First World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly

In January, Pope Francis instituted a World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly, to be celebrated each year on the fourth Sunday in July, near the feast of Sts. Joachim and Anne, the grandparents of Jesus.

“Grandparents are often forgotten,” the pope said in his announcement. “We forget this wealth of preserving roots and passing on” their knowledge and gifts.

The elderly “remind us that old age is a gift, and that grandparents are the link between the different generations, to pass on to the young the experience of life,” Pope Francis said.