Friendship Day was originated by Joyce Hall, the founder of Hallmark cards in 1930, to be celebrated on August 2, a day when people remembered and honored their friendships. Friendship Day was promoted by the Greeting Card National Association during the 1920s but was met with consumer resistance - given that it was obviously a commercial gimmick. By the 1940s, the number of Friendship Day cards available in the US had dwindled and the holiday largely died out there. However, it has been kept alive and revitalized in Asia, where several countries have adopted it.
In honor of Friendship Day in 1998, Nane Annan, wife of UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, named Winnie the Pooh as the World's Ambassador of Friendship at the United Nations. The event was co-sponsored by the U.N. Department of Public Information and Disney Enterprises, and was co-hosted by Kathy Lee Gifford.
Some friends acknowledge each other with exchanges of gifts and cards on this day. Friendship bands are very popular in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, and parts of South America. With the advent of social networking sites, Friendship Day is also celebrated widely online. Usually it is now celebrated on the first Sunday of August rather than July 30, which is the UN’s declared International Day of Friendship.
With Independence Day coming soon for India and Pakistan, we also are looking to strengthen ties of friendship despite the historical and recent divisions and ill-feelings between our countries. URI India’s North Zone Regional Coordinator Sadanand Biswas visited Kasturva CC in Delhi, India and Tronica City CC in Uttar Pradesh as they made friendship bands and cards bearing messages of love and amity. These cards and bands will be sent by URI India staff to United Religions Initiative Pakistan, and invite them to reciprocate similarly to establish a bond of friendship and love across borders.
So, let us be friends with open hearts to strengthen peace and harmony around the globe.
