Pennsylvania honors Mister Rogers with day of kindness Thursday

Fred Rogers, the host of the children's television series, "Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood," rests his arms on a small trolley in this promotional portrait from the 1980's. (Photo by Family Communications Inc./Getty Images)

Residents of Fred Rogers' home state of Pennsylvania will be encouraged to exhibit acts of kindness in honor of the beloved PBS children's show host.

Gov. Tom Wolf on Friday said the state's

Rogers used the number 143 to say "I love you," as each digit reflects the number of letters in each word in the phrase.

May 23 is the 143rd day of the year.

Rogers, an ordained minister, is buried at Latrobe Presbyterian Church. He died in 2003 at age 74.