Diversity Affairs Feature

A Celebration in Honor of all Mothers
May 11, 2008

Mother's Day is a time of commemoration and celebration for Mom. It is a time of breakfast in bed, family gatherings, and crayon scribbled "I Love Yous." So here for your entertainment are some fun Holiday things for you, your mom and your family.

The Story of Mother's Day

The earliest Mother's Day celebrations can be traced back to the spring celebrations of ancient Greece in honor of Rhea, the Mother of the Gods. During the 1600s, England celebrated a day called "Mothering Sunday." Celebrated on the 4th Sunday of Lent (the 40 day period leading up to Easter*), "Mothering Sunday" honored the mothers of England.

During this time many of the England's poor worked as servants for the wealthy. As most jobs were located far from their homes, the servants would live at the houses of their employers. On Mothering Sunday the servants would have the day off and were encouraged to return home and spend the day with their mothers. A special cake, called the mothering cake, was often brought along to provide a festive touch.

As Christianity spread throughout Europe the celebration changed to honor the "Mother Church" - the spiritual power that gave them life and protected them from harm. Over time the church festival blended with the Mothering Sunday celebration . People began honoring their mothers as well as the church.

In the United States Mother's Day was first suggested in 1872 by Julia Ward Howe (who wrote the words to the Battle hymn of the Republic) as a day dedicated to peace. Ms. Howe would hold organized Mother's Day meetings in Boston, Mass ever year.

In 1907 Ana Jarvis, from Philadelphia, began a campaign to establish a national Mother's Day. Ms. Jarvis persuaded her mother's church in Grafton, West Virginia to celebrate Mother's Day on the second anniversary of her mother's death, the 2nd Sunday of May. By the next year Mother's Day was also celebrated in Philadelphia.

Ms. Jarvis and her supporters began to write to ministers, businessman, and politicians in their quest to establish a national Mother's Day. It was successful as by 1911 Mother's Day was celebrated in almost every state. President Woodrow Wilson, in 1914, made the official announcement proclaiming Mother's Day as a national holiday that was to be held each year on the 2nd Sunday of May.

While many countries of the world celebrate their own Mother's Day at different times throughout the year, there are some countries such as Denmark, Finland, Italy, Turkey, Australia, and Belgium which also celebrate Mother's Day on the second Sunday of May.

Celebrating Mother's Day
What to do for your mom

M-O-T-H-E-R
A Mother's Poem

Goodies
Download a Mother's Day movie. Get the crayons and print out these pictures for the kids.

Holiday Crafts
Mother's Day gift projects for the kids to make Mother's Day gift projects for the kids to make

Holiday Music
Turn up the Speakers To REALLY enjoy our celebration. Clicking will launch a new window and music (midi format) will play. If music does not begin click for plug-in instructions.

Tribute to Mom
Join our Celebration With a Tribute to "Your" Mom. Share your Words and Poetry of your Mom.

Make Your Mother's Day, Every Day

Mother's Day is very much a day for giving. Yet, too many mothers are suffering and dying each year. Every minute, a mother dies from complications in pregnancy and childbirth.

This year, Liya Kebede, the WHO Goodwill Ambassador for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health, asks you to honour Mother’s Day in your country and recognize the importance of our mothers, women who have great impact on our lives. Whether you have a mother or are one, we ask that you look at the bountiful task of being a mother -- nurturing a child, working, raising a family -- and keeping yourself healthy!

Healthy mothers and children are the real wealth of societies. Yet so many mothers across the globe don't have access to basic health needs and many are deprived from skilled care before, during and after birth. This Mother's Day, we ask that you celebrate motherhood in your country. Without healthy mothers, we cannot have healthy families and communities.

So support us to Make Your Mother's Day, Every Day.

Millions of lives could be saved using knowledge we have today. The challenge is to transform this knowledge into action. In order to make a difference, we must all join forces and act. Together we can do it. Each one of us has a role to play.

Ensuring skilled care at every birth and investing in human resources for health will promote better family planning, give greater access to skilled care during pregnancy and childbirth, and will aid in the prevention and management of maternal complications and death.

Donate to Mother's Day 2008 campaign