This year Father’s Day is going to have some extra ‘BANG’ as it coincides with the summer solstice – the longest day and the shortest night of the year. It’s coming up on Sunday June 20th.
We are so happy to honor the AMS Dads as we see them every day, in warehouses and offices, holding it down for their families and for their corporate family as well. AMS is home to some top notch Dads and we appreciate them! We wish to thank them for being the sunshine all year, every year. You deserve the longest day!! Happy Father’s Day from AMS – have fun!!
Father’s Day is celebrated annually on the third Sunday in June in the United States. It’s always interesting to see how a holiday came to be. For Father’s Day, the event that started the recognition of fathers was a tragic mining accident. The Farmers Almanac tells us that the first known Father’s Day service occurred in Fairmont, West Virginia, on July 5, 1908, after hundreds of men died in the worst mining accident in U.S. history. The Sunday service happened because of the efforts of Grace Golden Clayton, the daughter of a dedicated reverend.
Quoting from the article, “While missing her own dad, who had died in 1896, Mrs. Clayton wanted to honor the many fathers who had died in the mining explosion, which killed more than 360 men and boys, and left about 1,000 children fatherless. Although the Fairmont service was the first known to honor fathers, it did not turn into an annual event, nor was the idea promoted (a large July 4 celebration in Fairmont and a tragic young death from typhoid fever took over the news at the time).”
Several other people across the nation had similar ideas throughout the years. For example we see another Father’s Day celebration in Spokane, Washington that was observed on June 19, 1910 (the third Sunday in June), so that gets us closer to our celebration today. But Father’s Day didn’t become a permanent national holiday for many years although there were several attempts.
Finally, in 1972, President Richard Nixon signed a law declaring that Father’s Day be celebrated annually on the third Sunday in June. It has been an official, permanent national holiday ever since.
We can’t think of a better way to honor all the AMS Dads, and all Dads everywhere than a perfect poem.
Life Lessons
You may have thought I didn’t see,
Or that I hadn’t heard,
Life lessons that you taught to me,
But I got every word.
Perhaps you thought I missed it all,
And that we’d grow apart,
But Dad, I picked up everything,
It’s written on my heart.
Without you, Dad, I wouldn’t be
The person I am today;
You built a strong foundation
No one can take away.
I’ve grown up with your values,
And I’m very glad I did;
So here’s to you, dear father,
From your forever grateful kid.
By Joanna Fuchs
Happy Fathers Day and Happy Solstice – you deserve the longest day!!