Courtesy of DOD
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Categories - Copywriting - Shopping - Free Online Business Help - Telecommunications Services Articles: Family - Fathers' Day It is believed that the first mention of fathers’ Day was made in an Episcopal church in 1908 in Fairmont, West Virginia, but the first known celebration of Fathers’ Day was arranged by Sonora Smart Dodd in Spokane, WA on June 19, 1910. Her father, a Civil War veteran, had raised her and five other siblings by himself after her mother died and the thought occurred to her while listening to a Mothers’ Day sermon. Even with support from the YMCA and YWCA, it took years for the idea and practice to spread through the population as it was laughed at and became the butt of jokes in the media. Many thought that it would lead to holidays like “Clean Your Yard Day”, “Bosses Day”, and “Pet Day”. The laughter and satirical media attention backfired giving the holiday exposure and many communities and organizations began having Fathers’ Day celebrations as the idea gathered more and more support.
Finally, the Holiday gained national support when President Coolidge supported the idea and a National Fathers’ Day Committee was formed by the Associated Men’s Wear Retailers in the 1930s. The commercial group obviously wanted to legitimize the idea nationally in the minds of the population. Sonora Dodd had no problem with the commercialization of Fathers’ Day and thought that it was a good idea to buy Dad gifts to make him feel appreciated. She also became involved with a number of promotions by manufacturers. The country was already celebrating Fathers’ Day when Lyndon Johnson made it a federal holiday in 1966 by proclamation, but the holiday was not officially recognized until 1972 by Richard Nixon. As the parenting role of fathers has rapidly changed since the 1970s, Fathers’ Day has taken on more and more meaning. Up until, roughly, 1970, a father’s role was viewed to be to go to work and support the family while the mother took care of the home and children. As economic pressures mounted and more women chose to get an education and enter the job market, men were pressured to become significantly involved in parenting. As new generations evolved, men grew up wanting to be more active in their children’s lives. While Sonora Dodd’s situation was unusual, with today’s high divorce rates, many more men are finding themselves in a single parent role and even a growing number of men are staying at home to raise the kids while their wives work at higher paying jobs than the husbands could obtain. Instead of just teaching children to throw a football, hunt, fish, fix a car, or build a playhouse on the weekends, fathers now find themselves going to teacher-parent meetings and school open houses. Instead of being overwhelmed by women, PTA meetings are now almost evenly populated with men and women and it has become acceptable for a man to have to leave work to tend to one of his child’s problems. If you are under thirty, it is very likely that your Dad had or will have a huge impact on your development and success so, don’t sell him short this fathers’ Day. Even if it’s just a hug, being quiet while he watches sports on TV, fixing him a sandwich, or turning down the drama, let him know how much you appreciate what he has done.
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