In 1970, Marian McQuade began a campaign to set aside a special day just for grandparents. In 1978, President Jimmy Carter signed a presidential proclamation, designating the first Sunday after Labor Day as National Grandparents Day.

The first official observance was Sept. 9, 1979 — and has been celebrated every year since. In honor of our nation’s grandparents, the Census Bureau presents an array of statistics about the role they play in our lives.

In 2009 there were 6.7 million children younger than 18 living with their grandparents.

The number of grandparents responsible for caring for their grandchildren for at least the past five years – 1 million.