A New Tradition

Thanksgiving is steeped in tradition. It’s a day when most people gather with family and friends, eat to excess, watch football and fall asleep on the couch.

It’s also a day when, traditionally, people reflect on, and express gratitude for, the list of gifts they have received in their lives: health, a loving family, friends, food to eat, a place to lay their heads at night.

But some people, for various reasons, may not have as long a list as others.

Which is exactly why the Reverend Lesley Hay of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Westhampton Beach is starting a new tradition this year. On Thanksgiving Day, at 1 p.m., she and members of her congregation will, for the first time, host a Thanksgiving dinner at the Main Street church for anyone who doesn’t have another place to celebrate. Rev. Hay, who has spent the past few weeks soliciting donated food for the feast, plans to do most of the cooking herself.

After the church’s former pastor, the Reverend Michael Ralph, who served the church for five years, left in August to return to Ohio to deal with family matters, Rev. Hay was brought in to be an interim pastor while the church searches for a permanent replacement. She noted that she sees her mission as being less about filling the church’s pews every Sunday, and more about guiding her flock to be positive members of the community.

Other area churches were quick to jump on board with the planned holiday meal, even though the Hamptons Interfaith Council already has a holiday dinner planned for Sunday, November 24, at 3 p.m. at the Westhampton Presbyterian Church. After all, no one should be alone on Thanksgiving Day itself.

It may seem like a simple gesture — cook a turkey dinner for those who aren’t able to, or who would otherwise be alone. But for those who will benefit, it will mean a joyous day, filled with gratitude, a full stomach and the warmth of getting to know their neighbors.

So as the bird and trimmings are passed around next Thursday, and the region’s men and women tick off the things for which they are grateful, they would do well to include Rev. Hay and everyone like her — and there are so many — who put the community’s needs ahead of their own to make sure everyone in the community has something to give thanks for.