May 5, 2009 --- “How did Mother’s Day begin?”

A.)     From the website: http://tinyurl.com/cp44yy

The tradition of celebrating and honoring mothers began thousands of years ago in many different cultures. In ancient Greece the people honored Rhea, the mother of all the gods, in springtime festivities. The ancient Romans honored Magna Mater (Great Mother) who was the mother of all their gods. Once a year, the Romans would honor this Great Mother by bringing gifts to a temple that was built for her. In England around the 1600’s, many children had to leave home to work for most of the year. They were allowed one holiday on the fourth Sunday during Lent where they would go home to spend time with their mothers. This special day was called Mothering Sunday.  As for in the United States?  In 1842, a social reformer and poet named Julia Ward Howe suggested that Mother’s Day be celebrated on June 2. She believed that this should be a day dedicated to peace. She held several meetings in Boston and soon several neighboring towns began to celebrate this holiday. Another woman named Anna Jarvis of West Virginia is considered the actual founder of Mother’s Day in the United States. Anna’s mother hoped that someday, someone would found a Mother’s Day where everyone would stop and take a day to honor and respect his or her mother. Anna wanted to be the one to fulfill her mother’s dream. Soon after her mother died, Anna asked her minister to hold a Mother’s Day service in her town. On May 12, 1907, the first Mother’s Day service was held in Grafton, West Virginia. Anna wrote many letters in support of a national observance of Mother’s Day. By 1909, almost every state was celebrating Mother’s Day on the second Sunday in May.  President Woodrow Wilson signed a proclamation on May 9, 1914 stating that the second Sunday in May would be the official Mother’s Day in every state. Anna continued to support Mother’s Day around the world and by 1948 this holiday was observed in more than forty countries.

B.) DATABASE – Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia – Mother’s Day was suggested in 1872 by Julia Ward Howe with the intent of a day dedicated to peace.  Anna m. Jarvis is credited with originating Mother’s Day as we know it.  After her mother died in 1907, she campaigned for a national holiday celebrating Moms.  The first observed Mother’s Day was in 1908, and in 1910, W. Virginia’s governor issued the first Mother’s Day proclamation.

C.) TEXT – Mother’s Day by Ann Heinrichs states that Anna Jarvis, who dearly loved her mother, wanted to remember her mother, who had started a women’s club to help the sick, and preached kindness and peace.  When Anna’s mother died in 1905, Anna petitioned to create a mother’s day, which became a national holiday in 1914.