Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated in the U.S on Thursday, November 22. It is a time for friends and family to come together for a special feast to appreciate everything they have. Students share what makes Thanksgiving special to them and how they spend it.

     Ninth grader, Joanna Alexson, loves Thanksgiving because she gets to be with her family. Alexson said, “A tradition that my family does is a scavenger hunt around family’s neighborhoods. A family hides a fake pickle and who ever finds the pickle first gets candy and they get to hide the pickle the next year. My family is one of the teams.” She said that along with the fun festivities comes the feast, “My grandma, aunts, and mom cook and my cousin Hannah and I bake the pie. We have many different foods such as turkey, lemon squares, and homemade peach ice cream. My favorite food is mash potatoes with biscuits and gravy. My least favorite is stuffing.”

    Ninth grade student, Vanessa Wu, celebrates Thanksgiving with her family and has delicious food. One of the places she visits for the holidays is New York to visit her cousins and grandparents. Her mom and aunt cook all of the food. She said, “I like the food because I get to eat food that I don’t normally get throughout the year, such as stuffing.” Her favorite Thanksgiving memory was when she was in fourth grade because she saw her cousins in Mississippi who she doesn’t get to see very often.

 For some students the food is great, but family is what makes the holiday matter, “My favorite thing about Thanksgiving is spending time with my family which is something I don’t normally get to do. I am most Thankful for my family. I eat Turkey with them every year on Thanksgiving.” said ninth grade student, Jaxon Wade. On Thanksgiving he goes to his grandmother’s house in Burke. His aunts, cousins, parents, and siblings come. His Favorite food is turkey and his least favorite are the cranberries.

   Ninth grade student, Madison Williams, holds Thanksgiving at her house along with 4-5 guests. She loves having family and friends come out, the food is a bonus, “I like my mom’s food, especially her very yummy cheesy delicious mac and cheese!” For traditions, her family gathers together and watches the cowboys game. Williams said, “My favorite Thanksgiving year was two years ago because the food was extra good and friends came. One thing I am thankful for is my brothers.”

   A ninth grade student, Ava Byrnes likes to go to Greensboro North Carolina to visit her grandma for Thanksgiving. Byrnes said “My favorite part of Thanksgiving is my grandmother’s homemade noodles. We usually make it together. The girls in the family cook turkey, mashed potatoes, and stuffing.” Her favorite Thanksgiving year was when her family were all in the living room with her bulldogs, Wally and Thermon. About 20 people attend each year.

    For most families they spend a few hours preparing the Thanksgiving food, but for ninth grade student, Quinn Heilman, he spends two days preparing for the big feast with his mom. They cook the basics along with his mom’s homemade bread. Quinn shared his most memorable Thanksgiving, “My family and my mom’s work friend were sitting in the living room watching football. There was a lit candle on the table that caught the table cloth on fire! My mom smelled smoke and then screamed, “Fire!”. She got the fire extinguisher to put it out but sprayed it all over her friend.”

     “I watch the Macy’s parade every year with my family” said tenth grader, Victoria Thompson. Along with watching the parade, she also celebrates by having her favorite Thanksgiving food, “My favorite is sweet potatoes with marshmallows.” Her mom and dad do the cooking. About 15 people attend. Thompson said, “My favorite thing about Thanksgiving is getting together with family that come from different states.”

  Eleventh grader, Sally Reeke, explains how Thanksgiving is important to her, “I use Thanksgiving to reflect on why we celebrate and what I am thankful for.” She celebrates with 6-7 of her close friends and family. Reeke said, “I cook with my mom. We make mac and cheese (My favorite), turkey, stuffing, and pie. We use the leftover pie crust to make cinnamon sugar cookies.”

    Thanksgiving is a time of the year when families come together to enjoy each others company and share what they are thankful for in their life. In this story we had the opportunity to visualize the way Robinson students spend their Thanksgiving.