Dear Volunteer Friends, November is a time to reflect on those people and things that cause us to give thanks. We have a major election, Veterans Day, and Thanksgiving Day. The beginning of the Holiday Season. While we may be celebrating very differently this year, one thing we can all strive to do, is to find thanks-giving in every day. For a little background into our U.S. Holiday, here are some excerpts from History.com: Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday in the United States, and Thanksgiving 2020 occurs on Thursday, November 26. In 1621, the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast that is acknowledged today as one of the first Thanksgiving celebrations in the colonies. For more than two centuries, days of thanksgiving were celebrated by individual colonies and states. It wasn’t until 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, that President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national Thanksgiving Day to be held each November. Thanksgiving Traditions: In many American households, the Thanksgiving celebration has lost much of its original religious significance; instead, it now centers on cooking and sharing a bountiful meal with family and friends. Turkey, a Thanksgiving staple so ubiquitous it has become all but synonymous with the holiday, may or may not have been on offer when the Pilgrims hosted the inaugural feast in 1621. Today, however, nearly 90 percent of Americans eat the bird—whether roasted, baked or deep-fried—on Thanksgiving, according to the National Turkey Federation. Other traditional foods include stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie. Volunteering is a common Thanksgiving Day activity, and communities often hold food drives and host free dinners for the less fortunate. Parades have also become an integral part of the holiday in cities and towns across the United States. Presented by Macy’s department store since 1924, New York City’s Thanksgiving Day parade is the largest and most famous, attracting some 2 to 3 million spectators along its 2.5-mile route and drawing an enormous television audience. It typically features marching bands, performers, elaborate floats conveying various celebrities and giant balloons shaped like cartoon characters. Beginning in the mid-20th century and perhaps even earlier, the president of the United States has “pardoned” one or two Thanksgiving turkeys each year, sparing the birds from slaughter and sending them to a farm for retirement. A number of U.S. governors also perform the annual turkey pardoning ritual. See the link below for the full article, including historic origins and Thanksgiving at Plymouth! (https://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/history-of-thanksgiving 110220) As the excerpt above states, Volunteering has become very common on Thanksgiving Day. I started this tradition with my family some years ago by participating in a hunger walk for local food charities. The slogan of the walk is, “give back, before giving thanks.” You are all very familiar with this as a common practice because volunteering is part of everyday life for you. For that I am truly thankful. Thanks and giving. What a beautiful combination of words to describe the importance of our caring mission at Adoray. You are appreciated deeply for the care you give to others. May you receive an extra measure of grace as we navigate this year’s Thanksgiving differently than before, and perhaps, we’ll find new meaning in the holiday, with even more reasons for thanks-giving. Peace and Blessings, Brenda |