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In June of 1939, Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois held the last annual North Shore Music Festival, an event that began in 1909. It was developed by Peter Christian, the director of musical studies at NWU as a way to “enrich and educate his students as well as the general public.” He also believed it would bring more recognition to the university and the town of Evanston.

The festival consisted of a variety of musical performances that were popular at the time, including symphonies, vocal soloists, oratorios, cantatas, and instrumentals. In addition, a children’s concert in which children could participate was held. The Chicago Symphony Orchestra was the main event for most years, with the exceptions of 1917-1919, when the Minneapolis Symphony took its place, then again in 1921 when the New York Philharmonic headlined.

In 1932, the University withdrew funding for the festival, citing the Great Depression as a cause. The festival was revived five years later, but failed to gain the same level of popularity. The final festival was held in 1939 in the university’s football stadium.

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The North Carolina Congress of Parents and Teachers, Inc. (NC PTA) is an association that encourages parental involvement in school health since 1919. The association works in Beaufort, Edgecombe, Halifax, Jackson, McDowell, Nash, and Rockingham counties in South Carolina advocating for children. In the 1930s, there were approximately 1,000 local units organized within four districts and the association began publishing its newsletter.

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Advocates marched on Washington D.C. on April 5, 1992 with one message – that a Pennsylvania state law being considered by the United States Supreme Court was unconstitutional, and that abortion rights were a core part of women’s health services. The march drew several hundred thousand people to the capital, one of the largest protest marches at the time, with the goal of raising awareness of the threats to the service and the importance of keeping abortions safe and legal. Although Roe v. Wade was passed into law in 1973, three Republican presidential terms had weakened the abortion rights established by the ruling, and the march came at as tensions around the pro-choice/pro-life debate came to a boiling point. Less than a year after the march, Bill Clinton was sworn into office and, although it wouldn't end the debate or the political action taken on either side, overturned several pieces of key anti-abortion executive legislation.

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Holly is a genus of around 600 species of shrubs and trees in the family Aquifoliaceae. A great number of these species are cultivated as ornamentals for their distinctive foliage and red or black fruits, which will endure well into the winter and are popular for holidays at that time of year. As a modern-day symbol, holly can represent happiness, peace, and optimism. In Christian tradition, holly represents protection and safety, as well as rebirth and renewal, as it is the last birth flower of the year and brings hope for the new year. The traditional use of holly as a holiday decoration can be traced as far back as to a pre-Christian era when Druids in England and northern Europe would use it as a symbol of fertility and new life. These Druids also believed that holly could protect people from harm, bring good luck to the home, and ensure a bountiful harvest.

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The first National Hospital Day was declared by U.S. president Warren G. Harding in 1921 as a way to rebuild the public's trust in city hospitals after the devastating 1918 Spanish flu pandemic claimed the lives of more than 675,000 Americans. National Hospital Day was designated as a day for hospitals to educate the public about medical care. It was originally celebrated on May 12, the birthday of famed nurse, Florence Nightingale, who had helped to establish hospital standards during the Crimean War of 1854. In 1953, National Hospital Day was expanded to National Hospital Week. 

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The National Export Exposition was held from September to November of 1899 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at a special campus erected in 1899 by chief engineer John Birkinbine. The exposition was held for the advancement of American manufactures and the extension of export trade. The Philadelphia Commercial Museum and the Franklin Institute sponsored this event conducted by the Philadelphia Exposition Association displaying American manufacturing products advertised for export.

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July 4th, 1976 marked the two-hundredth anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. On this occasion, the National Archives hosted President Gerald Ford on July 2 of that year, as the president had a busy schedule of events on July 4th and the days leading up to it. At the archives, President Ford spoke briefly and viewed the Declaration, the Bill of Rights, and the Constitution. The three documents were on display for the public on that day and on July 4th.

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Founder Russ Berrie started his business with $500, he rented a garage in Palisades Park, New Jersey, and launched his own firm named after himself. Berrie intended to design, market, and distribute “impulse” gift items. From the start, Russ Berrie & Company produced a string of hit products that quickly found their way onto countertops, desks, and dashboards across the country. Among the company’s earliest creations: Fuzzy Wuzzies (tiny fur ball-like critters bearing messages like “You’re My Best Friend” or “Wild Thing”), troll dolls (squat gnomes with plumes of brightly colored hair) and the Bupkis Family (a motley collection of endearingly ugly rubber figurines). The owner believed in the power of “transformational giving,” partnering with energetic, visionary leaders to change the world for the better. He took an entrepreneurial approach to philanthropy, using his keen interpersonal skills to identify people and causes in which to invest and working closely with partners to hone strategies and set expectations.  “There is nothing more important in life than helping a fellow human being.”  — Russell Berrie (1933-2002).

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Mary’s Peak Trek is an annual fundraiser hosted by Shrine Clubs to raise funds for the Portland Shrine Hospital for Crippled Children, now known as Shiners Hospital for Children.  The event has been hosted since 1946 and been called the “world’s largest family picnic.” It is hosted on the first Sunday in August each year at Mary’s Peak, the tallest mountain in Oregon’s Coast Range, and includes prizes for participants in addition to entertainment and games during the day.