While the history of Mother's Day is centuries old and can be traced back to the ancient Greeks who held festivities to honor Rhea, the mother of the gods, the modern day celebration of Mother’s Day started here in West Virginia, with the efforts of Anna Jarvis.

This year marks the 100th Anniversary of Mother’s Day, a time-honored West Virginia tradition, now celebrated across the globe.

In 1908, Anna Jarvis asked the superintendent of the church where her mother had spent over 20 years teaching Sunday School to hold an event to honor the memory of her deceased mother.  Her request was granted, and on May 10, the first official Mother's Day celebrations took place at Andrew's Methodist Church in Grafton, West Virginia and a church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  At the celebration in West Virginia, Anna Jarvis gave each of the 407 guests in attendance a white carnation—her mother’s favorite flower. Today, white carnations are used to honor deceased mothers, while pink or red carnations pay tribute to mothers who are still alive.

To this day, Andrew's Methodist Church, now the International Mother's Day Shrine, holds Mother’s Day services every year, drawing visitors from around the state and across the country to West Virginia to take part in the festivities.  Grafton is also home to the Anna Jarvis Birthplace and Museum.

Building on that success, Anna Jarvis began advocating for a National Mother’s Day and sent hundreds of letters to businessmen, executives and lawmakers on every level of government. 

In 1910, West Virginia Governor William Glasscock issued the first Mother’s Day Proclamation encouraging everyone in the state to attend church and wear white carnations in honor of their mothers.

Soon, thanks to her efforts, Mother’s Day events were being celebrated in every state.  On May 8, 1914, the U.S. Congress approved a resolution that designated the second Sunday in May to be observed as Mother’s Day.  President Woodrow Wilson signed a similar proclamation the following day, making it a national holiday.

Today, Mother’s Day has exceeded the wildest dreams of Anna Jarvis or her mother.  It has become one of our most commercially successful holidays—quite a contrast to the simple ceremony held in a rural West Virginia church a century ago.  This year, Americans are expected to spend over $15.8 billion on Mother’s Day, including $672 million on greeting cards, $2 billion on flowers, and $2.7 billion on jewelry for their mothers.  More telephone calls are made on this day than on any other day of the year, all in an effort to recognize and thank the mothers, grandmothers, great-grandmothers and other wonderful women who have done so much for so many.

This Mother’s Day, as we remember our mothers during this special time, let us be thankful for the examples they have set, the love they have shown, and the legacies they have left behind.  Let us also take a moment and remember Anna Jarvis, whose inspiration and determination a century ago paved the way for this holiday to honor these special women in our lives.

Mother’s Day is a time for families across the Nation to come together to honor those who gave us life and who, throughout our lives, have given us encouragement, inspiration, and unconditional love—our mothers.  It is a heart-felt and loving tradition, one of which West Virginians can be especially proud.