Thanksgiving 2008

Getting into the history of the Thanksgiving holiday is more than I bargained for. There is a lot of different opinions out there as to when the first Thanksgiving was celebrated in this country. One source said the first was in St. Augustine, FL, in the year 1565 with Spanish settlers giving thanks for their safe arrival. Then the one I learned in my school age years is with the Pilgrims in Plymouth, MA, celebrating a bountiful harvest with native American Indians in the early 1600s. From what I can gather that is the first time a feast was prepared to celebrate the good harvest. That was held after the crops were harvested and it was time to prepare for the winter months.

Then in the midst of the Civil War Abraham Lincoln signed a proclamation that Thanksgiving will be celebrated on the last Thursday of November annually. In 1898 Congress passed legislation that Thanksgiving will henceforth be a legal federal holiday.

At any rate it's once again Thanksgiving and I wanted to wish each and everyone of you a Happy Thanksgiving. Each and everyone of us has something to be thankful about. The missus and I are thankful to have the whole family come in with their spouses, the grand kids and even the "grand dogs". I'm especially thankful that I'm not scheduled to work on the three days they are here. With their scattered locations about the country it's rare that we all get together at the same time in one location.

As many of you know there are a couple of locations in the area where they will be serving free dinners today. Right here in the ville there is the Harvest House located in the old Ferrall Auto parts store building. Then, of course, there is the Point of Light up in East End. Seems like that annual event is growing bigger & bigger each year. Although Elizabeth Carter makes her home in the East End her family has roots from the ville. Her husband Richard hails from Wellsville.

I'm sorry I forgot to make a note of the times these two places will be serving. Seems to me that I recall reading that both places will be opening their doors around 11 A.M. and will be serving dinners through most of the afternoon. Both places emphasize that dinners will be available for anyone that comes in the door. Getting set up, cooking and cleaning up is a mamouth task for all those people. A hearty thanks to all that put into this labor of love and generosity. For all you folks do, we are thankful.

I started to write this yesterday and got interrupted when the grand kids came in. They are a joy to behold and don't allow for much time to concentrate. I wouldn't give up one moment of time we share with them while they're here but I did want to finish this while there is a little piece and quiet to wish you all a safe and Happy Thanksgiving.

ole nib