A Thanksgiving Message from
County Executive Marc Molinaro
As we celebrate Thanksgiving today, Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro presents the following message for residents:
Thanksgiving is a special day, unlike any other, when we share a meal and set aside time to show and be mindful of our gratitude for the fruits of our labor, the bounty of our land, the kindness of our neighbors, the health of our children, and the love of those dearest to us.
While we eat our turkey and our pumpkin pie with the most important people in our worlds, many of us say a prayer of thanks, while others play board games with their siblings or catch with their dads, watch football and root for – or against – the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys. We all have our traditions, and many will have to change this year in practice to preserve the health of your family, but they need not change our spirit.
You may not be watching football with your cousins in the same room, but they are only a Zoom call away. You may not be sitting at the same table as your aunts and uncles, but there is no reason you can’t give them a call and argue about those things that seem so insignificant. It is a challenge, especially on days of such importance and meaning, but love finds a way, and I know we will all find new ways to show our love and gratitude.
2020 has been a somber year, there is no doubt. Our well-being has been under constant threat, while the soul of our nation has been put to the test. Yet, we persist. Our nation and its people have overcome awesome challenges; and during times of trial and tribulation, we have often summoned courage, exercised compassion, and risen to the occasion.
In his 1863 Thanksgiving Day proclamation, President Lincoln found ample reason for gratitude amidst the devastation of the Civil War, “…and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom.”
One hundred years later, in his own proclamation, President Kennedy would take count of our nation’s growth and bounty, and the improvements in standards of living unmatched in history. Like then, our nation has much to be grateful for despite our many challenges. Our standard of living is unparalleled in human history. Our population has continued to grow. We continue the work to create a freer and fairer nation. And we still are capable of great things.
Yet, as President Kennedy also wrote, “as our power has grown, so has our peril.” The peril of division and discord. The American Family is divided by politics, injustice, and uncertainty. What better time to heal, to forgive, to close divides than over a meal, on our day of thanks – a day to choose to be thankful.
So many have lived through so very much these last 11 months, and 2020 has taken too much from too many. On this day of gratitude, I hope we can not only give thanks for what we have, but that we can find love for one another – for our families, our communities, those who struggle, those living alone, those who have suffered loss. That we may extend that love to family, our friends and our fellow Americans.
