SAY San Diego
By Marian Edelbrock, PhD, San Digo Miramar College
Father’s Day in the United States began in Spokane, Washington, on June 19, 1910, when Sonora Smart Dodd organized a day to honor her father, a Civil War veteran who raised six children on his own. After decades of public debate, it became a permanent national holiday in 1972, observed on the third Sunday in June.
Where Did Father’s Day Come From?
Father’s Day dates back to the Middle Ages, when it was celebrated on March 19 as the feast day of Saint Joseph. It is celebrated worldwide on various dates, and several countries, including Spain, Portugal, Italy, Bolivia, and Honduras, still celebrate it on March 19. However, it was not celebrated in the United States until the 20th century.
How Was Father’s Day Created in the United States?
In the US, Father’s Day originally evolved as a memorial. In December 1907, a mine explosion in Monongah, West Virginia, killed 361 men and left many children fatherless. Grace Golden Clayton proposed a day in their remembrance, and a service was held on July 5, 1908, at Williams Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church South in nearby Fairmont.
In 1909, a year after the first Mother’s Day was celebrated, Sonora Smart Dodd of Spokane, Washington, was listening to a Mother’s Day sermon at Central Methodist Episcopal Church. She admired her father, William Jackson Smart, for raising his six children alone, so she decided she wanted to honor her father and all others in a similar way. She promoted her idea to local clergymen and the Spokane YMCA, who agreed that a day would be chosen to honor all fathers, and on June 19, 1910, sermons honoring fathers were presented throughout the city.
When Did Father’s Day Become a National Holiday?
A bill to recognize Father’s Day was introduced in Congress as early as 1913. Although the event lost momentum for a decade, in the 1930s Dodd re-promoted the celebration, with other cities across the country copying this event. Merchants encouraged the commercial aspect of the holiday, and beginning in 1938, the Father’s Day Council, founded by New York menswear retailers, helped promote it. However, many Americans and members of Congress resisted due to a concern for the risk of excessive commercialism. In 1924, President Coolidge recommended that the day be observed throughout the entire nation, but Congress defeated several attempts to formally recognize the holiday. In 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson issued the first presidential proclamation honoring fathers and designated the third Sunday in June as Father’s Day. The day became a permanent national holiday when it was signed into law by President Nixon in 1972, formally recognizing the role that fathers have played in our lives.
How Is Father’s Day Celebrated Around the World?
Many countries, including the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom, celebrate Father’s Day on the third Sunday in June, but the date and traditions vary around the world:
- Spain, Portugal, and Italy celebrate on March 19, Saint Joseph’s Day, keeping the day’s religious roots.
- Germany celebrates Vatertag on Ascension Day, the Thursday 40 days after Easter, which is also a public holiday.
- Brazil celebrates on the second Sunday of August.
- Australia and New Zealand celebrate on the first Sunday of September.
- Thailand celebrates on December 5, the birthday of the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej.
Remembering Military Families on Father’s Day
It is fitting that we consider the role of remembrance on Father’s Day, as we think of our military fathers and mothers. For many in San Diego, military service has meant that our fathers and mothers have had to play a very different role on days such as this. Many fathers have made the ultimate sacrifice or cannot come home to be with their families, leaving their children to watch other families in celebration. However, we can commemorate the day in an appreciation of the person we love, having fun, positive experiences that we can record, share, or send out our joy to the universe. SAY San Diego offers resources and support for military families across the county.
When Father’s Day Is Difficult
For some, Father’s Day may hold painful memories – just as the origins of the day held. Not everyone has a father in their lives or happy memories of the person who was their father. Think of the child who does not have a father to give the school Father’s Day project to. What if your father is estranged, lives far away, you never knew him, or has died? Spending time and energy in positive thoughts promotes forgiveness and healing, whereas holding in negativity and resentment is stressful and destructive at a cellular level. Finding a way to create a positive day may be the best way to promote healing and joy in our lives and for those around us.
Most of us can think of someone who has played a fatherly role in our lives, giving of himself, offering advice and support when we needed it most. Today, many families celebrate stepfathers, grandfathers, fathers-in-law, uncles, and mentors on Father’s Day, too. Perhaps this surrogate father can provide the focus for our thanksgiving.
Ways to Celebrate and Remember the Fathers in Your Life
Here are some ways to mark the day in memory of the fathers in our lives:
- Give something of yourself as a gift – a present can be the gift of time, to someone whose fathering role has made a difference in your life
- Perform a random act of kindness in memory of your father
- Take him breakfast in bed – it’s not just for mothers! Or make him his favorite treat or dessert, or go on a picnic.
- Do you have any old videos or photos of when you were a child? Watch them with him if he is still in your life, or watch and remember him
- If he is still in your life, make a video or audio recording of him telling a story or joke. If he is not in your life, record one of your memories or thoughts of him that you can review in subsequent years
- BBQ for your father – if he is in your life, invite him there or ask a surrogate father to join you for a celebratory meal
- Write him an essay, letter, or poem – if he is no longer in your life, share it with someone for whom you care
- Write down the major lessons your father or father figure has taught you and illustrate with pictures or photos for your father or others to read
- Hang out with your father. Set aside “unplugged time” with him and do something he enjoys – perhaps play a game, go outdoors, go to the beach, watch a movie, or play some sport together
- Show your appreciation by telling him what he means to you
- For those whose father is not with them, spend some time in meditation or mindful practice, sending positive messages of thanks for the father figures we have had in our lives
Supporting Dads and Fatherhood in San Diego
Father’s Day is also a good reminder that dads need support, too. SAY San Diego’s Dads Corps is a free program open to all fathers, including civilian dads, active duty and veteran dads, and dads-to-be. It uses a nationally recognized parenting curriculum and offers in-person and virtual classes, along with connections to employment and legal resources. Learn more about how Dads Corps supports San Diego fathers, or find family support close to home at one of SAY’s Family Resource Centers.
Father’s Day FAQs
Who invented Father’s Day?
Sonora Smart Dodd of Spokane, Washington, is credited with founding Father’s Day in the United States. Inspired by a 1909 Mother’s Day sermon, she wanted to honor her father, a Civil War veteran who raised six children on his own. The first Father’s Day was celebrated in Spokane on June 19, 1910. A year earlier, Grace Golden Clayton had organized a memorial service for fathers in Fairmont, West Virginia.
When did Father’s Day become a national holiday?
Father’s Day became a permanent national holiday in 1972, when President Richard Nixon signed it into law. President Lyndon B. Johnson had issued the first presidential proclamation honoring fathers in 1966, designating the third Sunday in June as Father’s Day. Earlier efforts, including a bill introduced in Congress in 1913, did not pass.
Why did it take so long for Father’s Day to become official?
Many Americans and members of Congress resisted Father’s Day at first because they worried it would become overly commercial, simply copying the gift-giving success of Mother’s Day. President Calvin Coolidge recommended the day be observed nationally in 1924, but Congress defeated several attempts to formally recognize it until 1972.
When is Father’s Day celebrated?
In the United States, Father’s Day is celebrated every year on the third Sunday in June. Many other countries, including Canada and the United Kingdom, use the same date, while others celebrate on March 19 (Saint Joseph’s Day), in August, or in September.
SAY San Diego believes in the development of self-sufficiency, strengthening families, and parenting support. So it is fitting that SAY San Diego celebrates the many victories of the fathers it serves, who have come to rely on its positive and enduring support, by wishing all fathers a “Happy Father’s Day!”
