While celebrated intermittently before, Thanksgiving was declared a national holiday in 1863 by President Abraham Lincoln. It is always the fourth Thursday in November.

This Thanksgiving, we are grateful for living, working, and volunteering in a beautiful and great city and neighboring counties. For living in the USA, protected by the men and women of our armed forces who sacrifice their holidays so that we may remain free.

We give thanks for our fellow first responders around the nation, and especially for our partners here in town: the Fredericksburg Fire Department, Fredericksburg Police Department, Fredericksburg Sheriff's Office, and watching over us all, the Fredericksburg 911 dispatchers who help keep us safe out there. We are all here, serving the residents of Fredericksburg this holiday and every day.

We'd like to say a special thanks to our volunteers Jim, Eric, and Megan who will be staffing our 911 response ambulance today: thank you for your dedication. And to Debi, Alyson, Katrina, and Jacob for getting up early to ensure the YMCA Turkey Trotters are safe.

Thank you, Fredericksburg. It is an honor and a pleasure to serve you. Stay safe this holiday.

Happy Thanksgiving, and God Bless!