The Mother's Day Story

The Rockwood Senior Living May 2016 Edition 5, Volume 2 The Mother's Day Story Everyone has one, but not everyone is blessed to be one. For those who are Mothers, this tale is a touching one. The story of Mother’s Day is a long one. It is neither a recent phenomenon as many people believe it to be. Nor it is the creation of card and gift marketers syndicate as assumed by cynics of Mother’s Day festival. To the surprise of lot many people Mother’s Day celebrations are first said to have taken place in the time of ancient Greeks and Romans hundreds of years ago. Even Mother’s Day celebrations in UK began much before the tradition saw the light of the day in US. In the UK, Mother’s Day celebrations started by the name of Mothering Sunday, several years before the tradition found its roots in UK. Mothering Sunday came to be celebrated following the practice in UK of 17th century wherein children of poor families were sent to work as apprentice and domestic servants with the rich. These children were allowed to visit their 'Mother Church' or the Cathedral of their home town annually in the middle of the fasting month of Lent. Children met their mothers after visiting the church and presented them with flowers and special 'Mothering Cakes'. The custom received a set back with the advent of Industrial Revolution when the lifestyles changes. American soldiers contributed in the revival of the tradition after the World War II. The story of Mother’s Day in US began with the efforts of a dynamic writer and poetess, Julia Ward Howe in 1872. An activist to the core Julia utilized her potentials to further the cause of Mother’s Day. She wrote a powerful Mother’s Day Proclamation in Boston in 1870 and demanded declaration of official holiday and celebrations on Mother’s Day. Her idea gained popularity but she could not get the idea implemented. Julia is also credited for penning words for Civil War song, "Battle Hymn of the Republic". A loving daughter from West Virginia, Anna Jarvis is recognized as a 'Founder of Mother’s Day and 'Mother of Mother’s Day. Anna kept the word of her activist mother, Mrs. Ann Marie Reeves Jarvis who once expressed a wish that someone should strive to provide mothers their due recognition. After her mothers’ death in 1905, Anna's determination became strong and she along with several supporters started lobbying for the official holiday on Mother’s Day by writing letters to the people in power. To celebrate Mother’s Day, Anna began to send her mothers’ favorite flowers, carnations in her local church requesting people to wear them in honor of their mothers. The idea gained immense popularity over the years and in 1910, West Virginia became the first state to recognize Mother’s Day holiday. On May 8, 1914 President Woodrow Wilson signed a Joint Resolution designating the second Sunday in May as Mother's Day. Thank you to all the Mothers in the world for keeping the circle of life everlasting. 330 W. Lockwood Ave. Webster Groves, MO 63119 314.963.0029 www.therockwood.com The Rockwood Senior Living May 2016 Edition 5, Volume 2, Page 2 ~~~Resident Spotlight~~~ This month’s Resident Spotlight is on our little spitfire of a woman Marilyn Main. This outgoing woman started her life in the little town of Sycamore, Illinois with her sister, brother and step-brother. There she graduated from “Syco High”, as the kids knew it. She made her way to the Chicago area to attend Northern Illinois College. This is when she realized that college wasn’t really for her. She got a job at the Nat’l Selected Morticians doing clerical work while she lived at the YWCA. It was at the YWCA during one of their hosted social dances, that she would meet her soon to be husband, James. He was attending college on a GI Bill and was studying for a Doctorate in Podiatry. After James’ second year in college, he and Marilyn were married and lived in a little apartment in Chicago while he finished his college. Once James graduated, he hopped a train to Jefferson City, MO and received his Board Certified License to practice podiatry in Missouri. Soon after, they relocated to Clayton so he could start his practice. Marilyn worked as a typist for a tabulating company here in St. Louis until she became a stay-at-home mom raising their three children, Mary, Cliff and James Jr. After being out of the working world for 12 years, Marilyn started working for the Special School District. Over the 29 ½ years she was there, Marilyn worked her way up from pool secretary to Secretary in the Superintendent’s Office before she retired. James worked late into his years