Labor Day

September 4, 2026September 3, 2026Jensperspectiveblog Leave a comment

Labor Day on first Monday of every September recognizes the men and women who labor to build this country. Through a time-honored tradition with roots in the coordinated efforts of the labor movement of the 1800s, we salute the American workforce.

Since the founding of the United States, the country has relied on its workforce for its infrastructure. From its streets and buildings to its transportation and security, the nation runs on labor. The labor of what we create, build and harvest fuels our education and inspires our dreams.

This National Day also signals the official end of summer. Those who work hard, need time to play, too. With the school year starting and summer winding down, the long weekend beckons. They use the extra day earned to spend with families and catch some R&R. Some will explore cities while others will seek outdoor adventure. No matter where it’s spent, it’s well earned.

Try our Greek Turkey burgers, No-Fail Fresca Sangria, for your celebration. Try some of our other great recipes here.

So if enjoying a last mini vacation, football game, parade, or barbeque, remember all the hard work the American worker has put into the lives we currently enjoy. Take a moment to remember all those teachers, doctors, road crews, miners, steel and auto industry, manufacturing, blue-collar, white-collar and everything in between that have given to the American economy and our way of life.

HISTORY OF LABOR DAY

On September 5, 1882, Labor Day first honored workers in New York City. The observance later moved to the first Monday in September in 1884. However, the observance wasn’t officially recognized by any government entity until 1885 when a municipal ordinance was passed. Interestingly, Oregon recognized the day in 1887 before New York state’s bill passed. As more states recognized the observance, its popularity grew. Then, in 1894, Congress declared the day to be a national observance.

HOW TO OBSERVE LABOR DAY

Many families spend Labor Day weekend on vacation. They pack the campgrounds full or explore tourist towns for one last hurrah! As you celebrate this day, consider and appreciate your hard work and how it has added to the well-being and prosperity of our country. If you must see them, be extra nice to those who don’t get the holidays some of us do. Medical, nurses and health care, all first responders, a lot of retail workers and any others who still have to work today. Use #LaborDay to post on social media.

America 250

June 30, 2026June 30, 2026Jensperspectiveblog Leave a comment

America250 marks the Semiquincentennial as a once-in-a-generation national commemoration—led by the U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission and the nonprofit America250—designed to engage every American from local block parties to national signature programs through July 4, 2026. (america250.org)

America Innovates, a multi-day showcase celebrating 250 years of American ingenuity with tech expos, on-stage conversations, and a national startup competition to inspire the next generation of innovators, and America’s Block Party, a synchronized, nationwide Fourth of July celebration with large-scale concerts (including a Los Angeles benefit show and national broadcast events), are signature highlights.

America250 has put together partnerships and public initiatives to strengthen cultural reflection and civic engagement: Events and logistics are powered throughout the year by partnerships with institutions and corporate supporters (such as automotive brand collaborations and cultural organizations), while programs like America Waves invite coordinated moments of national participation.

Civic- and history-focused features include the recently sealed “America’s Time Capsule,” which compiles letters, artifacts, and records to be preserved for 250 years and will be buried in Philadelphia ahead of July 4, 2026—part of broader commemorative programming that ranges from military honors and parades to community service campaigns like America Gives. (america250.org)

Through a calendar of events, including parades, educational programs, museum exhibitions, and volunteer opportunities, America250 encourages state and community commissions to participate both locally and nationally. This allows individuals, schools, and civic organizations to reflect on the country’s past and create a common vision for the next 250 years.

So join the party. As it’s a once a generation celebration its definitely something to commerce. As this experiment in self government has proven itself to be both a positive influence and an enduring formula. While we are not perfect and debates still thrives, the ideas, these foundations of freedoms in this nation have not only endured here, but have been an idea that others around the world aspire to.

NATIONAL VOLUNTEER MONTH

March 31, 2026March 5, 2026Jensperspectiveblog 4 Comments

April recognizes all those who give there time and energy during National Volunteer Month. In the United States, volunteerism is instilled at a young age. In many parts of the country, it is the cornerstone of summer vacation or woven into after school programs. Most organizations in small towns, rural counties and the largest cities would not function without volunteers. In some families, the baton of volunteerism is handed down generation after generation.

