1-4-3 Day is being declared again by Governor Tom Wolf on May 24. Wolf is asking all residents to show more kindness and gratitude to another. This is for the Memorial Day three-day weekend of May 21-23, 2021. That is so true in this world at large. Social distancing and masks don’t help the situation. Everyone needs the warmth of a hug and smile.
1-4-3 Day Celebration Honors Fred Rogers
“Really, a little kindness goes go a long way. More so and especially this year. Therefore, I’m asking Pennsylvanians to participate in kind acts during this three-day weekend. It would be to celebrate 1-4-3 Day in honor of native son Fred Rogers,” said Gov. Wolf. Fred Rogers is the creator of the preschool television series Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood that ran from 1968 to 2001. “The world learned from Rogers about the memorable and personal impact he made. Therefore, that translates into simple acts of kindness that can have on family, friends, and neighbors alike. It is a lesson that will stand the test of time.”
Pennsylvania native Fred Rogers regularly used 1-4-3 as a way of saying “I love you” on his much-beloved television series. This reference was to the number of letters in each word: 1-4-3.
Gestures That Mean So Much and Harken Back to the Past
“Today is just the beginning of a three-day weekend of old-fashioned and back-to-basics approach of door holding, thank you note writing and coffee buying. It’s as simple and meaningful as that to celebrate 1-4-3 Day,” said Carrie Fischer Lepore, Deputy Secretary, Office of Marketing, Tourism, and Film for the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development. “We really also hope that kindness becomes contagious and catches on as people willingly and happily share their good deeds on social media with #143DayInPA.”
The state’s website is home to a “Kindness Generator” available on the 1-4-3 Day website, which provides inspiration for the day, and a “Kindness Tracker” that will track and rally the good deeds and kind gestures Pennsylvanians do throughout the day. Residents are also urged to use #143DayInPA on social media to share and help spread the necessary gestures of love.
