Author: Hanna Young

Written by: Elizabeth Patrick

Thanksgiving is a day for spending time with family and friends while being grateful for what they have.

Thanksgiving is a national holiday and is annually celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November.

This year Thanksgiving will be celebrated on Thursday, November 25.

In 1621, the Plymouth colonists and the Wampanoag shared an autumn harvest feast that is acknowledged today as the first Thanksgiving celebrations in the colonies.

For more than two centuries, days of Thanksgiving were celebrated by individual colonies and states. This changed in 1863 during the Civil War when President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed Thanksgiving a national holiday that would be celebrated annually each November.

In 1817, New York was one of the first of several states to adopt Thanksgiving as an annual holiday. Throughout the years, the original Thanksgiving celebration has lost most of its religious significance; now it is centered on cooking and sharing a meal with family and friends.

One of the most popular Thanksgiving traditions is to eat turkey whether it is roasted, baked, or deep-fried. Other common dishes include stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, corn, dinner rolls, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie. 

To go along with cooking meals and enjoying them with family and friends, volunteering is also a very popular activity. Communities often hold food drives and host free dinners for the less fortunate.

Throughout the years, parades have also become a very popular Thanksgiving day tradition. One of the most popular and famous Thanksgiving day parades is the Macy’s Day New York City parade. This parade attracts two to three million people every year along its 2.5-mile route. This famous parade typically features various marching bands, performers, elaborate floats containing various celebrities, and giant balloons shaped like cartoon characters.

Another popular Thanksgiving day tradition is to watch an American football game. The tradition of watching football on Thanksgiving day dates back as early as 1876.

Running turkey trots is also a very popular Thanksgiving day tradition and people run anywhere from a 5k to a half marathon.

The day after Thanksgiving is known as Black Friday and is one of the biggest shopping days of the year. The term “Black Friday” was first used on September 24, 1869, when two investors, Jay Gloud and Jim Fisk, drove up the price of gold and caused a crash that day. As a result of the crash, the stock market dropped 20% and foreign trade stopped. On this day farmers also suffered a 50% dip in wheat and corn values.

Stores all across the country have some of their biggest sales of the year. While this tradition has changed over the years due to online shopping, millions of people will still stand in lines for hours early in the morning to get great discounts and start their Christmas shopping.

To finalize, throughout the years, Thanksgiving has turned into a very famous holiday with a wide variety of different traditions including eating a feast, watching football, and going shopping on Black Friday.

Written by: Amber Baldwin

According to Instagram, in November 2020, the pie found the most in Ohio newsfeeds and stories was sweet potato pie. A traditional southern pie that has been becoming more and more popular during the holidays.

Pumpkin pie is another type of pie that is thought of when it comes to Thanksgiving. Even though many people believe that pumpkin pie was eaten on the first Thanksgiving, it actually wasn’t.

Pumpkin pie did not become a Thanksgiving tradition until the 19th century. Pumpkins were, however, a part of the first Thanksgiving. They would empty the pumpkins and put milk, honey, and spices in them. Then, they would bake it over a fire.

A third popular Thanksgiving pie is pecan pie. No one is for sure who created it, but it is most likely a recipe from America. Some of the first recipes of pecan pie published were printed in the late 1800s in Texas. The pecan pie that is thought of today was first found in an 1898 cookbook made by a church in Missouri. The recipe was sent in by a woman from Texas. It wasn’t until the 1920s when pecan pie became super popular. This happened because Karo corn syrup started putting a pecan pie recipe on their packaging. Many recipes today still follow their method.

Pie, in general, can be traced all the back to the ancient Greeks. Historians think that they were the ones who created crusts. The Romans are known for creating the first-known pie recipe. The recipe included honey and goat cheese. These pies, however, did not look like the pies that are made today. Pie crusts were referred to as “coffins” because the filling would go inside the crust to cook it.

With all this talk on pie, here are some recipes to consider using this year for Thanksgiving https://www.delish.com/holiday-recipes/thanksgiving/g2574/holiday-pies-desserts-recipes/

Written by: Emily Vargo

Growing up, if your childhood was anything like mine, then you watched a ton of Disney princess movies. A movie that most people know is Pocahontas. However, Pocahontas was an actual person, but her story is much different than the Disney version.

Pocahontas was born in 1596 and was the daughter of Chief Powhatan. Her father was the Chief of Tsenacommacah.

