Reinaldo Arenas, a Cuban novelist, and poet, once said that “mothers have that secret charm of treating us like children”. This is a quote that every August 15th makes more sense than ever in Costa Rica. Why? Well, because of the celebration of the Mother’s Day.
It is true that in each country it is celebrated on a different date, but the case of Costa Rica is unique. Here, this day is celebrated thanks to a remarkable woman called Evangelina Solís Salvatierra.
As it was customary, during the first decades of the 20th century, just at the beginning of the “half-year” vacation, an honor card was used to be handed out to the best students. Regarding this, Evangelina Solís considered that these recognitions should also be dedicated to mothers as an act of affection and gratitude for everything they do for us -their children.
That is how the initiative to celebrate a “Mother’s Day” was taken in Costa Rica. Initially, this ephemeris was supported by the staff of the school “Nicolás Ulloa de Heredia, but then it was decreed by the National Government Palace as the “National Mother’s Day”, on August 15th of each year.