Volunteering for a thankful day

The first American Thanksgiving feast was celebrated over a three-day

period in 1621 in Plymouth, Mass., with European settlers sitting

down with about 90 Native Americans to meals consisting mostly of

wild game and fish. The fact the settlers were eating anything at all

was probably the greatest cause to celebrate that year -- the first

winter in Massachusetts had wiped out half of the original Plymouth

colonists.

It was a far different time of thanks in America than we find

today. The gratitude expressed around the turkey in 1621 pretty much involved the very basics, such as “Boy, am I thankful I didn’t get

the smallpox this year,� and “Boy, am I glad I didn’t starve or

freeze to death last January,� and “Gee, am I grateful I ran faster

than Bob when that bear was chasing us.�

Times have changed considerably since then, as have the kinds of

fortunes for which Huntington Beach residents can count themselves

thankful. There are, for sure, more to be grateful for than the gift

of life.

We can be grateful for a vast network of volunteers who provide

goods and services for families and individuals who are faced with

low-income or who are homeless. Volunteers deliver lunches to senior

shut-ins, not just on holidays, but throughout the year. Other

volunteers coordinate fund-raisers that benefit their churches, the

YMCA and local schools to supplement educational materials and

equipment.

Year-round, volunteers help the Oak View Community Center,

Huntington Beach Community Clinic, Rogers Senior’s Center, the

Therapeutic Riding Center and Boys and Girls Club. At the holidays,

they add toys and gift certificates to the list.

Volunteers care for the Bolsa Chica and the Shipley Nature Center.

Local service groups raise funds so that local charities can

continue helping the homeless and less fortunate, putting together

literacy projects for young and old, alike, and running programs for

the developmentally disabled.

And we can be grateful that we live in a community that prides

itself on its commitment to maintaining its quality of life and

ensuring this is one of the best places to live

As we sit down to whatever feast we’ve prepared for ourselves,

let’s hold one another’s hands and say it like we mean it: “Today,

I’m glad to live in Huntington Beach.�

Happy Thanksgiving, everybody.