Grandparents Day honours 'backbones of our country'

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 20: Thank you for the introduction, Mrs Simmons, and thank you for putting on this event at such short notice.

Bermuda National Grandparents’ Day was first celebrated on 18th October 2001, and the first Proclamation was delivered by then Premier, Dame Jennifer Smith.

Ever since then, Grandparents’ Day has been celebrated in Bermuda on the third Thursday of October.

The Bermuda Institute was instrumental in establishing this day and they have actively celebrated the contributions made by Bermuda’s Seniors and Grandparents.

Unfortunately, this special day wasn’t observed by very many other organisations or individuals, and it often passed without notice.

As a result, the Bermuda Institute petitioned the Government to move the celebration from the third Thursday of October to the third Sunday of October.

We were pleased to agree, as we want to ensure that our growing population of Seniors and Grandparents receive the recognition they so richly deserve.

This is the last time that Grandparents’ Day will be celebrated on the Thursday.  Next year, it will be on 20th October, and we hope that the entire Island will stand up, take notice, and pay their respects to all our Grandparents.

With that, I would like to again thank and congratulate Mrs Simmons, the staff and the students at the Bermuda Institute for their ongoing support.  We appreciate your passion, and we are sure that your efforts will be rewarded.

Now, I will turn the podium over to the Minister of Community Development, the Hon. Michael Weeks so that he can deliver the Proclamation.

WHEREAS,

Seniors are the backbone of a country and grandparents are the backbone of the family, and;

WHEREAS,

Grandparents represent the human link that bridges the generations of ancestors with the current generation. They are the keepers of the family history, the source and fountain of all family anecdotes, the guardians of family values, traditions and heritage; and

WHEREAS,

In addition to loving and guiding their children through to adulthood, many grandparents today are also called upon to provide an intergenerational connection as the primary caregivers to grandchildren and sometimes, to great-grandchildren; and

WHEREAS,

The Government of Bermuda believes that the entire community should acknowledge that grandparents are a precious family resource, whose presence enriches the lives of our children, by banding together to show honour, respect and gratitude to all grandparents in our community.

THEREFORE,

I, the Honourable Michael A. Weeks, JP MP, Minister of Community Development, do hereby announce that from this day forth, the Third Sunday in the Month of October has been set aside as a special day to celebrate the contributions of grandparents in the Islands of Bermuda.