Pittsburghers celebrate '1-4-3 Day' in honor of Mister Rogers

HARRISBURG, Pa. — May 23rd is now going to be more than just another random day on the calendar. Gov. Tom Wolf has declared it "1-4-3 Day" in honor of Mister Rogers' favorite number.

Wolf said Fred Rogers, better known as Mister Rogers for his popular children’s show, regularly used 1-4-3 as a way of saying I love you. Wolf referenced those numbers in picking May 23: it is the 143rd day of the year.

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“I am proclaiming the 143rd day of the year as ‘1-4-3 Day’ to encourage acts of kindness and honor Fred Rogers, who served as an inspiration to millions of Pennsylvanians and people around the world,” Wolf said. “We know Pennsylvanians are grateful for and do good deeds for their neighbors every day. It’s one aspect that makes our commonwealth such a great place to live, work and to visit. 1-4-3 Day is a recognition and celebration of those collective efforts, and we hope it inspires even more acts of kindness.”

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro took to social media, using the day as a chance to say thanks to many other elected officials.

The Pirate Parrot and Phillie Phanatic took part in a video to encourage acts of kindness for 1-4-3 Day. (CLICK HERE or watch below.)

“I commend the Pirate Parrot and Phillie Phanatic for taking the time to help others, which as they show can be simple as holding the door or sharing a cup of coffee with someone,” Wolf said. “I encourage all Pennsylvanians to embody the kindhearted spirit of Fred Rogers on Thursday. A little kindness goes a long way.”

A "kindness generator" (CLICK HERE) was created to offer ideas for how people can spread kindness. The website also has a "kindness tracker" to tally the number of good deeds shared on Twitter using #143DayinPA.

Eat 'n Park Restaurants created smiles on 143 Day by providing free parking at UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursday.

“Celebrating 143 Day by being a good neighbor to families is a small way we can honor the kindness of Mr. Rogers," said Trina DeMarco, Director of Community Impact, Eat’n Park Restaurants.

Sixth-graders from Ross Elementary School in the North Hills School District stopped by the Mister Rogers statue to pay tribute to him.

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