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“Make Your Own Holiday Day” has people thinking about events that the community missed
By: Emily Huynh
huynhe@findlay.edu
If you could make a day to celebrate whatever you wanted, a book, a person, a historical day, or maybe even a day to celebrate you besides your birthday, now you can. Hug a Grump Day, National Free Pizza Day, I Deserve a Raise Day, and Disco Dancing Day are just some of the suggestions for new holidays to celebrate according to an article by Jace Shoemaker-Galloway from Holidailys.
Mar. 26 marks “Make Up Your Own Holiday Day” every year, opening the door for a variety of celebrations. Its purpose is simply this: a chance to make a mark on the world that others need to remember. Those at The University of Findlay want to see a change in the student community to come together and celebrate more.
The integration of technology into everyday life caused concern about how students were coming together and spending that time in the same room or sitting at the same table.
“I would love to have a day that we celebrate No Tech Day, that everybody agrees to put down their phones, their laptops, and not do any technology,” said Dr. Diana Montague, professor and chair of communication at the University of Findlay. “We’ve gotten to a point in our culture when we don’t really spend time with the people that we are with.”
Walk by any of the gathering places at University of Findlay such as the Alumni Memorial Union, the Student Life Center at the business building, or the Davis building lobby, people can observe this lack of communication at any time.
“You walk around campus, and there’s six people sitting over in a pod, and they’re all looking at their own phones. They’re not talking to each other. And it’s not just on campus, it’s all over our culture,” Montague said. “Nobody communicates interpersonally with the person they’re [sitting] right next to, and what a loss.”
People can lose sight of what is important without communication. Parts of history that people do not think about or forget its important also fade away by not acknowledging them as a community.
“We often times don’t acknowledge Constitution Day,” pointed out Dr. Kathy Mason, professor of history and gender studies, and chair of history, pre-law, and gender studies program at the University of Findlay. “We do technically celebrate it, it’s Sept. 17, because that’s when the document was signed. But, we don’t have a big national holiday over this.”
Mason continues to explain how schools may emphasize it, but there is no newsflash about what people are doing for Constitution Day. Another example is the 19th Amendment which nationally gave women the right to vote.
Locally, there are options to help celebrate these historical milestones.
“Local celebrations can make national issues more tangible. For example, our local Hancock Historical Museum did a really nice display of the suffrage movement and embedding Ohio and local history within that national movement,” Mason said.
With all these historical moments, the importance of celebrating holidays and marking these events goes beyond checking it off on the calendar. It marks a time when people can spend time together for the existence of today’s culture.
“Celebrations and holidays should bring people together that you share something in common with,” Montague said.
With so many different things that exist to celebration and more that could be celebrated, students can consider coming together and honoring something important to them for Make Up Your Own Holiday Day to which the community owes thanks to Thomas and Ruth Roy.
According to National Today, Make Up Your Own Holiday Day is officiated by the owners of Wellcat Holidays, the Roy couple, who are also credited with the creation of about 80 additional celebrations. National Today tracked this day’s importance back to the 1920s when companies like Hallmark capitalized on the special days, up until it was recognized in the early 2000s. As of March 2021, Make Up Your Own Holiday Day encompasses celebrating life and all its cultural changes including international events.
Visit Wellcat’s page for additional information about the Roys and other holidays they have created.
