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I cannot help but to be sentimental about how this extraordinary tradition and legislation became a reality. CT’s Family Day started in 1996 with an essay contest titled, “How Can We Make Connecticut a Better Place to Live & Work in the 21st Century?”
Over six-hundred 5th and 6th graders from my district responded with outstanding essays. The remarkably apparent trend was the theme that most students believed Connecticut would be a better place to live and work if families were to simply spend more time together. Courtney Southard, a student from Ansonia, had many ideas for a “family day” which included fewer working hours for parents and/or discounts at amusement parks.
It was during the 1997 Session of the Connecticut General Assembly that I proposed the legislation which created Connecticut’s Family Day, and it was because of Courtney’s heartwarming and sincere ideas. By 1998 Family Day had become a statewide program and it continues to take root in towns across Connecticut.
This program’s successful implementation would not have been possible without the relentless leadership from the Department of Children and Families. I must also commend the Department of Education for its hard work and diligence. There are many other state agencies to which we also owe a debt of gratitude; it is only with the committed time and resources of these agencies that can we ensure the success and continuation of CT’s Family Day.
It should go without saying that I am looking forward to seeing how Family Day has grown when we are set to celebrate its 20th anniversary and its 30th anniversary. Until then, I plan to continue spending Connecticut’s Family Day with my loved ones, and I hope you will all set aside time to do so as well.
Joseph J. Crisco, Jr.
State Senator, 17th District | 
