Geranium Day

Geranium Day

April and May

Since the 1920s this has been a day in England to collect money for the blind. It represents a joint effort by a number of charities dedicated to helping the blind and is organized by the Greater London Fund for the Blind. Although at one time real geraniums were given to those who made donations, these days contributors receive a sticker with a red geranium on it. And there are now two collection days—one in the City of London in April and one in the greater London area in May.
The choice of the geranium—a flower without a strong scent—seems unusual as a symbol for the blind, but it may have been chosen simply because the poppy ( see Memorial Day) and the rose ( see Alexandra Rose Day) were already being used for fund-raising purposes. It may also have been chosen for its symbolic meaning: consolation.

CONTACTS:
Greater London Fund for the Blind
12 Whitehorse Mews, 37 Westminster Bridge Rd.
London, SE1 7QD United Kingdom
44-20-7620-2066; fax: 44-20-7620-2016
www.glfb.org.uk

SOURCES:
DictDays-1988, p. 47