Rural fire and ambulance departments remain staffed due to the efforts of volunteers. The underprivileged receive much needed medical care thanks to volunteers. Long overdue repairs and upgrades are made to a senior women’s home thanks to an organization’s annual call for donations and skilled workers. A woman answers a call on a suicide hotline because she cared enough to give up a few hours to train and listen to someone desperate and alone. A team sets up tables at a soup kitchen every week. Another group delivers meals to men and women who can no longer cook for themselves. Boys and girls sell ice cream sandwiches during a fair to raise money for a homeless shelter.

Volunteers come in all shapes and sizes. They pick a cause and make a difference in someone’s life. Sometimes the difference a drop in the bucket. Other times it creates a tidal wave of change. From the anonymous volunteers who donate their resources to those whose efforts are part of larger national organizations like 4-H, Boy and Girl Scouts of America, or American Red Cross or a local grassroots group, their missions provide valuable support to communities in times of need.

NATIONAL VOLUNTEER MONTH HISTORY

President George H.W. Bush launch the 1000 Points of Light campaign in 1991 and established April as National Volunteer Month.

HOW TO OBSERVE #NationalVolunteerMonth

Thank a volunteer.
Volunteer! Many volunteers will tell you it is a rewarding experience.
You don’t have to have a ton of time.
Do you have a special talent or skill that may benefit a charity or organization? Offer your services or ask how you can be of help.
Use #NationalVolunteerMonth to share on social media.

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INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY

March 7, 2026February 17, 2026Jensperspectiveblog 1 Comment

International Women’s Day on March 8th each year celebrates the social, economic, and political achievements of women around the world. The day also brings international awareness to gender parity. According to the World Economic Forum, global gender equality is estimated to be achieved by 2133.

Gender equality is the equal access to the same rights and opportunities regardless of gender. These rights and opportunities include:

healthcare
education
employment / economic gain
pay
protection under the law
right to vote
free from violence

Striving for Change

Holding Political Office

Just over 100 years ago, only .2 % of the United States Congress consisted of women. Actually, the 65th Congress was comprised of a single woman. In 1916, Montana elected Republican Jeannette Rankin as the first Congresswoman to hold a federal office. Fast forward to the year 2020 and women hold 23.7% of the U.S. Congressional seats. While that might seem like progress, according to United Nations statistics, the U.S. percentage matches exactly the worldwide average for women in political office.

Education

In many parts of the world, women are less likely to own land, a business, or attend school. Education alone is a powerful tool leading to financial independence for women. Their children reap the rewards, often for generations to come. Additionally, but when the women of a community prosper, so does the community. Educated women and girls are more likely to educate their offspring. They also have a better understanding of healthcare and understand their rights.

Equal Pay

According to the United Nations, more than half of the world’s poorest people are women. International Women’s Day strives to bring economic power to women who aren’t allowed to work for pay or work for low wages. And despite strides in industrialized countries, there’s still work to do there, too.

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY HISTORY

International Women’s Day origins can be traced back to the early 1900s when women became more politically active and took an invested and vocal role in steering their course toward voting rights, fair pay, working conditions, and representation under the law

HOW TO OBSERVE #InternationalWomensDay

Around the world, organizations, communities, and individuals organize events focused on the mission of gender parity, celebrating the achievements of women worldwide and education.

Attend a lecture, seminar or festival
Organize an event
Speak or perform at a local fundraiser
Participate in a march for women’s equal rights
Learn about the women who paved the way for many of the rights and freedoms we have today
Become involved in your local, state or national political system
Invite others to join you, including other women, sons, brothers, sisters, and daughters
Share your job skills at a local career fair
Celebrate all month long. It’s also National Women’s History Month.

Use #InternationalWomensDay when posting on Social Media.

-#MakeItHappen
– #womensday
– #IWD2015
– #internationalwomensday
– #PaintItPurple

Besides tagging your photographs and post with these has tags, you can also do the following:

• Share content or retweet amessage that might be relevant to the theme of International Women’s Day 2024
• You can use thelogo of the international women day on your blog, website or on your Facebook’s cover photo. Alternatively, you can also use the IWD logo in your email signatures
• The official colour of International Women’s Day is purple. You can wear a purple shirt to work, use purple in your websites, blogs or social media. You can also make a video or presentation on the theme of International Women’s Day 2022 and post it on your social media account to raise awareness about the different issues that women from different backgrounds all over the world are forced to fight everyday.

