24 March is the Feast of Saint Gabriel the Archangel, patron saint of postal, telephone and telegraph workers.
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World Tuberculosis Day is designed to promote awareness about the serious health consequences of tuberculosis throughout the world. Observed on the anniversary of Dr. Robert Koch’s 24 March 1882 announcement that he had discovered the bacillus that causes TB. Sponsored by the World Health Organization, the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease and other international health agencies.
Image courtesy of the U.S. Center for Disease Control
Earth Hour reaches more than one billion people in 4,000 cities around the world, inviting communities, businesses and governments to switch off lights for one hour at 8: 30 PM, local time— sending a powerful global message that we care enough about climate change to take action. Read more at http://www.earthhour.org.
The Feast of the Annunciation – when the angel Gabriel visited the Virgin Mary to announce the impending birth of Jesus Christ, also known in the UK as Lady Day, was traditionally the start of the New Year.
Image: Paolo de Matteis – The Annunciation
National Medial of Honor Day honors the heroic recipients of the Medal of Honor, the highest award that can be given by the president, in the name of Congress, to members of the armed forces who have distinguished themselves beyond the call of duty.
Image courtesy of the U.S. Army
25 March 1775 is the anniversary of the planting by George Washington of pecan trees (some of which still survive) at Mount Vernon, VA. The trees were a gift to Washington from Thomas Jefferson, who had planted a few pecan trees from the southern US at Monticello, VA. The pecan, native to southern North America, is sometimes called “America’s own nut.” First cultivated by Native Americans, it has been transplanted to other continents but has failed to achieve wide use or popularity outside the US.
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The Abolition of Slave Trade Act was enacted in England on March 25, 1807.
Image: Am I not a Woman and a Sister? Public domain
Waffle Day is a tradition that is celebrated in Sweden, and to a lesser extent elsewhere, on March 25. Waffles are typically eaten on this day. The name comes from Vårfrudagen (“Our Lady’s Day”), which in vernacular Swedish sounds almost like Våffeldagen (waffle day).
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Celebrate the green leaf that’s good for you on National Spinach Day!
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Purple Day is an international grassroots effort dedicated to increasing awareness about epilepsy worldwide. On March 26th annually, people in countries around the world are invited to wear purple and host events in support of epilepsy awareness.
On 27 March 1868. Patty Smith Hill, schoolteacher, author and education specialist, was born at Anchorage (suburb of Louisville), KY. She was author of the lyrics of the song “Good Morning to All,” which later became known as “Happy Birthday to You.” Her older sister, Mildred J. Hill, composed the melody for the song, which was first published in 1893 as a classroom greeting in the book Song Stories for the Sunday School. A stanza beginning “Happy Birthday to You” was added in 1924, and the song became arguably the most frequently sung song in the world. Hill died at New York, NY, May 25, 1946.
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We love those old country music quirky song titles, and it’s time to create some new ones. How about “Put Me Out at the Curb Darlin’, ’Cause the Recycling Truck’s A-comin’, and You Done Throwed Me Out,” for starters?
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Mar 28, 1881. P.T. Barnum and James A. Bailey merged their circuses to form the “Greatest Show on Earth.”
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Kebabs, corn dogs, popsicles — you can eat them right off the stick, and it’s a satisfying way to dine. No wonder foods on a stick get their own day of celebration.
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On 28 March 1979, a series of accidents, beginning at 4 AM, EST, at Three Mile Island on the Susquehanna River about 10 miles southeast of Harrisburg, PA, was responsible for extensive reevaluation of the safety of existing nuclear power– generating operations. Equipment and other failures reportedly brought Three Mile Island close to a meltdown of the uranium core, threatening extensive radiation contamination.
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On 29 March 1867, an act of the British parliament established the Dominion of Canada, uniting Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. The remaining colonies in Canada were still ruled directly by Great Britain until Manitoba joined the Dominion in 1870, British Columbia in 1871, Prince Edward Island in 1873, Alberta and Saskatchewan in 1905 and Newfoundland in 1949. Union was proclaimed July 1, 1867.
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National Mom and Pop Business Owners Day on 29 March recognizes those very special husband-and-wife business owner teams that work and commune together. Take this day to strike a balance between business and love.
Traditional annual observance since 1933 to honor America’s physicians on the anniversary of the occasion when Dr. Crawford W. Long became the first acclaimed physician to use ether as an anesthetic agent in a surgical technique, 30 March 1842. The red carnation has been designated the official flower of Doctors’ Day.
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The pencil with an eraser on the end was first patented 30 March 1858 by Hyman Lipman.
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Bunsen Burner Day is a day to honor the inventor of the Bunsen burner, Robert Wilhelm Eberhard von Bunsen, who provided chemists and chemistry students with one of their most indispensable instruments. The Bunsen burner allows the user to regulate the proportions of flammable gas and air to create the most efficient flame. Bunsen was born at Gottingen, Germany, on 31 March 1811, and was a professor of chemistry at the universities at Kassel, Marburg, Breslau and Heidelberg. He died at Heidelberg, Germany, 16 August 1899.
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On 31 March 1927, Cesar Chavez, a labor leader who organized migrant farm workers in support of better working conditions, was born at Yuma, AZ. Chavez initiated the National Farm Workers Association in 1962, attracting attention to the migrant farm workers’ plight by organizing boycotts of products including grapes and lettuce. He died 23 April 1993, at San Luis, AZ. His birthday is a holiday in California.
Image courtesy of “Work Permit,” Creative Commons.
The Eiffel Tower opened on 31 March 1889. Built for the Paris Exhibition of 1889, the tower was named for its architect, Alexandre Gustave Eiffel, and is one of the world’s best-known landmarks.
Image: Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons
April Fools’ Day seems to have begun in France in 1564. Apr 1 used to be New Year’s Day, but the New Year was changed to Jan 1 that year. People who insisted on celebrating the “old” New Year became known as April fools, and it became common to play jokes and tricks on them. The general concept of a feast of fools is, however, an ancient one. The Romans had such a day, and medieval monasteries also had days when the abbot or bishop was replaced for a day by a common monk, who would order his superiors to do the most menial or ridiculous tasks.
According to Brady’s Clavis Calendaria (1812): “The joke of the day is to deceive persons by sending them upon frivolous and nonsensical errands; to pretend they are wanted when they are not, or, in fact, any way to betray them into some supposed ludicrous situation, so as to enable you to call them ‘An April Fool.’”
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In 1979 the National Exchange Club adopted the prevention of child abuse as its national project and established the National Exchange Club Foundation. The Foundation is a chartered nonprofit corporation in Ohio. The Foundation has established Exchange Club Child Abuse Prevention Centers throughout the US.
More than 690,000 families have received services from the Exchange Club Child Abuse Prevention network. Read more at https://www.childwelfare.gov/preventing/preventionmonth/.
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Apr 1, 1970. Radio and television ads for cigarettes were banned in the U.S.A. by legislation signed by President Richard Nixon on this date. The ban went into effect Jan 1, 1971.
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