Attention, all grandparents!
Sunday, Sept. 13, is your special day — but chances are you’re not aware of it.
You’re not alone.
More than 90% of adults aren’t aware that Sunday is Grandparents Day or that there even is a Grandparents Day.
In 2023 when egg dyeing was more affordable, granddaughter Huitzil, then age seven, and her grandpa Cubbie (Rich Archbold), show their finished decorated eggs. (Photo courtesy of Pat Archbold)
Rich Archbold dressed in his best “newsboy” outfit with his granddaughters Carmen and Huitzil and their news carry-bags.(Photo by Shirley Wild, The Press-Telegram/SCNG)
Rich Archbold with his granddaughters, from left, Carmen, Ellie and Huitzil. (Photo by Pat Archbold)
Pat Archbold, Rich Archbold’s wife, with their three granddaughters, from left, Carmen, Ellie and Huitzil. (Photo by Rich Archbold)
Pat and Rich Archbold with their granddaughters –Huitzil Gomez Archbold, left, Carmen Andrs (with Pat’s arm around
her) and Ellie Andrs — last year. (Photo courtesy of the Archbold family)
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In 2023 when egg dyeing was more affordable, granddaughter Huitzil, then age seven, and her grandpa Cubbie (Rich Archbold), show their finished decorated eggs. (Photo courtesy of Pat Archbold)
But it’s true. In 1978, President Jimmy Carter signed legislation proclaiming the first Sunday after Labor Day as Grandparents Day, the first one to be celebrated in 1979.
Grandparents Day was founded by Marian McQuade, an amazing woman who was an elder rights activist living in West Virginia.
McQuade was born in 1917 and died in 2008 at the age of 91. She married Joe McQuade, a coal miner, and together they had 15 children and an astounding 43 grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren.
She was a tireless advocate for seniors, and was especially concerned about sick and lonely seniors in hospitals and nursing homes.
She started a grassroots campaign to set aside a special day just for grandparents. McQuade’s idea was to celebrate not only grandparents but also the entire family.
West Virginia became the first state to proclaim a Grandparents Day in 1973.
McQuade continued her campaign nationwide until Carter signed the national proclamation in 1978.
She was strongly against commercializing this special day. The only gift she wanted grandparents to receive was the gift of time spent with their families, either in person or by phone.
McQuade was a nurturing and supportive person.
“I am the luckiest person in the world,” she said when asked about founding Grandparents Day. “I have a wonderful and understanding husband, my children are all healthy and well, and my grandchildren and great-grandchildren brighten my days. And then I have my work promoting Grandparents Day, working with seniors, and visiting the sick and lonely in hospitals and nursing homes. What more could I want?”
In 2024, the U.S. federal census said that two-thirds of U.S. adults ages 65 and over were grandparents. About three-fourths of Americans aged 80 to 90 were grandparents. The average age of a grandparent in 2024 was 68, according to the census.
Grandparents Day has never reached the same renown as Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. Maybe one reason is because grandparents are already honored on those May and June landmark celebrations.
As the grandfather of three beautiful granddaughters, I can also say they bring me so much joy that every day is Grandparents Day for me. I don’t need cards or gifts on just one day to be reminded of what a gift I have with my granddaughters, who are aged 9, 10 and 11.
They call me Cubbie because of my passion for the Chicago Cubs. They call my wife Lita, a shortened form of abuelita, the affectionate Spanish word for grandmother or grandma.
Lita and I spoil our granddaughters every chance we get. We are lucky they live close by so we get to see them often. I have one friend whose two grandkids live in Europe, and he only gets to see them twice a year.
Do you have grandparents in your life? They can be grandparents of the heart, not just blood relatives. Give them a call or stop by for a visit on Sunday.
Marian McQuade would be pleased.