Of all the holidays, it seems Thanksgiving is the one that brings families and friends together the most.
The Thanksgiving weekend is considered the mostly heavily traveled weekend — crowded airports and gridlocked freeways can attest to that. Although most get-togethers center around large tables packed with turkey, stuffing and cranberry sauce, some families have unique traditions that have carried through the years. For some, the holiday spirit means giving to others.
Here, East Pierce County residents share old traditions and new ideas about Thanksgiving.
Matriarch trades turkey duty for jury duty
Like a lot of families, Puyallup’s Marietta Hughes is the matriarchal bond that holds her clan together.
“I was the glue that kept the James Hughes family together,” she said. “I cooked Thanksgiving dinner for the family for 35 years. We’d have anywhere from 25 to 35 people show up. That was the only time we got together.”
Hughes broke from family tradition one year, though.
“The only year I didn’t fix Thanksgiving dinner for the whole family I was on jury duty until 3 a.m.,” she said. “We were clustered in a hotel. I didn’t know when we were going to get out of there.”
It was 1968 and Hughes had been on jury duty for four weeks following a “whole stream of fire bombings” in Seattle. She and other jury members deliberated until the wee hours on Thanksgiving morning.
“At 3 a.m. everybody finally came to the same conclusion and we were able to tell the judge,” she said. “When I got home I was just too tired to cook. We went over to a neighbor’s house.”
Hughes recalls all those Thanksgiving dinners with fondness.
“Every single meal I cooked it was all for the family, all for the had relatives and all for the friends,” she said. “And I loved every single minute of it.”
Football fan starts a neighborhood sports tradition
Aaron Walker is a football fan who just wanted to get some guys together for a Thanksgiving football game.
“I absolutely love watching the sport,” he said. “I go to Rogers football games all the time.”
The Rogers High School graduate started a Thanksgiving Day tradition four years ago when he challenged local guys to an early morning game on the soccer field at his Paradise neighborhood.
“I wanted to get the guys out just to have a good time,” he said. “We start at eight in the morning. I had to make a deal with their wives that I would get them home in time for dinner.”
The first year only about 10 players participated, but since that time, the number has grown to about 20. Players range in age from around 16 to 50.
“We just gather who we have and try to pick even teams and divide them up as evenly as we can. It’s fun to see people in their 40s who you think are going to get it, then they turn out to be the best athletes.”
Walker said he now looks forward to the holiday games. What he originally got was crazy looks when he mentioned a Thanksgiving morning game has now turned into “When are we going to do it again?”
“It’s great to get out there and play around with them,” he said. “I play with neighbors I don’t see all year. We usually end up laughing harder than running.”
A place for all for the holidays
Unfortunately, the holidays can be a sad time for those who are lonely and feel forgotten.
St. Francis House strives to include everyone in the festivities by offering a traditional Thanksgiving Day dinner at the National Guard Armory at the corner of Fourth Avenue and Seventh Street at 2 p.m.
“We get a combination of people,” said Sister Pat of St. Francis House. “From the chronically homeless community to homeless families to seniors in the area who get lonely and find it hard to cook for themselves.”
The St. Francis House regularly serves a hot meal five nights a week as part of their evening meal program.
Sister Pat said many people who enjoy the evening meals also attend the Thanksgiving dinner, so there is a friendly get-together atmosphere. The holiday dinner has been served since 1995.
“They’re happy to be here,” said Sister Pat. “The people coming together appreciate the fact that they have a warm meal. The smell is really good when you walk in. It’s a special time.”
About 29 volunteers serve the meals.
“Meal provider teams are so committed to their nights of service that it is difficult to get them to give them up so that another group can take a turn,” Sister Pat said. “They find the service that they give very rewarding and an important part of their lives.”
Student extends the hand of charity
When Shelby Burrus looked at all her belongings sitting in the middle of the living room floor it dawned on her that maybe there wasn’t a whole lot she needed.
“We were redecorating her bedroom,” said Shelby’s mother, Carrie Burrus. “And everything in her room was dumped on the living room floor. When you see this it kind of brings to light all the things you have.”
Shelby’s birthday was coming up and she told her parents, “I’ve been thinking about it and I think I have enough stuff. I don’t want birthday presents.”
With Thanksgiving around the corner, Shelby told her friends to give her gift cards for Safeway instead of bringing gifts to her birthday party. She received nearly $300 in gift cards and purchased 40 turkeys from Safeway.
She donated 20 turkeys to All Saints Parrish in Puyallup and 20 to the Fife Food Bank.
Burrus’ father worked in the law enforcement for the Fife Police Department and she had been helping her dad collect toys for the fire department since she was little.
Shelby Burris partially attributes her charitable spirit to her involvement with the 4-H Club.
“Since Thanksgiving is coming up soon and there’s a lot of people that are hungry, I thought I could give them a happy Thanksgiving,” she said. “Being a 4-H member it seemed like a natural thing to do.”
Reach reporter Susan Schell at 253-841-2481 ext. 315 or by e-mail at susan.schell@puyallupherald.com.
Print
E-Mail