It is generally agreed that an American lady named Sonora Louise Smart Dodd first had the idea of a “Father’s Day“ celebration. Her mother had died when she was young, and so her father had to bring up Sonora and her five brothers and sisters on his own. Because he was such a good father, Sonora wanted to find a way to honour him and thank him for what he had done.
She found the way in 1909, while listening to a sermon for Mother’s Day. She thought there should be a similar celebration to honour people like her own father. She found that local leaders supported her idea, and the very first Father’s Day was celebrated in Spokane, Washington, on 19 June 1910. It is said that she chose the date because June was the month in which her father had been born.
The idea for celebrating Father’s Day did not catch on very quickly. Although President Woodrow Wilson gave his approval by celebrating Father’s Day privately with his family in 1916, people seemed to lose interest in the idea. However, President Calvin Coolidge gave his support in 1924, when he recommended that Father’s Day should become an official national holiday. Unfortunately, many years passed before anything more was done to make this official.
The next important step towards official recognition came just over forty years later, when President Lyndon Johnson announced in 1966 that Father’s Day would be an official national holiday, setting the date as the third Sunday in June. Even so, the holiday was not officially recognized until 1972, when President Richard Nixon signed the law that made Father’s Day a permanent holiday to be celebrated every year on the third Sunday in June
Remember! Whatever you do to celebrate Father’s Day, never forget one thing. It is not enough to be nice to your father on this day alone. Show love and respect to both your parents every day of the year.