Pocahontas is linked to John Smith in serval versions of her story. There was no love story between them like the Disney movie portrays, but she did save John’s life. The Native Americans captured John, and right before he would be clubbed to death, Pocahontas threw herself onto John and wrapped her arms around him so her father wouldn’t kill him.

In 1613 Pocahontas was captured by colonists, where she was held for ransom. The ransom was that she would be returned to her father if he released colonial prisoners. While in captivity, she was taught about Christianity, learned English, and changed her name to Rebecca upon her baptism.

In 1614 Pocahontas had a chance to talk to her tribe during a violent confrontation between the Native Americans and colonists. She told her tribe that she didn’t want to go back and that the colonists loved her.

On April 5, 1614, Pocahontas married John Rolfe, who was an English man. Their marriage created peace between the Native Americans and the colonists for eight years. The couple had a child named Thomas in January 1615.

However, their marriage was controversial in the British court at the time because a commoner dared to marry a “princess.” Pocahontas is referred to as a princess in serval accounts by the British, but it’s all meant in a demonizing way.

On June 12, 1616, Pocahontas was taken to England to be brought before the king to be shown as an example that the so-called “savages” could be tamed.

On January 5, 1617, Pocahontas and her husband were presented in front of King James. In March 1617, Pocahontas and her husband boarded a ship to go back to Virginia. Unfortunately, they didn’t make it far till Pocahontas became gravely ill and was taken to shore, where she died at the age of 21.

Today she is known as one of our beloved Disney princesses, and in my book, she deserves the right to that title.

Written by: Elizabeth Patrick

I am excited and proud to introduce you to Kaylee Dunkle. Kaylee Dunkle is currently a senior here at Defiance College and is from Columbus, Ohio.

She is currently majoring in exercise science and will be graduating a semester early this December. Kaylee can graduate a semester early because she took 16-18 credits each semester and took prerequisites for grad school. As a result, with the help of her advisor, they were able to come up with a plan that allowed Kaylee to graduate early. After she graduates in December, she will be attending grad school starting in January at Wilmington College for Occupational Therapy.

Kaylee chose Defiance College because she wanted to be on a small, close-knit campus that felt like home. She also really liked the staff and all of the opportunities she had to become involved; she also continued her softball playing career.

Some organizations and activities that Kaylee has been involved in since she has been here include: softball, cheer, ambassador, orientation leader, admissions student worker, honors program, honors program executive board, service leadership, and a McMaster scholar.

Some things she likes to do for fun include painting, camping, boating, hiking, and dancing around.

Kaylee’s favorite memory from her time here at Defiance College was from her freshman year. The Service Leadership students and she threw a holiday party for children in foster care. As a result of doing this, they could get them gifts, wrap them, plan, decorate and throw them a huge Christmas party. Seeing how happy those children were made it the best memory, she has had yet.

Another one of her favorite memories was going to Florida with the softball team. Going to Florida was always so much fun, and she and her teammates made endless memories.

While she has been here, she has learned a lot about Defiance College and the unique opportunities it has. First, she was able to further her education. She also grew so much as a person. She is also way more open minded and looks at things from a different perspective. She learned how to work with people with many different backgrounds and found a passion for helping others. As a result of her time here at Defiance College, she feels very prepared to take on grad school and the world.

Some advice she has for students is to make a plan, use a planner and use all of the resources on campus you can. She also recommends if you know what you want to do, make it happen, and do not be afraid to ask for help.

To conclude, Kaylee has had a very successful career here at Defiance College. She cannot wait to graduate and attend grad school in January to pursue her goal of becoming an occupational therapist.

Written by: Emily Vargo

Since it is Native American Heritage Month, I wanted to talk about someone I grew up hearing about and someone I always found fascinating. This person is Tecumseh.

Tecumseh was born in 1768 in Ohio. Tecumseh was born in the Shawnee territory and into the Panther clan of the Kispoko division of the Shawnee tribe. Tecumseh was named after a shooting star that appeared during his birth. Tecumseh’s father was a war chief, and he was the fifth out of eight siblings.

Most of Tecumseh’s childhood consisted of fleeing for safety. First, there was a conflict with the British. The British were trying to take over territory but eventually quit and forced on the American Revolution. The Native Americans ended up pairing with the British to push back the Americans from their land, but they lost. This caused them to keep retreating more and more into Ohio to try to survive.

