[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 120 (Friday, September 11, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10255-S10256]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     CELEBRATING GRANDPARENT'S DAY

  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, this Sunday is Grandparent's Day. Like 
Mother's Day, this holiday has its origins in the great State of West 
Virginia. The Presiding Officer at the moment is from Ohio, a 
distinguished Senator from Ohio. He is a neighbor. His State is a 
neighbor of ours. This holiday began in West Virginia.
  In 1956, a lifelong mountaineer and the wife of a coal miner, Mrs. 
Marian McQuade, was asked to assist in organizing a ``Past 80 Party.'' 
I would qualify for that party if it were held today. Well, this group 
continues today to annually honor and celebrate octogenarians and other 
seniors in West Virginia. Mrs. McQuade began gathering participants to 
join in these festivities by contacting nursing homes. She learned of 
the chronic loneliness that many of the seniors in these homes 
experienced, and she was deeply saddened. Her heartfelt concern 
engendered the idea of a special day, a specific day to celebrate 
grandparents.
  In May 1973, West Virginia became the first State with a specially 
designated Grandparent's Day. Five years later, Mrs. McQuade received a 
phone call from the White House. This call informed her that President 
Carter had signed a law that designated the first Sunday after Labor 
Day as National Grandparent's Day. The holiday was shifted to the fall 
for symbolic reasons, as Grandparent's Day celebrates those in the 
autumn--ah, the autumn--of their lives. The first official national 
observance of this holiday occurred in September 1979--autumn, when the 
leaves are turning from green to gold to red and to brown.
  The statute creating Grandparent's Day states that the purpose of 
Grandparent's Day is ``to honor grandparents, to give grandparents an 
opportunity to show love for their children's children, and to help 
children become aware of [the] strength, information, and guidance 
[that] older people can offer.'' This is a day to celebrate sharing 
between the generations. It is a day for the older and younger 
generations to commune with one another. It is, above all, a day to 
celebrate the family.
  All too often in our increasingly fast-paced world, we fail to 
reflect. Perhaps on this Grandparent's Day we can enjoy the leisure of 
reminiscing on earlier days and, in so doing, opening a dialog between 
the generations. Such a confabulation benefits all who participate.
  Sharing time with grandchildren provides the grandparent not only 
with longed-for companionship, but also may inspire great personal joy 
and a renewed liveliness. The young are like a rejuvenating elixir, 
restoring a youthful spring in one's step. The young possess a certain 
charm, reminding us of what it feels like to be young again, and 
through them the spirit is enlivened. The aged may even see in the 
younger generation certain reminders of their own early ambitions, and 
foresee the potential that these sprouts have to take root and grow. 
And when these seedlings begin to bloom, finding their own success, 
there is no greater pride than that of the grandparent who encouraged, 
who listened, and who applauded along the way. And the majority leader 
will see this one day, as he recently had a grandchild come into his 
family.
  While grandparents' steps are enlivened by spending time with their 
grandchildren, the children learn upon which path these steps ought to 
be taken. Children, although they may, at times, view their elders as 
antediluvian and inveterate, will sit enraptured as they listen to 
stories recounted by their parents' parents. I remember how they used 
to sit around me when I played the fiddle. Oh, to live those days over 
again!
  The young will often, perhaps strangely, volunteer to assist with 
otherwise tedious chores to be by the side of grandparents. From the 
tales told and the time spent tending to tasks together, youngsters 
learn family history, and they ought to listen to it and they ought to 
be interested in that family history. They learn family history, 
traditions, and glimpse a wiser perspective of their world. Also, that 
is what many of us older persons need today--a wiser perspective of our 
world. Narratives and demonstrations of the maxim ``hard work works'' 
have the power to convey and ingrain the principles of success that are 
eternal verities. It is hard to imagine or recall, with our cars, 
microwaves, cell phones, and laptops, just how hard our parents and 
grandparents labored to do things that seem so simple today. We turn up 
a thermostat instead of chopping wood. But if one wants to warm himself 
twice, he only needs to chop his own wood. We hit ``spellcheck'' rather 
than retyping term papers. When faced with future adversity, growing 
children may look back on such nostalgia to carry them through their 
own trying times.
  I am lucky to share in my grandchildren's lives, I feel the pride of 
being a grandparent, and I recall Mrs. McQuade's story. I remember how 
she found that some seniors were neglected and forlorn, living lives of 
lonely destitution. Who knows, that may come to any one of us in time. 
Sadly, for some, this is still the case.
  Although many of their loved ones may have passed on, other seniors, 
thanks to advances in medicine and to Federal programs that provide a 
safety net of social services, continue to carry on. Many find ways to 
remain active in their communities, organizing events or sharing their 
time with others. Some have even taken on the burden of raising their 
children's children or acting as surrogate grandparents to those 
children who have lost their natural grandparents or who never knew 
them. Our older Americans have sweated and labored to defend and fight 
for our Nation, educate our young, mine the fuel to keep our homes 
warm, and shelter the values which we treasure the most. A greater 
obligation to our venerable matriarchs and patriarchs who have served 
as such wonderful role models to not one, but two, generations is our 
duty.

[[Page S10256]]

  This is why I am proud to add my name as a cosponsor of a bill to 
reauthorize the Older Americans Act. This Act helps to assess the needs 
of seniors and provide services to fill these needs. Funding through 
this Act provides nutrition, disease prevention, and in-home health 
service programs for the elderly. The Older Americans Act will also 
provide for community service employment for senior citizens with low 
income, so that they may continue to demonstrate the strength of their 
work ethic. Furthermore, the Act will allow state and local aging 
agencies to operate as advocates to promote the rights of older 
persons. As more and more Americans enter the older generation, it is 
critical that the mechanisms which have provided assistance continue to 
be able to lend support. We must not forget the lessons which these men 
and women have passed on to us and to our children. To do so would be 
to debase their contribution to the prosperity of our own posterity. 
The generous contributions our seniors have made will continue to 
propagate long after the grandchildren of today leave this world. 
Remembering our older Americans, and the importance of their influence 
on many young, fresh lives, is perhaps the most apt offering we can 
bestow as we celebrate Grandparents' Day.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor. In doing so, may I thank my friend 
from North Dakota, Mr. Dorgan, for his patience, and all others on 
whose time I have transgressed.
  I thank him also for his contributions to the work of the Nation, for 
his knowledge, for his clearheadedness, for his evenhandedness, and for 
the inspiration that he gives to me and all of my colleagues.
  Mr. DORGAN addressed the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Dakota is recognized 
for 20 minutes.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, let me thank the Senator from West 
Virginia for his kind words. He always contributes immensely to this 
Senate when he rises and speaks to the Senate and to the American 
people. I am enormously proud to serve with Senator Byrd, as I have 
indicated on previous occasions.

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