One way to strengthen family relationships is to celebrate National Grandparents Day on Sunday, September 12, 2021.

What is Grandparents Day?

This year will mark the 43rd year that Grandparents Day has been observed in the United States. In 1978, the U. S. President officially proclaimed the first Sunday after Labor Day as National Grandparents Day.

• Since 1978, at least 22 countries have adopted Grandparents Day.
• Poland has celebrated a separate Grandmothers Day and Grandfathers Day since 1964.
• The blue flower forget-me-not is the symbol of Grandparents Day.
• In 2021 Pope Francis announced the World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly to be celebrated each year on the fourth Sunday of July.

The connection between grandparents and grandchildren is unlike any other relationship. Science shows that grandparents live longer and kids are more emotionally resilient when they spend time together. Close inter-generational relationships also help kids to have a stronger sense of personal identity. Pope Francis said that grandparents “remind us that old age is a gift and that grandparents are the link between generations, passing on the experience of life and faith to the young.”

Read the article “Building Family Bonds by Celebrating Grandparents Day” for ideas on how to celebrate Grandparents Day.