Father's Day
Father’s Day is celebrated to honor and commemorate our fathers and forefathers. It is celebrated on a variety of dates worldwide and typically involves gift-giving and special dinners or family-oriented activities. This year, Father’s Day will be celebrated on Sunday, June 21 in the UK and many countries.
In the Roman Catholic tradition, Fathers are commemorated on Saint Joseph’s Day, commonly called Feast of Saint Joseph, though in certain countries Father’s Day has become a secular celebration.
Today, Father’s Day is celebrated on the 3rd Sunday of June, however, in the United States, the first modern Father’s Day celebration was held on July 5, 1908, in Fairmont, West Virginia, at a church service at Williams Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church South, now known as Central United Methodist Church. Grace Golden Clayton, who is believed to have suggested the service to the pastor, is believed to have been inspired to celebrate fathers, after the deadly mine explosion in nearby Monongah, the prior December. This explosion killed 361 men, many of them fathers and recent immigrants to the United States from Italy. Another possible inspiration for the service was Mothers’ Day, which had been celebrated for the first time two months prior in Grafton, West Virginia, a town about 15 miles (24 km) away.
Another driving force behind the establishment of the integration of Father’s Day was Mrs. Sonora Smart Dodd, born in Creston, Washington. Her father, the Civil War veteran William Jackson Smart, was a single parent who reared his six children in Spokane, Washington. She was inspired by Anna Jarvis’ efforts to establish Mother’s Day. Although she initially suggested June 5, her father’s birthday, she did not provide the organizers with enough time to make arrangements and the celebration was deferred to the third Sunday of June.
In 1966, President Lyndon Johnson made Father’s Day a holiday to be celebrated on the third Sunday of June. The holiday was not officially recognized until 1972, during the presidency of Richard Nixon. In recent years, retailers have adapted to the holiday by promoting greeting cards and male-oriented gifts such as electronics and tools. Schools and other children’s programs commonly have activities to make Father’s Day gifts.
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If you wish to celebrate Father Day in style, this year, why not join us at the Bull Hotel? We are offering a 3 course carvery lunch in our stunning Beeches Restaurant, overlooking the hotel’s beautifully landscaped gardens. Children from £9.95 and adults from £19.95. To book a table please call Beeches Restaurant on 01753 885 995.
Submitted by Saskia Meyer, Reservations Co-ordinator at The Bull
