Most stories of Thanksgiving history start with the harvest celebration of the pilgrims and the Indians that took place in the autumn of 1621. Although they did have a three-day feast in celebration of a good harvest, and the local Indians did participate, this "first Thanksgiving" was not a holiday, simply a gathering. There is little evidence that this feast of thanks led directly to our modern Thanksgiving Day holiday. Thanksgiving can, however, be traced back to 1863 when Pres. Lincoln became the first president to proclaim Thanksgiving Day. The holiday has been a fixture of late November ever since.
However, since most school children are taught that the first Thanksgiving was held in 1621 with the pilgrims and Indians, let us take a closer look at just what took place leading up to that event, and then what happened in the centuries afterward that finally gave us our modern Thanksgiving.
The Pilgrims who sailed to this country aboard the Mayflower were originally members of the English Separatist Church (a Puritan sect). They had earlier fled their home in England and sailed to Holland (The Netherlands) to escape religious persecution. There, they enjoyed more religious tolerance, but they eventually became disenchanted with the Dutch way of life, thinking it ungodly. Seeking a better life, the Separatists negotiated with a London stock company to finance a pilgrimage to America. Most of those making the trip aboard the Mayflower were non-Separatists, but were hired to protect the company's interests. Only about one-third of the original colonists were Separatists.
The Pilgrims set ground at Plymouth Rock on December 11, 1620. Their first winter was devastating. At the beginning of the following fall, they had lost 46 of the original 102 who sailed on the Mayflower. But the harvest of 1621 was a bountiful one. And the remaining colonists decided to celebrate with a feast -- including 91 Indians who had helped the Pilgrims survive their first year. It is believed that the Pilgrims would not have made it through the year without the help of the natives. The feast was more of a traditional English harvest festival than a true "thanksgiving" observance. It lasted three days.
We have had a great recycling effort with our Cans for Cash drive.  If you have supported this drive and have cans on hand, please take them to the collection center, located at the Home Depot Parking Lot on Saturday, November 20, 2010 between 9:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m.
 
Amount paid: $0.30 per pound30 per pound
Location: Home Depot Parking Lot (3200 Capital Circle NE)
Hours: 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Collect aluminum cans to raise funds for your organization or earn extra cash for yourself!
For more information call 891.4YOU (4968) or visit Talgov.com/YOU
 
Download Free Audio Books
Visit this website:  http://www.booksshouldbefree.com/ to download a free audio book in mp3, IPOD or Itunes format.  This site contains free audio books from the public domain. 
 
Internet Safety – A Workshop for Parents, November 29th
 
 
Save Your Aluminum Cans for November 20th at Home Depot
Let’s recycle our aluminum cans.  Besides, being good for the environment, recycling aluminum cans makes money for our school.  Griffin supports recycling paper on a daily basis.  Last year WE led the district middle schools in recycling with 20,420 pounds for the year!  This year we are leading the district with 3,960 pounds.  We also use Shred-It for confidential recycling of paper and this year we have saved 27 trees from destruction!
 
Griffin Calendar of Upcoming Events
  If you have not reserved your copy of the Tiger’s Roar, you are missing a treat.  Sponsored by the Information Technology students, under the sponsorship of Ms. Jackson, the next edition of this popular newspaper will be available Tuesday, November 23.  The focus of this edition will be Friendship.  Don’t miss getting your copy of this high quality, student friendly newspaper.