Bobcats are ready for Thanksgiving break, a five-day weekend filled with rest in preparation of finals week starting Dec. 8.
While some students make the journey home to celebrate with loved ones around the dinner table, others remain in town for the holiday.
For those staying in town, Ohio University is hosting a variety of celebrations, including community dinners and themed meals. Nov. 26, the Patton College of Education is hosting a Home Away From Home Holiday Meal in Patton Hall room 120 on 100 E. Union St. from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Registration ends at noon Nov. 21.
The Home Away From Home Meal provides 150 traditional and international meals for dine-in or take-out and accommodates those with dietary restrictions. Along with traditional Thanksgiving foods, the event includes vegetarian, halal and vegan options, such as a quinoa dish and vegan chocolate brownies.
The Sustainable Thanksgiving Dinner invites all Bobcats to enjoy a vegan and vegetarian potluck Nov. 20 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., hosted by the Office of Sustainability. Students are encouraged to bring a dish and share a recipe, though bringing food is not required.
Dishes include plant-based and gluten-free selections from Kiser's Barbeque and Brenen's Coffee Cafe, as well as beverages from Seaman's Cardinal Super Market. This event will take place at the new OHIO Ecohouse, located at 66 University Terrace.
Sam Crowl, director of OU’s Office of Sustainability, said he has attended the Thanksgiving sustainability dinners since 2014. He said the meal is a zero-waste community-building experience and a time to discuss plans and progress in sustainability.
“It's a time to give thanks for all the work that students, faculty and staff are involved in, and the way we're really trying to help the university and the community be more sustainable,” Crowl said.
On Thanksgiving Day, Tavolino on 9 N. Shafer St. is hosting its eighth community meal, serving traditional Thanksgiving dishes and Italian meals. The event, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., is free to attend and guests are encouraged to bring their friends and appetites.
Tavolino also welcomes any monetary donations for the community meal until Nov. 25, as a set amount of food will be provided for guests.
The Tavolino dinner is an annual tradition, gathering and feeding locals who might not have the resources or time to make a meal for themselves. Like Tavolino, most students enjoy celebrating Thanksgiving traditions with family and friends.
Linda Huang, a junior studying accounting and analytics, is planning to travel home to Akron during Thanksgiving break and see her family and boyfriend. Huang said her family is spending Thanksgiving break in Cleveland at her sister’s new home.
“(My sister’s) boyfriend is a chef, so there's a whole menu that he's putting together,” Huang said. “Not very typical Thanksgiving food, but just food that he wants to make, like wagyu, mango sticky rice, egg rolls (and) spring rolls.”
Huang’s family hands out red envelopes for Thanksgiving, per Chinese tradition, to signify good luck for the year. She said she looks forward to enjoying her family’s spicy peanut noodles with chicken and sesame seeds and Japanese sweet potatoes.
Abigail LaRoche, a sophomore studying exercise physiology, said her family, from Bellaire, has a tradition called the “turkey bowl,” a yearly football game played in their front yard.
“We have rings and a trophy for the winners,” LaRoche said. “It's very competitive, but just so fun. And then we also have a turkey bowl queen. So all of the girls in our family will draw from a hat, and then they wear a crown and sash. It's so over the top, but it is what makes it so fun and special.”
LaRoche also said she bakes for her family every Thanksgiving, and this year she is serving apple pie cheesecake bars and oatmeal cream pie cookies. After Thanksgiving festivities, LaRoche’s family goes to bed early to wake at 4 a.m. for Black Friday shopping.
“We like to get to the stores when they open around five or six, and it's me and my dad and my two younger sisters, and we go shopping for my mom for Christmas,” LaRoche said.
Bobcats traveling home for the holiday have plans to look forward to and events to attend on campus before leaving. For those staying in Athens this year, community organizations are waiting with open arms and plenty of food.
