Sunday is Mother’s Day in the U.S. Have you ordered the flowers and candy? Have you made reservations at the restaurant?
Anna Jarvis started Mother’s Day in remembrance of her deceased mother, who had been an advocate for healthcare for women and children. When her mother died in May 1905, Anna wanted to honor her mother’s spirit and to lift up the importance of ongoing advocacy for women and children, particularly regarding healthcare. She grew upset as the day became commercialized. She spent the rest of her life trying to bring back the true meaning of a national Mother’s Day. It should be a day of recognizing the contributions of mothers, reflecting on their importance for societal health, listening to their needs, and advocating for social supports that make possible the essential work of mothers.
The Social Work Institute in 2025 acknowledged the family as the foundational institution where society begins to take shape, and it recognized the irreplaceable role of the mother and of caregivers. Mothers play a daily role in the lives of their children, fostering their personalities, encouraging values, and affirming character. They provide a stable foundation and a safe place to be and to grow. They model important values and encourage positive socialization, including a sense of purpose rooted in spiritual and moral principles. All this, along with the hidden tasks of making medical and dental appointments, attending parental meetings at school, helping with schoolwork, and encouraging responsibility within the family and outside the home.
So much of mothering is invisible. What is done today will be done again tomorrow. There is still a cultural belief that caregiving is primarily a mother’s responsibility. We need a cultural shift that recognizes the value of caregiving. We need to recognize the care work done by mothers, fathers, grandparents, and others, including professionals and volunteers.
We also need to understand, as Anna Jarvis did, that many of the challenges facing mothers are public policy related. We say that mothers are important, and we celebrate them on one Sunday a year. But nationally right now, we tell a different story. With budget cuts and new policies in place and in process, we are reducing access to healthcare and to other supports mothers in poverty need to be able to feed their children. The mothers at greatest risk are black, brown, indigenous, in rural communities, and in low-wage service jobs.
For Mother’s Day this year, if flowers, candy, and breakfast at a restaurant are in the offing, that’s wonderful. But hopefully, we will also take the time to reflect on the true value of mothers and all caregivers. We can take up the challenge that Anna Jarvis left us and look for daily ways to acknowledge and support mothers. We can affirm mothers that we know and those that we encounter through our day. We can let them know they are seen. We can also consider our responsibility to advocate for policies in our schools, churches, and government that truly recognize the value of mothers.
I was touched recently by the words and interaction between Fernando Mendoza, 2026 Heisman Trophy winner, and his mother, Elsa. Fernando was the quarterback at Indiana University recently selected as the No. 1 overall pick by the Las Vegas Raiders. Elsa has been a major influence in his life. She has battled Multiple Sclerosis for 18 years and is confined to a wheelchair.
Accepting the trophy, Mendoza spoke to his mother:
“Mami, this is your trophy as much as it is mine. You’ve always been my biggest fan. You’re my light, you’re my ‘why,’ you’re my biggest supporter. Your sacrifices, courage, love, those have been my first playbook, and that playbook I’m going to carry by my side for my entire life. You taught me that toughness doesn’t need to be loud. It can be quiet and strong. It’s choosing hope. It’s believing in yourself when the world doesn’t give you much reason to. Together, you and I are rewriting what people think is possible. I love you.”
In an open letter to Fernando published in the Players Tribune, Elsa wrote,
“Honestly, it will never be easy…But you’ve made it so much easier. When you have to carry me up the stairs…you’ve never looked away. You’ve never once treated me like I’m embarrassing, or deficient, or anything other than someone you love.”
“You’ve made it so much easier. And you’ve done that in the sweetest, strongest, most Fernando way possible—by making me feel the exact opposite of embarrassed. You’ve made me feel seen.”