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Pets get stolen and sometimes "sold" back to their owners for a reward. The National Humane Education Society encourages pet owners to take precautions each Valentine's Day to ensure they have current information on each pet in the event it is stolen or lost. Precautions include: ID tags and microchips A recent clear photo of face and body markings Supervise pets when outdoors Never let them run at large Register your pet with Social Media such as Nextdoor And if your pet goes missing, immediately canvas the neighborhood, put up posters, notify services like PawBoost and contact your local shelter.

Africa

Feb

Race Relations Day: February 14

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Race Relations Day is supported by multiple religious organizations but does not have a specific sponsor. Coinciding with Valentine's Day, it is a day to promote interracial and interfaith appreciation in love and life.

Africa

Feb

Safer Internet Day, Intl.: February 14

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Safer Internet Day (SID) by Insafe occurs in February. Its objective is to promote safer and more responsible use of online technology and mobile phones within the European Union. In 2018 this event went worldwide. The European Union co-funds this event, and the target market is teachers and K-12 children in the EU and globally. Resources are available in a variety of languages.

Africa

Feb

Sex, National Thinking About Sex Day (UK): February 14

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Think About Sex Day in the United Kingdom always falls on Valentine's Day. It is about looking at sexuality, how we relate to each other, and what to do when problems arise. The Sexual Advice Association takes a traditional, satirical look at the issue of one partner wanting and another not in the first video presented. The purpose of Think About Sex Day is to improve the sexual health and well-being of men and women and to raise awareness of the extent to which sexual conditions affect the general population.

Africa

Feb

Sexual Health Awareness Week, Ntl. (AU): February 14-21

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Sexual Health Awareness Week in Australia encourages young adults between 18 and 30 to broaden their understanding of sexual health and relationships.

Africa

Feb

Sweethearts Day, National (AU): February 14

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Valentine's Day is a day of love. What better time to focus on the benefits of condom use in helping to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies? Each year Sexual Health Quarters, a family planning organization in Weste

Africa

Feb

Valentine's Day (269 AD): February 14

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Saint Valentines Day commemorates the work of Bishop Valentine, who died in 269 AD. At that time, Christianity was not a significant faith (that changed in 361 AD), and the Roman Empire ruled one-quarter of the world's population. The Romans decided married men did not make good soldiers because they always wanted to return to their families. Their solution? Outlaw marriage. Bishop Valentine was imprisoned for performing marriages. Couples used to pass notes through his cell window (why we send Valentines), and he'd marry them in secret. Eventually, Emperor Claudius ordered Bishop Valentine executed for his part in illegally marrying men and women. However, the order was primarily because the bishop tried to convert the emperor to Christianity. In 496 AD Pope Gelasius declared February 14 Saint Valentine's Day to honor the anniversary of Bishop Valentine's martyrdom. St. Valentine is the Patron Saint of affianced couples, bee keepers, engaged couples, epilepsy, fainting, greetings, happy marriages, love, lovers, plague, travelers, and young people. The following is a longer explanation of the holiday. THE WINDING ROAD TO VALENTINE'S DAY Like many other feasts and celebrations in Christianity, Valentine's day incorporates ancient pagan holidays, in this case, Lupercalia. Lupercalia was a springtime celebration of renewal and a time of purification. Cleansing began at the Ides of February (the 15th) and continued for a few days, ending with the ritual slaughtering of goats or sheep for the gods of Rome, Romulus, and Remus. The festival provided offerings to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture. The Luperci, an ancient order of priests, led festival rituals and preserved their role in society by keeping the masses under control. Young boys were said to take strips of the slaughtered animal and slap the blood-soaked meat on crops and women to promote fertility and a bountiful harvest. WEAR YOUR HEART ON YOUR SLEEVE Practices evolved (thankfully) by the beginning of the Christian era. Rather than raw meat, young women placed their names in an urn, to which bachelors of any age would pick and become paired with that woman for the year. These lottery pairings often ended in marriage. The tradition went even further in the middle ages. Young men and women pinned names to their sleeves for a week to ward off suitors and seclude themselves with the person he or she desired. This practice is where the expression "wearing your heart on your sleeve" originated. In 498 AD, Pope Gelasius declared February 14 as Saint. Valentine's Day. Pairing by lottery was banned as un-Christian through clandestine celebrations continued into the middle-ages. With the ascendency of Gaul (modern-day France) and Spain and England as Christian powers, the three countries inserted the realities of bird's mating seasons in the middle of February as proof and the need for a celebration of coupling and fertility. The ancient worship of mother earth and Druidism practiced by the ancient Celts was rolled into modern St. Valentine's celebrations in the lead-up to the equinox in March. THE VALENTINE RENAISSANCE ROMANCE The Duke of Orleans, Charles, captured in the battle of Agincourt in 1415 AD, sent a "greeting" to his wife from his prison cell in the Tower of London. Carefully written, he used the sentiment as a cover to communicate France's predicament to the King of France. His is considered the oldest Valentine card in existence. The English King Henry V later hired a writer to send a romantic note to Catherine of Valois. Some attribute the flourishing of Valentine's affection to the father of British literature, Geoffrey Chaucer, who died in 1400 AD, recorded the detailed mating rituals of birds to amuse the royal court. Ultimately, British King Henry VII declared February 14 as Saint Valentine's Day, formally ensconcing it into the modern calendar. X'S & O'S Valentine's day reached popularity in Britain by the middle of the 17th century with the proliferation of the printing press. The press allowed more people to hear authors like Chaucer through the town crier. Most people were illiterate, so upon completion of a note by a scribe, most signed with an "x." Signing with an X led to the letter being shorthand for a kiss. In 1797, a primer for men called "The Young Man's Valentine's Writer" was published to help the linguistically challenged compose verse and poems of love for their intended. Some of the text was rather racy; pre-printed, it could be sent anonymously. Most cards, however, were still handmade, representing a higher station in life and an ability to provide a comfortable life for the chosen Valentine. Americans began to send printed cards as postage rates became more affordable. Around 1840, a woman named Esther Howland created the first mass-produced Valentine's Day cards, citing her desire to help women gain an appreciation for their hard work and cultivate commitment from men. ENTER THE AGE OF CONSUMERISM Hallmark printed its first Valentine's Day card in 1913. Cards, flowers, chocolates, and jewelry are the most popular gifts purchased, with $20 billion annually spent on Valentine's Day. FLOWERS Giving flowers on Valentine's Day is believed to originate with a French princess who presented them to her lover on Valentine's Day. Flowers were unattainable to most people due to their cost and rarity until recently. As a symbol of love, the red rose, the favorite flower of the Roman goddess of love, Venus, was often chosen in the Victorian era. Positioning the flower as such did come with PR help from a Dutch florist. CHOCOLATE Richard Cadbury, in 1868, put his confections in a heart-shaped box and gave it to his daughter. He denied that it had anything to do with the holiday, but those who could afford such luxuries started to adopt it as a ritual along with hand-written and printed cards. The Second World War and the boom in the economy catapulted Valentine's Day into popular culture. Suddenly nearly anyone could afford small gifts and cards. Today, men purchase 75 percent of all chocolate for Valentine's Day; women buy the majority of chocolate throughout the year. Men tend to purchase lingerie, flowers, and chocolate within two days of February 14; women begin buying their special someone a gift by January 15, an entire month before the holiday. Women also tend to take care of themselves, with 15 percent admitting to buying flowers on Valentine's Day for themselves. JEWELRY During the 1980s, DeBeer's, the South African diamond conglomerate, saw an opportunity to extract revenue from an increasingly wealthy North American population by marketing diamonds and jewelry as a Valentine's Day gift option. The campaign was highly successful. DeBeer's is also the company that, in the 1930s, made the diamond essential for engagement rings. Happy Valentine's Day.

