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Giving Thanks

November 21, 2011

Turkeys, pumpkin pie, football…you know where I’m going with

this. Thanksgiving is less than a week away! We look forward to

this meal all year, and until dinner is served, there is the stress

of cooking, baking and cleaning. In school, we are taught about the

Pilgrims and the Native Americans, and how the first Thanksgiving

feast was held in honor of the Pilgrims’ safe arrival to the New

World. The origins of this holiday are tales of bringing people

together. In this tradition, President Lincoln made it a national

holiday on a regulated date during the Civil War, in an effort to

help unify the North and the South.
 
A lesser-known story is that of the actual first Thanksgiving feast

being held right here in Florida. Spanish explorer Pedro Menendez

de Aviles landed off the shores of St. Augustine in the fall of

1565. He named the city San Agustin after St. Augustine, whose

feast day was the day he had first spotted land. Upon their

arrival, they held a Catholic mass and then a feast to give thanks

for their safe voyage. The practice of the feast of thanksgiving

was not uncommon to Europeans, however it seems to be the first

time it happened on American soil. The Timucuan tribe of Native

Americans were the locals who shared foods and harvest practices

with the Spanish settlers. This scenario was actually common for

European explorers and settlers of this time, from Texas to New

England.
 
Regardless of who, where, or when the first Thanksgiving took

place, the story of strangers gathering together to share a meal

and give thanks is a beautiful one. No matter whom you are

celebrating with, one day a year we reflect and remember all we

have to be grateful for. From all of us here at Orange, we wish you

and yours the very best and are thankful for your support that

moves us forward.

Happy Thanksgiving!