The first Father’s Day was established in 1910 in Spokane, WA. Sonora Dodd wanted to celebrate her father, William Jackson Smart, a civil war veteran and single father. William raised six children on his own. When Sonora heard a sermon at the church in 1909 about Mother’s Day, she told her pastor that fathers should have a similar celebration. Although she suggested the celebration be held on June 5, her father’s birthday, the pastor didn’t have enough time to prepare a sermon. The sermon ended up happening on the third Sunday in June and continued to be celebrated each third Sunday of June as the years progressed. Local pastors heard about the special sermon and followed suit around the city for years to come.
In 1920, the celebration waned due to Sonora moving to Chicago to pursue education an art institute. When she moved back to Spokane in the 1930s she began raising awareness about Father’s Day and raised it to a national level. Americans resisted the celebration for the first few years viewing the holiday as another attempt by retailers to earn money. Retailers remained vigilant and the holiday took hold.
In 1966, Lyndon B. Johnson gave a presidential proclamation honoring fathers designating the third Sunday in June as Father’s Day. Six years later President Richard Nixon signed Father’s Day into law in 1972.
The many fathers at PPh have experienced a lifetime of living and through it, all have sustained the strength and wisdom fathers so willingly impart. Fathers take great pride in their families and in the America they helped build. Our Main Dining Room will host a special Father’s Day brunch on June 17th for our residents. Another way to show appreciation for a special father in your life is to make a tribute gift for the Remembrance Garden. June is a wonderful time to get some sunshine, enjoy the beauty of the flowers, and landscape around our community.