About National Day of Encouragement
The National Day of Encouragement in the United States was announced in 2007 and occurs each year on September 12th.
The first proclamation for the Day of Encouragement was made by Mayor Belinda LaForce of Searcy, Arkansas on August 22nd 2007. In September Mike Beebe, the Governor of Arkansas, signed a proclamation making September 12, 2007 the "State Day of Encouragement" for Arkansas.
Later, President George W. Bush also signed a message making September 12th the official "National Day of Encouragement."
The Encouragement Foundation is making plans to get more states involved in the National Day of Encouragement in the future.
The “Day of Encouragement” was conceptualized in June 2007 by a group of high school students attending a leadership camp at Harding University in Searcy, Ark. The students were challenged to determine what they believe to be the biggest problems facing high school students today and to devise a solution. While alcohol, drugs and violence were identified as serious problems, one group determined the basic problem facing youth in schools, and society in general, was a “lack of encouragement.”
The day went on to be endorsed by both Presidents George W. Bush, and his father, George H. W. Bush, and by celebrities such as comedian Jeff Foxworthy. The elder Bush said of the Day, “Acts of kindness and encouragement can go a long way toward helping an individual achieve success.”
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