second Sunday in May as Mothers Day and directed that the national flag should be displayed on all public buildings on that day. Mothering Sunday, an old English holiday, antedates the present observance by many years; it was named from the custom of the faithful of attending on Mid-Lent Sunday the mother church in which they had been baptized and offering gifts at the altar to the Church and also to their mothers, as tokens of love and gratitude. Observance of Mothers Day has spread to many countries.

   
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