The beloved tradition of Mother’s Day, celebrated annually on the second Sunday of May, owes its existence to the relentless advocacy of Anna Jarvis. Following the passing of her mother, Ann Reeves Jarvis, in 1905, Jarvis conceived the idea of a day dedicated to honoring the love and sacrifices made by mothers worldwide.
With the support of Philadelphia department store owner John Wanamaker, Jarvis organized the inaugural Mother’s Day celebration in May 1908 at a Methodist church in Grafton, West Virginia, alongside a large event at one of Wanamaker’s retail stores.
Jarvis’s unwavering determination led to widespread adoption of Mother’s Day across states, towns, and churches by 1912. Finally, in 1914, President Woodrow Wilson officially proclaimed the second Sunday in May as Mother’s Day, cementing Jarvis’s legacy of devotion to motherhood in the nation’s calendar.
Source: history.com
Reporting for WGRT – Choze Powell