until he passed in 2010. James and Marilyn were married for 62 years. Marilyn and James enjoyed life, kids, and vacations. They drove and vacationed all over the United States and Canada. They also enjoyed taking cruises to Alaska, Hawaii, and the Panama Canal. Their ever growing family added three grandsons and two granddaughters to their thirteen nieces and nephews. Family reunions are always fun. Marilyn used to be a member of the Lady Lions and American Legion Auxiliary. Currently she is very active in church groups. She loves reading mystery stories from a range of authors. Actually, she loves any good book that she can get ahold of. She used to love watching movies and listening to music until she started losing her hearing. Now she just concentrates on reading, knitting and the ever loved puzzle solving. If you don’t see her out at exercise class, you are surely to see her at the jigsaw puzzle table or in the laundry room reading her books. Marilyn is so happy that she moved into The Rockwood. She loves the people, the activities, and especially Judy’s desserts! As Marilyn says “I think I have moved in next to Heaven”. At the urging of Harry’s wife and doctor, 50 year old Harry finally Happy Birthday to made it to the gym. After consulting with one of the trainers, Harry decided to try out a steep treadmill. “Ok”, said the trainer our Residents: “I’m going to set it for ten minutes, if you want to go longer just press start again.” At first Harry was doing fine but after 5 seconds he started Carmen, Susan and getting tired, and after a minute he jumped off gasping for Giles !! breath. Walking to the side to sit down, he passed by a friend of his. “Man”, said Harry. “I could barely last a full minute on that treadmill.” “Alright, alright”, said his buddy, “no reason to brag!” 330 W. Lockwood Ave. Webster Groves, MO 63119 314.963.0029 www.therockwood.com Read more at: The Rockwood Senior Living May 2016 Edition 5, Volume 2, Page 3 Memorial Day is looked upon by all Americans as a day off of work, school, the kickoff of summer pool parties and for those who are vested in the US Military, a time to honor those who gave their lives for our countries independence. The preferred name for the holiday gradually changed from "Decoration Day" to "Memorial Day", which was first used in 1882. It did not become more common until after World War II, and was not declared the official name by Federal law until 1967. On June 28, 1968, the Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, which moved four holidays, including Memorial Day, from their traditional dates to a specified Monday in order to create a convenient three-day weekend. The change moved Memorial Day from its traditional May 30 date to the last Monday in May. The law took effect at the federal level in 1971. After some initial confusion and unwillingness to comply, all 50 states adopted Congress' change of date within a few years. The holiday as we know it now was ever evolving for over a hundred years. The reason for all the confusion and willingness to comply was several states, such as Pennsylvania, Georgia, Virginia and South Carolina, all claiming they were the first to declare Memorial Day. During and after the Civil War, both Union and Confederate states claimed the practice of decorating fallen soldiers memorials. The first widely publicized observance of a Memorial Day-type observance after the Civil War was in Charleston, South Carolina, on May 1, 1865. During the war, Union soldiers who were prisoners of war had been held at the Hampton Park Race Course in Charleston; at least 257 Union prisoners died there and were hastily buried in unmarked graves. Together with teachers and missionaries, black residents of Charleston organized a May Day ceremony in 1865, which was covered by the New York Tribune and other national papers. The freedmen cleaned up and landscaped the burial ground, building an enclosure and an arch labeled "Martyrs of the Race Course". Nearly 10,000 people, mostly freedmen, gathered on May 1 to commemorate the war dead. Involved were about 3,000 school children, newly enrolled in freedmen's schools, as well as mutual aid societies, Union troops, black ministers and white northern missionaries. Most brought flowers to lay on the burial field. This was the first Memorial Day. African Americans invented Memorial Day in Charleston, South Carolina. ”What you have there is black Americans recently freed from slavery announcing to the world with their flowers, their feet, and their songs what the war had been about.

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