Proclamation 5351

By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation

Family reunions are occasions that renew the feelings of love, pride, and support that nurture our lives. There is no more joyous and poignant family reunion than the return to the family of a child who has run away from home.

The number of young people between the ages of 10 and 17 who ran away from home last year is estimated at more than one million. The heartache of such a breakdown in family relationships is incalculable. But for many thousands of families, the joy of reunion was realized with the return of a son or daughter and a resolution of the conditions that precipitated the flight of the child.

In all likelihood, the return was aided by one of the professionals and Volunteers who staff runaway shelters throughout the country. Last year alone, some 200,000 young Americans and their families received counseling aimed at resolving family conflicts and pressures. Almost half the young people who sought help were returned safely to their homes.

Much remains to be done, and all of us can play a role. Volunteers are needed to help staff crisis intervention programs. Parents themselves must recognize the importance of keeping open lines of communications with their children and strive to strengthen family relationships.

Families are the cornerstone of America. All of America's families should be encouraged to continue strengthening their ties through gatherings and activities such as family reunions that involve as many members as possible.

The Congress, by House Joint Resolution 64, has designated the period between Mother's Day, May 12, and Father's Day, June 16, 1985, as "Family Reunion Month" and authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation in observance of this period.

Now, Therefore, I, Ronald Reagan, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim the period between May 12 and June 16, 1985, as Family Reunion Month. I call upon all Americans to celebrate this period with appropriate ceremonies and activities and recognition of the resources available to help strengthen families.

In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this fourteenth day of June, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-five, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and ninth.

RONALD REAGAN

[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 10:55 a. m., June 17, 1985]