BUCKHANNON – People of a certain generation will remember this song from elementary school – “‘M’ is for the million things she gave me; ‘O’ means only that she’s growing old; ‘T’ is for the tears she shed to save me; ‘H’ is for her heart of purest gold; ‘E’ is for her eyes with love-light shining; ‘R’ means right and right she will always will be.

“Put them all together they spell ‘mother,’ a word that means the world to me!”

This Sunday, May 12, many people will celebrate Mother’s Day, a tradition which started in the Mountain State just 36 miles down the road in Grafton. According to a fact sheet provided by Olive Ricketts, who restored and operates the Anna Jarvis Birthplace Museum, Anna Jarvis started Mother’s Day to honor her mother, Ann Maria Reeves Jarvis.

“After her mother’s death in 1905, with the help of the wealthy merchant, John Wanamaker, Anna Jarvis began her efforts to establish a national holiday honoring mothers,” the sheet reads. “Her dream was finally realized in 1914. During the time (1905 to 1914) Anna worked tirelessly to promote her idea including having the very first Mother’s Day service at the Mother’s Day Shrine in Grafton in 1908.

“She wrote to every governor in the country trying to get Mother’s Day made into a state holiday in those various states, as well as speaking and corresponding with many around the country until her dream was realized. Anna Jarvis then continued her efforts on a global scale until Mother’s Day became the only international holiday celebrated around the world. Currently, it is celebrated in 52 countries.”

For those who choose to celebrate their moms or another special guardian/caretaker in their lives, there are plenty of things to do and lots of food offerings around the Buckhannon area leading up to and on Mother’s Day.

Those include:

• Visiting the Mother’s Day Shrine in Grafton, where the first Mother’s Day Service was celebrated May 10, 1908. The shrine is located at 11 E. Main St. in Grafton. Andrews Methodist Episcopal Church was incorporated as the International Mother’s Day Shrine on May 15, 1962 and serves as an international shrine to all mothers and as a memorial to Anna Jarvis, founder of Mother’s Day. They offer a service for everyone on Sunday, May 12. Additional information is available by calling 304-265-1589.

• On Saturday, May 11, at 2 p.m. folks can join in the Mother’s Day Foundation Festival, located in Webster, W.Va. Located just four miles South of Grafton on U.S. Route 119/250, is the Anna Jarvis Birthplace Museum where folks can visit the gift shop or take a tour of the Anna Jarvis Birthplace. Tours will be offered all day on Saturday and Sunday, May 12. Children may purchase gifts for mom at the gift shop and learn about the history of Mother’s Day and Anna Jarvis. At 2 p.m. on Saturday, Olive Ricketts will lead a ceremony announcing the 2019 Mother of the Year. Additional information is available by calling 304-265-5549.

Closer to home in Buckhannon, folks can enjoy the following festivities:

• On Saturday, May 11, from 8 to 10 a.m. there will be a Stockert Youth and Community Center Mother’s Day Pancake Breakfast at C.J. Maggie’s located at 16 East Main St. in Buckhannon. The meal includes two pancakes, two sausages and a drink. The event benefits the Stockert Youth & Community Center’s Camp Buccaneer. Tickets are available by calling 304-473-0145.

• Leading up to Mother’s Day, Fish Hawk Acres will offer Mother’s Day cookies, available by special order and gift baskets for mom. In fact, during the Strawberry Festival Horse & Carriage Parade at 3 p.m. Saturday, Fish Hawk Acres will be selling fresh flowers in front of their store.

• The 88 Restaurant & Lounge, at 88 E. Main St., is offering a Mother’s Day Buffet Brunch Sunday, May 12, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The meal includes eggs, ham, breakfast sausage, seasonal fresh fruit, salad selections, chilled asparagus with red wine vinaigrette, penne pasta Alfredo, vegetables, 88 chicken cordon bleu with whole grain mustard cream, pot roast of beef with garlic rosemary au jus, assorted pastries and desserts. Reservations can be made by calling 304-473-1988.

• In Elkins, Graceland, on the campus of Davis & Elkins College, is offering a Mother’s Day Brunch Sunday, May 12, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. The buffet offers salad, quiche Lorraine, vegetable lasagna, bacon, sausage, blintzes and pancakes, poached salmon with dill cream sauce, desserts, coffee, tea and many more items. Reservations may be made by calling 304-637-1600.

