Mother's Day as a modern holiday was started by American social activist Anna Jarvis. She founded the holiday in honor of her own mother, Ann Reeves Jarvis, who had organized women's groups to promote health and friendship in their community. After her mother's death in 1905, Anna Jarvis vowed to create a memorial day to honor all mothers for their sacrifices and devotion to their families. The first official Mother's Day celebration organized by Anna Jarvis took place in 1908 at a Methodist church in Grafton, West Virginia. Following her campaign, Mother's Day was observed by most U.S. states by 1911, and in 1914 President Woodrow Wilson signed a proclamation making the second Sunday in May a national holiday in the United States to honor mothers
. Despite founding the holiday, Anna Jarvis later regretted its commercialization and spent much of her later life trying to have Mother's Day removed from the calendar, as she felt it had strayed from her original intent