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National Women’s History Month

February 28, 2026February 3, 2026Jensperspectiveblog 4 Comments

National Women’s History Month in March annually encourages us to honor the women who came before us and fought for equality among all races and genders.

“Of all the evils for which man has made himself responsible, none is so degrading, so shocking or so brutal as his abuse of the better half of humanity; the female sex.” -Mahatma Gandhi

While America is full of influential women today, hundreds of women came before them, paving the way. Women’s History Month serves as a way to not only remember them but keep carrying their torch onward. There’s still work to do. During the month, International Women’s Day also celebrates the achievements of women from the past and present.

Pioneering Women from History

In the 1800s, Sojourner Truth was an abolitionist and women’s rights activist who was born into slavery and escaped with her infant daughter. She later became known for her “Ain’t I a Woman?” speech regarding racial inequalities in the year 1851 at an Ohio Women’s Rights Convention.
Louisa May Alcott worked in the mid-1800s to support her family and their financial difficulties, while she was just a young girl. She wrote one of the most famous novels in American history, “Little Women.”
Susan B. Anthony played a massive role in the women’s suffrage movement in 1878 when she and her friends presented an amendment to Congress that, if passed, would give women the right to vote. In 1920 it was ratified as the 19th amendment.
In the mid-1900s, Marguerite Higgins was a reporter and war correspondent for the New York Herald Tribune during WWII, The Korean War, and the Vietnam War. She was the first woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for Foreign Correspondence.
Coretta Scott King played a crucial role in keeping alive the legacy of her husband, civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., after his death. She started the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change in 1968 after he was assassinated.
Rosa Parks was one of the most famous, influential women of the civil rights movement. In 1955, she refused to give up her seat in the “colored section” of a bus to a white man and got charged with civil disobedience. Today, she’s widely known as the “mother of the freedom movement.”
Sandra Day O’Connor is the only woman on this list who is still alive today. She is a lawyer, a celebrated judge, and was the first female justice on the Supreme Court from 1981-2006.

The list goes on, and we could have you reading about strong, brave, powerful, and influential women for hours. These women and thousands more played prominent roles in getting women to where they are today.

“The emancipation of woman will only be possible when woman can take part in production on a large, social scale, and domestic work no longer claims anything but an insignificant amount of her time.” -Friedrich Engels

NATIONAL WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH HISTORY

National Women’s History Month was established in 1987 as a way to celebrate women across the nation and their efforts to make the country, and world, a better place for women of all ages and races.

HOW TO OBSERVE #WomensHistoryMonth

Take the time to learn more about women’s history this month. If you do, chances are it’ll help you truly understand and appreciate the strength and determination of women across the country over hundreds of years. Use # NationalWomen’s HistoryMonth or #WomensHistoryMonth to post on social media and show the world how you are celebrating! If you’re a teacher or professor, take some time this month to teach your students about women’s history. To this day, some people still don’t fully understand the leaps and bounds women have made in the United States.

“I raise up my voice- not so I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard…we cannot succeed when half of us are held back.” -Malala Yousafzai

In 1777, all states passed a law that took away women’s rights to vote. In 1855, a black woman who was a slave was declared property with no right to defend herself against her master’s act of rape. By 1900, every state had passed legislation based on New York’s Married Women’s Property Act. This granted married women some control over their property and earnings. In 1947, the U.S. Supreme Court stated that women are equally qualified with men to serve on juries. Now, women can do so much more than being able to own their own property and serve on a jury. Women can vote, and women have voices, all thanks to those who fought for equality. Do your own research to learn about the rest in honor of National Women’s History Month!

Jen's Perspective Blog

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HISTORY OF LABOR DAY

HOW TO OBSERVE LABOR DAY

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NATIONAL VOLUNTEER MONTH HISTORY

HOW TO OBSERVE #NationalVolunteerMonth

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Striving for Change

Holding Political Office

Education

Equal Pay

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY HISTORY

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Pioneering Women from History

NATIONAL WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH HISTORY

HOW TO OBSERVE #WomensHistoryMonth

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