• The 1863 Appalachian Bistro is hosting a Mother’s Day Brunch as well. They are located at 830 Harrison Avenue in Elkins and will be serving on Sunday, May 12, from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. Reservations are required, and brunch offerings include items from fresh vegetable past salad, bacon, sausage, biscuits, gravy, a turkey and roast pork carving station and dessert station. More information is available by calling 304-637-1863.

• The historic Adaland Mansion, located on WV Route 76, four miles North of Philippi, is hosting a down-home buffet for mom on Sunday, May 12. There are three seatings for the buffet – 12:30 p.m., 2:15 p.m. and 3:45 p.m., and reservations are required. The buffet, made by longtime cook Lucy Williamson offers a buffet table laden with two entrees, sides, salads, homemade bread and a sideboard of luscious desserts. Additional information and reservations are available by calling 304-457-1587 or 304-457-2415.

• Stillwaters Restaurant at Stonewall Resort invites folks to bring mom for a lakeside outing with a Mother’s Day Buffet. Reservations are required, and the meal includes garden vegetable crudités, hickory smoked prime rib, bacon, country sausage, has brown casserole, herb and Dijon encrusted leg of lamb, broiled Atlantic salmon with lemon and capers, sides, soups, starters, desserts and beverage. Additional information is available by calling 304-269-8880 or online at www.stonewallresort.com.

• Thyme Bistro on Main Avenue in Weston is hosting two seatings for a special Mother’s Day meal. Available seatings are noon at 2:30 p.m.; reservations come highly recommended. On the menu? House-baked breads, Mediterranean couscous salad, artisan greens and strawberry feta salad with candied pecans and strawberry vinaigrette dressing, frittata Florentine with smoked ham, orange ginger glazed salmon with sesame broccoli, balsamic marinated grilled sirloin with roasted mushrooms and rosemary and more. There will also be a house-made dessert bar. Call 304-269-7177 to make reservations.

• The first public buffet of 2019 is scheduled for Sunday, May 12 at the Mount Vernon Dining Hall at WVU Jackson’s Mill. It is an all-you-can-eat buffet featuring baked steak, mushroom baked chicken with all the fixings and a delicious dessert. Jackson’s Mill is located at 160 Jackson Mill Road in Weston. Reservations are available by calling 304-269-5100.

• Those wishing to make their Mother’s Day celebration into a week-long extravaganza may visit Mill Creek in Randolph County for the Tygarts Valley Fairs & Festivals ‘Celebrating All Mothers’ event. They offer activities all week and on Friday, May 10 from 5 to 9 p.m. are having live entertainment, free hot dogs, free birthday cake and free ice cream. On Saturday, May 11, there is a parade on Adolph Road beginning at 2 p.m. The parade route ends at George Ward Elementary School where there will be free hot dogs and free ice cream floats, along with all kinds of activities in the park. On Sunday, May 12, everyone is invited to a Mother’s Day Breakfast at the Mill Creek Senior Center. The fundraiser begins at 7 a.m. and will feature eggs, bacon, sausage, gravy, biscuits, potatoes and coffee. The event is hosted by the Senior Center Site Council and sponsored by the Tygarts Valley Fairs & Festivals.

• Folks looking for something a little different might try enjoying Mother’s Day at the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum. They are sponsoring an event from noon to 6 p.m. at the TALA, located at 50 S. River Ave. in Weston. Moms will receive a beautiful rose and receive $10 off the four-floor historic tour. Folks are invited to stroll the picturesque lawn and enjoy shopping with West Virginia craft vendors.

• Train enthusiasts will enjoy taking mom on a four-hour excursion on the New Tygart Flyer which departs from the Elkins Train Depot on Saturday and Sunday at 11 a.m. Reservations can be made by calling 304-636-9477.

• Is your mom an outdoors enthusiast? Consider packing some snacks and taking a hike at some of the local West Virginia State Parks and Forests including Audra State Park, Blackwater Falls in Davis, Canaan Valley Resort State Park, Stonewall Resort State Park or Kumbrabow State Forest.

However you choose to spend the weekend with your mom or another special parental figure in your life, take a minute to pause, breathe deep and take in your time together.