Grandparents Day Events

On Grandparents Day, we have the precious opportunity to embrace our heritage and those older and wiser than us, and to let our dearest family members know how appreciated they are.

In celebration of this momentous occasion, we checked in around the country to hear about how others are celebrating Grandparents Day and we found many exciting things taking place across the country! Below are a few of our favorites.

Grandparents Day Celebrations…

In Washington, DC: Generations United (“GU”) is an organization that helps to nationally promote grandparents and Grandparents Day. Like Grandparent Merit Badges, GU encourages intergenerational connectivity! GU’s mission statement states:

“The mission of Generations United is to improve the lives of children, youth, and older people through intergenerational collaboration, public policies, and programs for the enduring benefit of all.”

This year, Generations United’s theme for Grandparents Day is:

“Grand Minds: Learn, Love, Legacy,” highlights the role of learning across generations and celebrates the ways in which grandparents and older adults inspire, mentor, and shape the future of younger generations.” Grandparents Day – Do Something Grand.

Partnering with GrandparentsAcademy.com, GU has celebrations, talks and virtual activities planned throughout their Grandparent's Week taking place September 8th-14th. You can download the show guide and register for a free pass by this link.

In Cleveland, Ohio, Cleveland Kids’ Book Bank is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization whose mission is to foster literacy and a love of reading by distributing free books to children in need through collaboration with community partners.  Kids’ Book Bank is recognized as an incredible regional distributor of free new and used books to hundreds of partner organizations. Each month, Kids’ Book Bank distributes an average of 45,000 free books through their many book partnerships, and they work diligently to promote literacy to all ages and walks of life.

This month, Cleveland Kids’ Book Bank is celebrating seniors and encouraging connecting generations. GMB celebrates Cleveland Kids’ Book Bank’s exceptional work not only this Grandparents Day, but all year long!

Cleveland Kids’ Book Bank is excited to be a part of the Grandparents Day festivities this year and they have partnered with GMB’s Founder/Author Dave Grunenwald for a special Grandparents Author Event through their Online Marketplace!  Dave has donated hundreds of books to Cleveland’s Kids’ Book Bank organizations who work with seniors. This special Author Event is running online throughout September.

If you are local to the Cleveland area, here is the link to their Online Marketplace.

Book Order Form (jotform.com) Their Online Marketplace will feature their Grandparents Day Author Event with the Grandparent Merit Badge books and the Lucas and Emily Adventure Series.

If you are not local to Cleveland but would like to order a book for Grandparent’s Day, the books are available on Amazon through Halo Publishing through this link: https://halopublishing.com/authors/dave-grunenwald/

Natalie Friedl, Executive Director at Cleveland Kids’ Books Bank, considers the many advantages of  Disconnecting From The Digital™ and reconnecting with those who matter most with the Grandparent Merit Badges™ and she shared the following thoughts with us:

“Older adults, whether they are grandparents, aunts, uncles, or cherished family friends, have a unique ability to inspire a love of reading in children. Their presence, stories, and the quality time spent together offer a valuable break from the constant pull of technology. By sharing a book, they help kids discover the joy of unplugging and connecting over stories that ignite imagination and curiosity. At Cleveland Kids' Book Bank, we celebrate this multigenerational approach to literacy, knowing that every time an older adult shares a book, they’re planting the seeds for lifelong readers.”

Another non-profit organization in Cleveland called Food Strong is also very excited to celebrate Grandparents this month!

Food Strong is committed to providing fresh, local produce to underserved communities in the greater Northeastern Ohio region. Food Strong’s mission is as follows:

“Our mission is to utilize fresh local food as a tool to empower, educate, and cultivate health in communities across our region. We promote the cultivation, purchase and consumption of fresh, local foods while simultaneously providing linkage to the other vital services and resources. Food is the tool we use to convene community members, bring in vital resources and foster overall community wellness.

In all of our work, we make sure to engage the community. We work with, not for, communities, with the mindset that sustainability is ensured when the community has a sense of ownership over our work. We also form strategic partnerships with groups and individuals from the public, business and nonprofit sectors. It takes a village, and by working together, we are able to conserve resources while bringing in the services and expertise of a variety of like-minded stakeholders.” https://www.foodstrong.org/about

In operation since 2018, this growing organization does everything from education and learning to youth entrepreneurship. Food Strong also has numerous ways for folks to volunteer, and they provide a plethora of exciting school programs.

Food Strong has a Care-A-Van program twice a month, a food and health initiative that can be found at the Coit Road Farmers Market. This month they will host an amazing Grandparents Celebration Day on September 14th from 10-1pm. They bring a host of free resources, educators, and vendors to their Care-A-Van event ranging from wellness and exercise to cooking!

This year, we are thrilled to announce that Founder/Author Dave Grunenwald will attend the event as the Guest Author!  Dave will read from one of his Lucas and Emily’s Adventure stories at 12 Noon! He will also be giving out free Grandparent Merit Badges books to those who stop by, so if you are in the area, please come out to meet Dave and receive a free book!

Food Strong’s annual fundraiser is also approaching quickly.! Food Strong will host its annual Beatles-themed Gala this year on September 11th.

‍Who Else is Celebrating this month?

Looking for more celebrating grandparents around the country, we checked in with Jan Bujan of In the Garden with Grandma who dedicates her time, energy and lots of information on her website to teaching the younger generations about all the endless rewards of gardening.

Jan shares with us some very beautiful sentiments on learning from her own grandparents and continuing traditions in the garden!

“During the magical visits as a child to my grandmother’s garden, the basic traditions of gardening were handed down to me, and I was hooked! I learned how to garden through watching and was given the opportunity to play, plant, and pick. Children especially love picking! Now, many years later, and having grandchildren of my own, I am one of the many gardeners who feels a deep desire to pass down the joy of growing food to the next generation. Remember, we don't need to "know it all" or have the "perfect" gardens.  Mother Nature and children only need a willing "grown-up gardener" to work alongside them both. Together, we can harness the power of plants to transform the lives of the grandchildren we love!” – Jan Bujan

Some of us will celebrate our Grandparents with activities at home.  If you are looking for a homemade craft or gift to do, we found a great list on a site called Love to Know. They published a great list of ideas on ways to celebrate Grandparents Day.

Some of the ideas include:

●    Make a homemade gift or drawing for your grandparents

●    Write a letter to them

●    Hold a family photo shoot!

●    Perform a play

●    Share family history

●    Do their yard work

●   "Recreate an Iconic Photo”

Recreate an iconic photo for Grandparent’s Day!

What a good challenge!  Think you and your family can recreate the above iconic photo? If you do, let us know on our GMB Facebook page! Grandparent Merit Badges Facebook Page

There are lots of other wonderful ideas!  The complete list can be found here:

31 Grandparent's Day Activities to Celebrate Your Elders | LoveToKnow

Whatever you choose to do this Grandparents Day, we hope that you will take the time to personally reach out to your loved ones and thank them for what they have done for you and your family.

We wish A Very Happy Grandparents Day to all of our beloved grandparents!  And we thank all the grandparents who share their time, treasure, talents, wisdom… their photo books and favorite recipes, their hugs and their candies! We are so indebted to you, we are so grateful to share this life with you, and we have so much to learn from you!