National Grandparents Day

Special to Seniors Today

Each year the President is requested to issue a proclamation to: designate the first Sunday in September after Labor Day as National Grandparents Day; and to call on people, groups, and organizations to observe the day with appropriate ceremonies and activities.

National Grandparents Day has more than one possible origin. Some people consider it to have been first proposed by Michael Goldgar in the 1970s after he visited his aunt in an Atlanta nursing home, Spending $11,000 of his own money in lobbying efforts to have the day officially recognized, he made 17 trips to Washington DC over a seven-year span to meet with legislators.

Marian Lucille Herndon McQuade, a housewife in West Virginia, may also have been the main driver for the day of observance. Throughout the 1970s McQuade worked hard to educate the people about the important contributions senior citizens made and the contributions that they would be willing to make if asked. She also urged people to adopt a grandparent, not for one day a year and not for material giving, but for a lifetime of experience.

National Grandparents Day was finally signed into law by President Jimmy Carter in 1978. Marian McQuade received a phone call from the White House to advise her of this event. Many people believe that National Grandparents Day was inspired by her efforts.
A presidential proclamation on September 6, 1979, made this day official—it designated Sunday, September 9, 1979, (being the first Sunday of September following Labor Day) as National Grandparents Day.