TYLER, Texas — Father's Day is the day we celebrate influential father figures across the U.S., whether they be biological or not.
History.com reports the first Father's Day in the nation was celebrated on June 19, 1910, in Washington. However, it was not until 1972 that President Richard Nixon would make a permanent proclamation declaring the third Saturday in June as Father's Day.
HISTORY
According to the Library of Congress, the idea for Father's Day is attributed to Sonora Dodd, who was raised by her father after her mother's death during childbirth. While listening to a sermon at church on Mother's Day, she thought about all her father had done for her and her siblings and decided fathers should have a day, too. Because Dodd's father was born in June, she encouraged churches in her area, Spokane, Washington, to honor fathers that month.
Over the years, the idea spread, and people lobbied Congress to establish the holiday. In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson, who had signed a proclamation establishing Mother's Day, approved the idea, but never signed a proclamation for it. In 1924, President Calvin Coolidge made it a national event to "establish more intimate relations between fathers and their children and to impress upon fathers the full measure of their obligations."
FATHER'S DAY QUOTES (Courtesy of O, The Oprah Magazine)
- "The heart of a father is the masterpiece of nature." - Antoine François Prévost
- "Anyone can be a father, but it takes someone special to be a dad." - Wade Boggs
- “The best fathers have the softest, sweetest hearts." - Richelle E. Goodrich
- “Daddies don't just love their children every now and then, it's a love without end." - George Strait
- “My father used to say that it’s never too late to do anything you wanted to do." - Michael Jordan
- "I only hope when I have my own family that everyday I see a little more of my father in me." - Keith Urban
- “I would have five more girls if I could. I’m a girl dad." - Kobe Bryant
- “Lookin' back all I can say about all the things he did for me, is I hope I'm at least half the dad that he didn't have to be.” - Brad Paisley
- "It's the one thing I've always wanted to be. Never is a man more of a man than when he is the father of a newborn." - Matthew McConaughey
- “My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person, he believed in me." - Jim Valvano
Happy Father's Day, East Texas!