Africa

Feb

Viticulturist's Day (BG): February 14

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Wine lovers will love this day, celebrated annually in Bulgaria. Viticulturist's Day honors the men and women involved in the study, science, and production of grapes and the products created from them. This holiday and festival of wine and merriment have been part of Bulgarian culture since the fourth century BC. It is celebrated each year in honor of the ancient god Dionysus, the god of wine and merriment.

Africa

Feb

Agriculture Day, Ntl. (CA): February 15

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Agriculture Day in Canada celebrates the businesses and products grown in the nation, including food, flora, and fauna. Its goal is to create a closer connection between consumers and those who produce it. The United States has its Ag Day in February as well. This event began in 2017.

Africa

Feb

Childhood Cancer Day, Intl.: February 15

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International Childhood Cancer Day brings attention to childhood cancers, supporting their families and focusing on finding a cure. Within the United States, approximately 12 million cancer survivors are under 21. Seventy-five percent of these children survive ten or more years after treatment. The most common cancers in children are: Leukemia: 34% Brain Tumors/Central Nervous System Tumors: 27% Lymphoma (Hodgkin & Non-Hodgkin): 8% The American Society of Clinical Oncology reports: “Childhood cancer survivors are at risk for developing late effects, which are side effects that occur more than five years after treatment. These can result from both cancer itself and cancer treatment. Because more than 80% of children treated for cancer survive five years or more after treatment and are presumably cured, preventing and recognizing both physical and emotional late effects is an important part of cancer care.”

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Feb

Flag Day (CA)(1965): February 15

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The search for a new Canadian flag started in 1925 when a committee of the Privy Council began researching possible national flag designs. Forty years later, on February 15, 1965, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada, officially proclaimed the Maple Leaf Flag the official banner of Canada.

Africa

Feb

Gumdrop Day, Ntl.: February 15

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You know them by several names: Jujubes, Juicy Fruit, and even DOTS. Gumdrops, the sweet or spice candy, first gained popularity in the 1920s and quickly became a staple at movie theaters. Unlike chocolates, they don’t melt in your hands. Gumdrops are made with pectin, gelatin, sugar, juice, and spices.

Africa

Feb

Hippo Day, World: February 15

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Hippopotami, or hippos, are the world's third largest animal by weight (after the whale and elephant). Their name is Greek for 'river horse,' and they do spend hours a day submerged in water. Each animal can weigh up to 8,000 pounds, and as herbivores, they play an essential role in the ecosystem. A hippo in the wild typically lives about 40 years. World Hippo Day is an unofficial event with no sponsor.

Africa

Feb

Love Reset Day: February 15

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It's the day after Valentine's, and the moment of truth has arrived. How do you feel about your relationship? Love Reset Day is about taking care of yourself first and ending relationships that aren't giving you what you need.

Africa

Feb

Lupercalia (Spring Cleaning Day): February 15

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An ancient Roman celebration, in the beginning, Lupercalia, occurred in the last month of the Roman year, one month before the Vernal Equinox. The entire month prior to spring was set aside for cleaning and washing up as they prepared for their New Year, which began in March. Today it signals the beginning of spring cleaning in the Northern Hemisphere. In occult circles, it is known as the pagan Valentine’s Day, likely due to its original focus on newlyweds and procreation. In ancient Rome, priests used skins freshly stripped from sacrificed goats to cover the loins of young men. They would then run through the street with priests slapping them with goat strips, and newlywed women would line the roads. To be slapped by a priest with goat skin was considered good luck in conceiving and would guarantee an easy birth. As with most Roman festivities, feasting is included.

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