CityView Magazine - Fayetteville, NC
Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/19024
editors THANKFUL THINKING N going to a tailgate party with friends and being packed into a high-energy stadium is an entirely different story. As college teams go, Army does not get much good press these days, but they have F put on a good show thus far and I look forward to the annual Army/Navy game next month. In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I’ve been reminded through many of the community events I’ve attended over the past month how generous people and businesses in our area are. From the March of Dimes Signature Chefs Auction netting $65,000, to the annual Blue Jean Ball for Child Advocacy, Fayetteville-ians are a group of cheerful givers. Along those lines, read about one local realtor who embodies selflessness and gives his time and money towards helping others (see page 66) — bringing in $26,000 for a children’s charity. ovember is the month for Thanksgiving and every American family has it’s own traditions. My family’s tradition is what we call “the random.” Every Thanksgiving there is someone at my mother’s table who is not a member of the family, someone none of us expected to see, someone “random.” Though she had no qualms about sending away the stray pets we kids attempted to adopt when we were little, my mother can’t stomach the idea of a friend dining alone on Thanksgiving. Last Thanksgiving my husband was away and so was a friend’s husband and she and I agreed that loading up our cars and driving with our children was, well, unappetizing. Instead, we gathered in my kitchen to cook the meal for ourselves, our children and a few others who had nowhere else to go. We were a collection of randoms, I suppose. The next day, as we joined the crowd at the Dickens Christmas celebration downtown, I looked around then at the crazy quilt of a family we had assembled — and was truly thankful for them all. There’s a lot to be thankful for in each of our lives and here in Fayetteville, some of which you can read about in this issue. From the events like the Dickens Christmas to the wonderful Indian food (page 28), we have all been blessed. all is underway and I’ve enjoyed the pumpkin patch outings, spiced lattes and pumpkin treats, as well as breaking out sweaters and warm weather running clothes. What I have not partaken in are the 17 Sundays spent tethered to football games on T.V. Just as some people are social drinkers, I am a social football game watcher. Only a few games a year show up in our living room – yet another reason why my husband is a keeper. But, 10 | November • 2010