Hi everyone!

It’s finally June which means it’s time to celebrate Fathers’ Day!

Led by Grace Golden Clayton, the first known Fathers’ Day celebration took place in 1908, in Fairmont, West Virginia, after hundreds of men died in a mining accident. However, the event was not promoted and very few people outside of the area knew about the celebration. Two years later in Spokane, Washington, in 1910, Sonora Smart Dodd wanted to honor her father–a single father and a Civil War veteran–and, with the support of the Spokane Ministerial Association and local YMCA, proposed to set aside a Sunday in June to celebrate fathers. And on June 19, 1910, the third Sunday that June, her Fathers’ Day celebration commenced with hand delivered presents, symbolic decorations, and homilies to fatherhood; and it even gained White House attention. (The Old Farmer’s Almanac.)

While it was initially a contentious topic, and did not become an official holiday until 1972, due to designated family roles, Fathers’ Day, now, serves as a joyous celebration of all the men who have taken care of, brought up, and loved children–both blood and chosen families, alike. At HHPLIFT, most of our affiliate associates from READI Chicago are fathers and one thing that has reigned true and consistent is their desire to build healthy, stable, and safe lives for them and their children.

READI Chicago works to decrease shootings and homicides among those at the highest risk of gun violence; create new opportunities for them to change their life trajectories and decrease their involvement with the justice system; and help build an infrastructure at the community level to promote long-term safety and opportunity in Chicago's most impoverished communities. From day one in the LIFT™ Workshop, READI Chicago affiliate associates embody wholeheartedly READI Chicago’s and HHPLIFT’s missions–and they do it for their children. Inspired by their commitment, passion, and love for their children, the Amy Krouse Rosenthal Foundation, generously donated children’s books, paired with activity kits and art supplies, to the READI Chicago affiliate associates to give the gift of passing down learning and literacy to their children while spending quality time together.

If you are struggling to find the perfect gift to honor the father figure(s) in your life, you are certainly not alone. Translating your appreciation for that father figure into a gift proves difficult as, according to a theshelf.com article, a necktie is the most common, but undoubtedly not the most desired, Fathers’ Day gift.

The National Retail Federation states that, of the 75% of Americans expected to celebrate Fathers’ Day, 46% are looking to purchase an outing or experience, while 28% are looking for personal care items. At HHPLIFT, we say, why not both? HHPLIFT’s social impact products are high-quality, fashionable, and sustainable goods that do good, that will LIFT your father figure’s look, and LIFT the lives of our affiliate associates, artisans, and crafters. 

Perfect for pairing with a weekend getaway adventure, baseball game, beer tasting, and more, are the products in our ecoLIFT™ line of social impact home, office, and personal care products designed to LIFT people and the planet. Sewn by refugee women at the RefugeeOne Sewing Studio and assembled at HHPLIFT by LIFT™ Program associates, the ecoLIFT™ Wallet, ecoLIFT™ Drink Sleeves, and ecoLIFT™ Drink Huggers are chic, sustainable, and purposeful ways of honoring your father figure.

Additionally, the Groovy Messenger bag and Flyby Laptop Backpack from Smateria’s IKI line are the ideal accessories for any day with Dad. And they are 100% recycled from industrial packaging and plastic bottles; water resistant, lightweight, and vegan; produced through fair trade practice; and provide the artisans in Cambodia free health- and day-care and a 13-month annual salary.

HHPLIFT’s top-quality social impact products will not only make stylish gifts this Fathers’ Day, they are the catalyst for you to Buy What You Believe In™.

Until next time,

The HHPLIFT team

For more information, please contact info@HHPLIFT.com.