Anna Jarvis - Mother Of Mother's Day

The women of the Jarvis family possessed an obsession towards activism which was hardly seen in the women of their times in the 1900's. Though there were, in fact, several reform movements that women were engaged in during that time period including The temperance and suffrage were the movements in which some women were engaged (both of which the Jarvis women participated in) but most women devoted their time solely on their family and homes. The Jarvis women, on the other hand were working to ensure that these homemakers were recognized and honored in their work as mothers. Thus, the mother of the household, Mrs. Ann Marie Reeves Jarvis helped develop the "Mothers Friendship Day" to assist in the healing of the nation after the Civil War. After the death of her mother, Anna Jarvis decided to dedicate her life to her mother's cause and to establish Mother's Day to "honor mothers, living and dead."

Anna spent her childhood at Grafton. She attended college in Virginia and then returned to Grafton to become a teacher. From her childhood she remembered how important the cause of establishing a day of recognition for mothers was to her own mother.

Thus, the Mother's Day was established by the determination of a loving daughter. Miss Jarvis worked industriously, writing innumerable letters to influential people and distributing pamphlets to gain recognition for motherhood. It was due to Anna's tireless work and efforts that the first Mother's Day service was held on May 10, 1907 (though some sources state 1908), at her mother's church, St. Andrew's Methodist Episcopal Church in Grafton. She passed out more than 500 white carnations, one for each mother in the congregation. The white carnation was her most favorite because it represented the purity of a mother's heart. A white carnation was worn to honor deceased mothers and a red one to honor a living mother.

John Wanamaker, a great merchant and philanthropist from Philadelphia joined led by Anna's campaign, giving a great fillip to the cause. It helped the movement to grow. Her efforts started bearing fruit and by 1912 West Virginia became the first state to adopt an official Mother's Day, and finally by 1914, the Congress passed a joint resolution, signed by President Woodrow Wilson, to establish Mother's Day.

Despite all the joy surrounding her successful campaign, all was not bliss. Miss Jarvis became very concerned with the steadily increasing commercialization of Mother's Day and opposed the selling of flowers and the use of greeting cards. She felt that her holiday, which was meant to be a "noble and true" celebration, had been exploited for profit. Miss Jarvis was concerned with reform, not revenue.

The Mother's Day movement was a celebration of the importance of women and their work inside the home, as mothers. The very involvement of Anna Jarvis and other activists brought the role of mothers and homemakers into the eyes of the public- giving it positive exposure, acknowledgment, and public admiration.

The resolve and resilience of Anna Jarvis and her mother towards their causes and beliefs made them a hero. She is a true hero not only because of her devotion, love, and loyalty as daughter but also as her dedication as a sibling, caring for her unsound sister. It is a great irony that the women who worked for the cause of other women couldn't become a mother herself. But through her work, she earned the title of the "Mother of Mother's Day,"- a title as grand as her beautiful cause.