After the American Revolution, the Americans focused on one tribe at a time and getting the Native Americans to sign treaties to give up their land. In 1788 Tecumseh and his family moved westward to avoid conflict. Settlers ended up following them and kept pushing the Native Americans out. Tecumseh eventually returned to Ohio in 1791 and helped fight in the Northwest Indian War as a minor leader who was led by the Shawnee Blue Jacket.

Tecumseh fought in many battles, including the Battle of Fallen Timbers. After Blue Jacket agreed to make peace with the Americans, the Native confederacy fell apart. By 1796 Tecumseh was both the civil and war chief of the Kispoko band. Tecumseh was able to build another confederacy and fought many battles to gain and defend the land. On October 5, 1813, Tecumseh died in battle, and his remains are still lost to this day. After his death, the confederacy ended. Even though the confederacy ended, Tecumseh was known as a fighter who was fair and had honor.

Written by: Amber Baldwin

Whether you are ready or not, the holidays are upon us which means holiday drinks are here.

A place right here in Defiance that is severing holiday drinks is Biggby Coffee. Their menu includes Peppermint Stick Mocha Latte, Snow Mint Mocha, Winter Wonderland Latte, Cookie Butter Latte, Snowball Latte, Sweat Foam Cookie Butter Cold Brew, Eggnog Crème Freeze, and Eggnog Latte.

McDonald’s is bringing back their Toffee Latte and Peppermint Mocha. They also have two new drinks coming out this year along with the new Celebrations McFlurry. These drinks are the Hot Chocolate Deluxe and Choco Fudge Latte. They will also have holiday cups.

Tim Hortons is another place that will be having holiday cups this year. They are serving Candy Cane Hot Chocolate and Candy Cane White Hot Chocolate. The Black Forest Filled Ring Dream Donut and Chocolate Hazelnut Filled Muffin will also be a part of their holiday menu.

Dunkin Donuts is adding three new drinks to their holiday menu this year. These drinks are Holiday Blend Coffee, Toasted White Chocolate Signature Latte, and White Mocha Hot Chocolate. They are also bringing back their Peppermint Mocha Signature Latte.

Starbucks is known for its holiday cups. Here are the beverages they are serving this year: Peppermint Mocha, Iced Sugar Cookie Almond Milk Latte, Toasted White Chocolate Mocha Frappuccino, Chestnut Praline Latte, Caramel Brulée Latte, and Irish Cream Cold Brew. They also have their Christmas Blend Whole Bean Coffee and Cranberry Bliss Bars.

Written by: Elizabeth Patrick

Thanksgiving is a time for family and friends to gather together to appreciate what they have and be thankful for one another. Every Thanksgiving, Defiance College has the tradition of hosting a Thanksgiving dinner for the students.

After taking a year off due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Defiance College is happy to announce that its annual Thanksgiving dinner will be happening again this year. This year’s event will occur on Thursday, November 18, at 5:00 pm in the dining hall.

For the people who have not yet had the opportunity to experience this tradition, the meal is served family style in the dining hall. In order to make this event extremely special, the staff will use real linens and china. Defiance College staff and faculty will serve the different food to the students at the various tables.

Residential students will need to bring their current student IDs. Those commuter students who wish to attend should pick up a meal ticket from the Office of Student Life in 128 Hubbard Hall.

For those students who play basketball and often cannot make it at 5 pm due to practice, there will be a buffet set up at 6 pm in the banquet hall room. Hope to see you there, and make sure to come hungry as there will be plenty of delicious food calling your name.

The annual Thanksgiving dinner, served family style to students by faculty and staff, likely started in the late 1970s and from the mid-1980s until 2016 and was organized by the Chaplain’s office. This family style dinner is usually served the week before Thanksgiving. A typical Thanksgiving dinner consists of roast turkey, turkey stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, corn, dinner rolls, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie.

Written by: Emily Vargo

November is Native American Heritage Month. This month we take the time to celebrate the rich and diverse culture, traditions, history, and significant contributions of Native people.

In 1986 Congress requested that President Ronald Reagan sign a proclamation to have November 23-30 be National American Indian Week. This proclamation recognized Native Americans as the first people to inhabit the land.

In 1990 Congress requested that the president, George W.H. Bush, issue a proclamation to make November National American Indian Heritage Month. Then in 2009, the name changed to National Native American Heritage Month.

Over the years, many states and many cities, and many lakes have named places after Native Americans. Lakes that have been named after Native American tribes are Lake Erie and Lake Huron. At one time Bellefontaine, Ohio was known as Blue Jacket’s Town.

