A North Fork Thanksgiving story

The Thanksgiving feast at Sondreson Hall is always well attended. Each of the last two years, there were about 80 people attending. This year, wow. At 3:20 p.m. when I arrived, it was already packed and difficult to find a seat. By 4 p.m. when dinner was served, more tables had been set up and the dinner line stretched almost completely around the hall, and some folks sat at the tables waiting for the line to get shorter.

After everyone was served, Margaret Heaphy counted 113 people, but my count was 158. Margaret did not count the people, mostly kids, who were outside, but the hall was so full I may have counted some folks twice, so neither count is totally reliable. Suffice it to say, it was a record crowd and some of the crowd had to sit on the benches with their plates on their lap.

As usual, the food was great and so were the people. The North Fork Landowners Association provided three turkeys cooked by the Ogles, Novaks and Bergs and one big ham which I baked. Joe Novak made sure there was plenty of gravy.

Everyone else brought something, and there was an abundance of appetizers, salads, dressing, vegetables and a ton of desserts. Even with the record crowd, there were leftovers and I’m sure everyone ate too much.

And there was more. Mark Heaphy did the blessing, giving thanks for our community and its people and a prayer for the sick who could not attend and for our service people at home and abroad.

Once again, Lennie Treim led us all in the first stanza of “America” and then he and his sister Robin sang the next stanzas. They not only sang well, they reminded us all why the North Fork is special to all of us, young and old.

For me, this traditional community Thanksgiving is not about the great meal but about the great people in the community.

Some we only see at Thanksgiving, others more frequently. This was the first time I had seen Phil Sue in years, both Bill Olmsteds were there, as well as longtime residents John Frederick and Lynn and Bonny Ogle, and first-time attendees Bob and Linda Nelson, as well as a ton of friends and relatives.

It’s a great time to visit, and it’s a time when we set aside our differences of opinion and rejoice in the things we are thankful for and agree on.

Yes, the chow line was long, but in the end it was worth the wait and the benefits can last all year long. What do you think?