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Newsletter
I NOVEMBER 2005
THANKSGIVING
The American Thanksgiving holiday began as a feast of thanksgiving in the early days of the American colonies almost four hundred years ago.
In 1620, a boat filled with more than one hundred people sailed across the Atlantic Ocean to settle in the New World. This religious group had begun to question the beliefs of the Church of England and they wanted to separate from it. The Pilgrims settled in what is now the state of Massachusetts . Their first winter in the New World was difficult. They had arrived too late to grow many crops, and without fresh food, half the colony died from disease. The following spring the Iroquois Indians taught them how to grow corn (maize), a new food for the colonists. They showed them other crops to grow in the unfamiliar soil and how to hunt and fish.
In the autumn of 1621, bountiful crops of corn, barley, beans and pumpkins were harvested. The colonists had much to be thankful for, so a feast was planned. They invited the local Indian chief and 90 Indians. The Indians brought deer to roast with the turkeys and other wild game offered by the colonists. The colonists had learned how to cook cranberries and different kinds of corn and squash dishes from the Indians. To this first Thanksgiving, the Indians had even brought popcorn.
In following years, many of the original colonists celebrated the autumn harvest with a feast of thanks. After the United States became an independent country, Congress recommended one yearly day of thanksgiving for the whole nation to celebrate. George Washington suggested the date November 26 as Thanksgiving Day. Then in 1863, at the end of a long and bloody civil war, Abraham Lincoln asked all Americans to set aside the last Thursday in November as a day of thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving falls on the fourth Thursday of November, a different date every year. The President must proclaim that date as the official celebration.
In 1939 President Franklin D. Roosevelt set it one week earlier. He wanted to help business by lengthening the shopping period before Christmas. Congress ruled that after 1941 the 4th Thursday in November would be a federal holiday proclaimed by the President each year.
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LETTER
FROM THE ISF ASSISTANTS
Dear International Friend,
We hope this newsletter finds you in good health and that you are doing well in your work or studies. Now that summer is past and the autumn season is here it seems that life slows down just a little bit. Here in the United States the celebrations of Thanksgiving in November and Christmas in December bring many families together for visiting and fellowship. If you are away from your family and friends it can be a difficult time for you when it seems that those around you are gathering with those they love but your loved ones may be far from you. If that is the case we want you to know that we are thinking of you. Many of you are in the Pittsburgh area while others have moved away. If you are close by we ask you to join in our Thanksgiving Gathering ( 11-04-2005 ) so that you can enjoy a traditional Thanksgiving dinner and a special emphasis on the meaning of this holiday. Then, in December you can come to the Christmas Banquet ( 12-09-2005 ) and be a part of our International family. If you are outside the Pittsburgh area we hope you will have some American friends who can share this time with you.
During the Thanksgiving holiday we think of the many things that we are thankful for. More than anything we appreciate the love that God has shown for us in giving His Son Jesus to die on the cross for us. There has never been a greater example of love than this. It is the motivation for those who live for Jesus to reach out to those around them in friendship. We want to thank all of you who have been a help to ISF during the year 2005. You have been a blessing in many capacities, so to you our International friends we say, “Thank you for the wonderful experiences we have shared and for your concern.”
We will look forward to seeing you at the November ISF gathering. This gathering will be on Friday, November 4 th at 7:30 PM in the beautiful Ballroom of the William Pitt Union . The William Pitt Union is located in Oakland on the corner of Bigelow and Fifth Avenue . To get to the Ballroom, use the entrance on Fifth Avenue and then follow the signs. At this gathering we plan on special music, wonderful fellowship, a Traditional Thanksgiving Meal for you to enjoy, an interesting lecture and of course there will be children's activities in the Kurtzman room. And remember it's all free!
We look forward to seeing you on Friday, November 4th!
--Terry
& Pam Tiberio, ISF Assistants
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SEPTEMBER ISF
GATHERING (September 23, 2005)
100
were present from the following 7 countries: Bosnia, Canada, China, Indonesia, Jamaica, Macedonia, Vietnam, USA.
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Hope
to see you at the Thanksgiving ISF Gathering on Friday,
November 4th, at 7:30 PM in the Ballroom of the William
Pitt!
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