The spry, silver-haired guest donned a Mettawee Community School baseball cap. When asked if he still attended the school he smiled conspiratorially and replied with a twinkle in his eyes, "Graduated this year. Took a long time to get through first grade.”
Good humor and good food, the foolproof recipe for the annual Thanksgiving Feast at Mettawee. This quarter-century tradition of gathering students and senior citizens for a festive lunch on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, is a custom well worth its place on the calendar.
“Thanksgiving serves as an important reminder of the big and small moments that make our world meaningful,” said MCS Principal Brooke DeBonis. “On this day our students invite grandparents, older relatives, friends, neighbors and even retired teachers to spend some time together, enjoy a meal, and give thanks for our greater school community. Everyone steps-up to make this a special day.”
The Feast for some 250 guests mounts a challenge to the Mettawee Kitchen Staff, but they are up to the task. The contents for this year’s meal included: 112 pounds of turkey, 120 pounds of potatoes, and 24 pounds of squash, amongst several other sides.
Parents pitched-in to help on the food front by contributing 30 homemade pies for dessert. They also found time to man the buffet line, ladling out all the fix-ins for young and old, as well as helping staff clean up the tables when the meal was done. Mettawee staff set up the dining tables and place-setting decorations the day before the Feast. There were also a number of recent alumni, now in secondary school, who returned to their old school to perform a number of tasks to make the celebration a success.
Music holds a special place at the Thanksgiving Feast. Tradition calls for the Kindergarten class to open the festivities with the song, “Things that I am Thankful For.” During the performance, the little ones each declared their own personal offering of gratitude. Along with “mom and dad” and “family and friends” there were also a few surprises such as: “cold weather” and “vegetarians.”
Another surprise this year took place when DeBonis announced to the crowd that one of their fellow attendees, Charlie Mason, had just celebrated his 90th birthday. Everyone, young and not so, serenaded Mason with a boisterous rendition of “Happy Birthday to You.”
As the Feast drew to an end, the Mettawee Fifth and Sixth Grade Chorus mounted the stage to lead everyone in a selection of songs fit for the holiday: “Country Life,” “Albuquerque Turkey” and “Over the River.”
The words of the final song fit the spirit of the day:
Hurrah for the fun, is the pudding done? Hurrah for the pumpkin pie.
(Photo above: A grandmother and grandchildren enjoy their time together at the Mettawee Thanksgiving Feast.)
These Mettawee students enjoyed their meal at the Thanksgiving Feast.
Mettawee kitchen staff - Lisa Olsen (left), Tera Williams (center) and Lisa Wood (right) - recognized for their work for the Thanksgiving Feast.
Mettawee first grade instructor Stephanie Pierce share a moment at the Feast with her mom and former Mettawee teacher Jean Pritchard.
Music teacher Lisa Hoyt (left) presents administrative assistant Lisa O'Brien a flower arrangement for her work in planning the Mettawee Thanksgiving Feast.
Recent Mettawee graduates returned to the school to help out on a number of tasks at the Thanksgiving Feast.