Family tradition – for many it’s what makes Thanksgiving the premier holiday of the year. For the leaders of the Riverside and Brookfield area, tradition for this holiday is a whole lot more than turkey, pumpkin pie and Chicago Bears football.
Just ask Todd Gierman, principal of Ames Elementary School in Riverside, which celebrated its 100th anniversary a few weeks ago.
“My family’s most prominent Thanksgiving tradition is the making of the homemade stuffing,” Gierman said. “From breaking apart the eight loaves of bread into little pieces, to the cutting up of the many stalks of celery, onions, sticks of butter, dissolving the bouillon cubes, and all the other delicious ingredients, it’s something we get up bright and early on Thanksgiving morning as a family to cook together.”
Makes you hungry just thinking about it.
Then there is Dr. Michael Adkesson, president and CEO of the Brookfield Zoo. For him and his family, it’s not pumpkin pie, but another flavor.
“Every year we bake several apple pies from my grandmother’s amazing recipe,” he said. “They take so much longer to make than to eat – but it’s great family time together.”
He added, “As a kid I remember peeling and cutting up apples with my mom to make pies. Over the past few years, I’ve taken over the pie-making responsibilities, so now I’m spending time with my kids the day before Thanksgiving doing the same thing.”
That’s a good point Adkesson makes. What do our local luminaries remember about their family traditions when growing up?
Turns out, what they do is almost exactly what they have done for decades, or longer.
“The day before Thanksgiving, my sisters and I would help my mom prepare the turkey and stuffing for the big feast,” said Kevin Skinkis, superintendent of Riverside-Brookfield School District 208.
“As the years passed, I realized and grew to appreciate all the work my mom put into cooking for the family on Thanksgiving and how much joy she got out of it,” he said. “Today, seeing the grandkids around that table helping her, just like my sisters and I did when we were young, reminds me how important family is, and that’s what I’m most thankful for this Thanksgiving.”
Hector Freytas, principal at Riverside-Brookfield, enjoys cultural fusion at Thanksgiving, melding family connections to Puerto Rico and Ecuador.
The centerpiece of the dinner table is pavochon, and it takes a little describing, but by the time Freytas is done, your mouth will be watering.
“It’s a turkey that is marinated like a roasted pig,” he said. “Imagine eating a turkey that tastes like pork. It’s a party in your mouth.”
That’s not all. There is Puerto Rican rice, which is incorporated into the stuffing, and an Ecuadorian seafood salad, with shrimp, mussels and scallops.
But there’s more than food. His family does a lot of Latin dancing, for example, something Freytas remembers fondly from his childhood.
“I remember growing up, dancing with my mom and dancing with my grandmother, we’re dancing and eating and celebrating,” he recalled. “That moment, let’s be happy and grateful.”
Riverside village president Douglas Pollock hails Thanksgiving as his favorite holiday. Why?
“It’s like the Christmas holiday but with a lot less stress,” he said. “Undoubtedly, our family’s most prominent and prized Thanksgiving tradition is simply that we come together in one place. It is even more important as our children are now spread across the country.”
His counterpart, Brookfield Village President Michael Garvey, concurs.
“Thanksgiving for the Garvey family has always been about gathering with family and friends,” he said. “My late mom and dad hosted, and it was just not family. They always wanted to make sure everyone had a place to go. In recent years, my wife, who is a saint, has taken over the tradition and we host a large gathering.
“It may seem quite simple, but it is the perfect way to celebrate Thanksgiving for us,” he said.
But you obviously can’t forget football. The Bears will be in Detroit to face the Lions on Thursday, but if they were at home, Brookfield Fire Chief Jim Adams would be in the upper level of Soldier Field as an NFL statistician.
“Whoever the Bears play at home, we’re responsible,” Adams said. “I’ve worked Christmas Eve, New Year’s Eve.”
With the Bears on the road this Thanksgiving, he’ll be home with family, “telling stories we’ve told a million times.”
“So we pass our history on to our kids,” he said. “I always thought that was kind of cool.”
