HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) — Governor Wolf announced on Saturday, March 19, and in advance of Fred Rodgers’s birthday on March 20, that Pennsylvania’s fourth annual 1-4-3 Day will take place on Monday, May 23. That date is the 143rd day of 2022.
1-4-3 Day encourages residents of the state to save the date and to show their neighbors kindness, generosity, and love. The tradition began in 2019 and was created to inspire a state-wide movement to honor Mr. Fred Rogers, who was a Pittsburgh native.
“I encourage all Pennsylvanians to join in this tradition, and they don’t have to wait for 1-4-3 Day to show compassion and generosity to others, particularly with recent world events,” Governor Wolf said. “1-4-3 Day is just one moment in time that we can practice the kindness and gratitude that are integral to the spirit in all Pennsylvanians.”
Best known for his show “Mister Rodgers Neighborhood”, Rogers showed the world compassion and kindness and also showed what it meant to be a good neighbor. Rogers used 1-4-3 as another way of saying”I love you”, with the numbers representing the number of letters of each word of that phrase.
Pennsylvanians are encouraged to consider starting to journey to this year 1-4-3 Day by supporting humanitarian relief for Ukraine through some of the following organizations:
- UNICEF USA
- International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
- United Way’s “United for Ukraine”
- Americares
- UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR)
“With everything happening globally, we hope 1-4-3 Day inspires more generosity, more neighborliness, and more fellowship wherever kindness is needed,” said Carrie Fischer Lepore, deputy secretary of the Office of Marketing, Tourism and Film for the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development. “There is plenty of time to plan wonderful intentional acts of kindness in our workplaces, schools, communities, and beyond.”
You can find 1-4-3 Day ideas and more information about this day of kindness by clicking here.