As many of you gather with your families this Thanksgiving, I want to extend my warmest wishes to each of you for a day filled with joy, gratitude, and the comfort of loved ones.
As our administration theme is “Honoring Our Patriots’ Perseverance,” it is especially fitting to pause and reflect on the extraordinary determination of those who came before us. The same spirit of perseverance that sustained our Revolutionary ancestors through Valley Forge and countless hardships also inspired one of our own distinguished DAR members, and a Real Daughter, Sarah Josepha Hale (1788-1879), to wage a 36-year campaign to establish Thanksgiving as a permanent national holiday. Known to many as the author of “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” this New England editor and writer used her pen with unwavering perseverance, writing letters to five presidents until, in 1863, President Abraham Lincoln finally proclaimed the last Thursday in November as a national day of thanksgiving—a tradition we continue to cherish today.
Because of Sarah Josepha Hale’s patriotic resolve, we have this annual opportunity to give thanks for the blessings of liberty secured by our patriot ancestors.
May your Thanksgiving tables be abundant and your hearts full.
Carol