The state of Ohio has a significant amount of Native American history. Many tribes used to live here at one time like the Shawnee, Chippewa, and Delaware. Blue Jacket and Tecumseh, leaders of Shawnee tribes, were actually in the battle at Fallen Timbers.

At one point in time, there were five different tribes that lived in the Defiance area. The tribes were; Kiikaapoi, Peoria, Kaskaskia, Potawatomi, and Myaamia.

To find more information check out https://nativeamericanheritagemonth.gov/. There is also a list of virtual events and activities to learn more about Native American Heritage Month. By texting your zip code to 855-917-5263, you get info on what tribes were initially present in the area. If you would rather, go here https://land.codeforanchorage.org/ and enter your zip code or city and state, and it will generate whose land you are on.

Written by: Elizabeth Patrick

Did you know, according to Country Living, “The word Halloween comes from All Hallows’ Eve and means “hallowed evening”?

Halloween is a nationally celebrated holiday that is celebrated every year on October 31.

Every year millions of people will spend the month of October decorating and enjoying fun fall activities leading up to the day of Halloween. Some of the most popular activities include: trick-or-treating, carving jack-o-lanterns, going in haunted houses and walks, watching scary movies, and dressing up in various costumes.

The Halloween tradition started with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, where people would have bonfires and dress up in costumes to ward off ghosts. Halloween is celebrated on this day because the ancient Gaelic festival of Samhain, the oldest known tradition of Halloween, took place on this day.

October 31 marked a critical time of the year for the Samhain. The seasons were changing, and observers believed that they were able to connect with the dead. This belief was commonly shared among other cultures, but most commonly around the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur, which also occurs in October and involves praying for the dead. This was when Halloween gained its scary or haunted reputation.

Eventually, the holiday spread in popularity, and other cultures and people were celebrating it. One of the first American Colonial Halloween celebrations consisted of large public parties to commemorate the upcoming harvest, tell ghost stories, sing, and dance.

Over time, Halloween has grown in fame, where today you will find thousands of houses dressed with pumpkins, gourds, and different decorations, kids disguised in costumes going trick or treating throughout the neighborhoods, and teens being frightened in haunted houses and going on spooky walks with the hope of being scared.

To finalize, Halloween started with the ancient festival of Samhain. Over the years has turned into one of the most popular holiday celebrations where you will find hundreds of kids trick or treating or going into haunted houses.

Written by: Emily Vargo

On November 7, 1886, a brilliant woman was born in Warshaw Congress, Poland, in the Russian Empire. This woman grows up to be the first woman ever to win the Nobel Prize in Physics and the Nobel prize in chemistry. She is also the only person with the Nobel prize in two scientific fields. This women is Marie Curie.

Marie was the youngest of five siblings. Growing up, Marie’s grandfather taught her chemistry, mathematics, and physics. Because the Russian authorities eliminated laboratory instructions from Polish schools, he brought equipment home and taught the children.

Marie lost her mother when she was only ten years old, and three years later, she lost her oldest sister. Their deaths were hard on Marie, which caused her to drop out of boarding school and take up tutoring. Eventually, Marie and her sister went to Clandestine Flying University that admitted women for higher education.

In 1891 Marie left Poland and moved to France, where she studied Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics at the University of Paris. While she was in University, she lived on very little to get by. She wore all the clothes she had on cold winter nights and studied so hard at times she forgot to eat.

Once she obtained her degrees, she began her scientific career in Paris by working on various types of steel. In 1894 Marie visited Poland to see her family and find a job in her career. Unfortunately, no one would accept her due to her sex. Her lover Pierre whom she met in France, convinced her to go back to France, where they married a year later in 1895.

Over the years, Marie and her husband worked on X-rays and how to improve them. They ended up studying radiation phenomena. In December 1903, the Royal Swedish Academy of Science awarded Maria and her husband, the Nobel Prize in Physics. In 1906 Maria’s husband was killed in a horrible accident.

However, a month after his death, Marie was given a physics chair position at the University of Paris. She became the first woman to become a professor at the University of Paris. In 1911 Maria received a Nobel Prize in Chemistry for discovering the elements of radium and polonium.

Unfortunately, Maria died on July 4, 1934, from radiation poisoning, resulting from the x-ray experiments that she performed in her scientific research. However, Maria went through many obstacles in her life, but she never let anything stop her from achieving her hopes and dreams.