Celebrate The Elders on Grandparents Day

Published September 3, 2024 By Helen Oliff

In the U.S., we observe National Grandparents Day on the Sunday after Labor Day. But some grandparents, like the Indigenous Elders, are cherished and revered every day. Whether feeding them first at gatherings, giving them the most comfortable seats, or waiting for them to dance first at powwows, they are always top of mind. This bodes well for Native American children too, about half of whom are being raised by their grandparents on the reservations that PWNA serves. The relations between grandparents and grandchildren are in part responsible for the resilience of Native people and communities.

PWNA remembers Native Americans Elders throughout the year, and we designed many of our Material Services with Elders in mind. For example:

Critical Food & Water services like Breakfast-in-a-Bag help Rosebud Elders keep food on the table until their next social security check arrives.
Standard Food helps senior centers serve hot meals to Elders five days a week.
Thanksgiving and Holiday community-wide meals ensure Elders are not alone for the holidays.
Our Produce service gives Elders access to fresh, whole foods not available in food deserts.
Seasonal services like Winter Fuel vouchers help ensure Elders stay warm.
Many Elders even participate in our Long-Term Solutions, such as Emergency Preparedness planning and Train-the-Trainer to support healthy diets in their Tribal communities.

Inspiration for Grandparents Day

National Grandparents Day is a time for us all to remember our grandparents through cards, gifts, visits to nursing homes, and other expressions of love. In fact, the official flower of National Grandparents Day is the forget-me-not. But there is more to what inspired President Jimmy Carter to sign the day into law in 1978.

Many believe that Marian McQuade inspired National Grandparents Day. An Elder rights activist from West Virginia, she stressed the important contributions of senior citizens and even urged people to adopt a grandparent “not for one day a year… but for a lifetime of experience.”

This is akin to how Native Americans regard their Elders and grandparents – as the keepers of wisdom and tradition. With a lifetime of experience, they offer a clear perspective influenced by cultural and spiritual understanding. Through oral storytelling, they pass down teachings and the sacrifices made for the next seven generations. In short, Native Americans know to listen when an Elder speaks.

This National Grandparents Day, I encourage you to take the time to honor the Elders in your life while you still can. I will close with this prayer by an Indigenous Elder (origin unknown):

Honor the sacred. Honor the Earth, our Mother.
Honor the Elders. Honor all with whom we share the Earth:
the four-legged, two-legged, winged ones, swimmers, crawlers, plant and rock people.
Walk in balance and beauty.