Sophomores Sidney Listenberger and Emmelyn Brandt sit down and enjoy a little piece of Thanksgiving. Photo by: Jack Bowen

By Logan Richards

Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and several PHS students are revealing how their family prepares for the feast.

Thanksgiving is a time for a family to come together to prepare a meal and be truly thankful for their good fortune. “My grandfather always puts brown sugar on the turkey. Yumm.” says Freshman Amber Eckman. Like most people who celebrate Thanksgiving, Spanish teacher Señora Constancia Wendt spends her time helping prepare delicious and slightly exotic foods with her family and even unsuspecting local families. When Señora Wendt was asked if she cooks for just her personal family or others as well, she replied, “We have done both. My mom is a widow so she always spends Thanksgiving with us, even if we go somewhere else. Sometimes we dredge up an unsuspecting local family who is not from here (and does not speak English), drag them into our cave, then bless them with all sorts of food they are unfamiliar with.” One could only imagine the surprise that family would experience.

When asked what the number one holiday food in America is, Señora Wendt said, “I would guess turkey, which I keep wondering why because by itself, it is not all that interesting. It is also the number one Christmas food in Peru — people will do without stuff for months just to get an overpriced turkey in December!” Out of six people interviewed, four agreed with Señora Wendt by answering turkey.

Many people rarely take the time to give back to the community during Thanksgiving; however, Sophomore Sidney Listenberger goes with her team to help the people at the neighborhood center. Yet even though she is going to help the community over the break, she will still have plenty of time to celebrate with her family. “Everyone makes their own food and we all get together to eat,” she tells. To her, the traditional Thanksgiving meal consists of turkey, mashed potatoes, green beans and things like that because that’s what her family has. Junior Jacob Shrack, Sophomore Hannah Anderson, and Sophomore Wesley Seidelmann all agree with Sidney’s conception of the traditional Thanksgiving meal.

There are many types of food that are traditional and custom at this time. But what gives Thanksgiving its identity is the gathering of family and friends at a bountiful feast.