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DECEMBER 2018 | Vol. 23 | Issue 12 | Mail Run: 8,363
www.thecatoctinbanner.com Your Good News Community Newspaper, Serving Northern Frederick County, Maryland, Since 1995
T hanks AND G i v i ng
Blair Garrett, Gracie Eyler, and Deb Abraham Spalding
“The year that is drawing towards
its close, has been filled with the
blessings of fruitful fields and
healthful skies. To these bounties,
which are so constantly enjoyed
that we are prone to forget the
source from which they come… I do
therefore invite my fellow citizens in
every part of the United States, and
also those who are at sea and those
who are sojourning in foreign lands,
to set apart and observe the last
Thursday of November next, as a
day of Thanksgiving and Praise…”
These words are part of a
Proclamation done at the City
of Washington, the Third day of
October, in the year of our Lord one
thousand eight hundred and sixty-
three, and of the Independence of the
United States the Eighty-eighth by
the President: Abraham Lincoln.
President Lincoln was not
the first president to proclaim
Thanksgiving, and he wasn’t the
last. Today, although the pace of our
daily business has changed with the
ease of technology, it is important
that the foundation of thanks be
reminded and put into practice
universally, for it is a basic part of
humanity.
For 126 years, almost as long ago
as President Lincoln’s Proclamation,
members of St. John’s Lutheran
Church in Creagerstown have
provided a community Thanksgiving
meal on Thanksgiving Day in their
parish hall. This year, the room
was full consistently, as family-
after-family gathered to share the
homemade meal throughout the day.
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The Catoctin
Photo by Gracie Eyler
John and Fay Holdner, Angel and Mike Clabaugh, Randy Welty, Mary Elle Goff, Jaylyn Shaw, Jess
Shaw, Bill Thurman, Alice Thurman, Larry Gladhill, and Brooke Gladhill sit together to enjoy the
community Thanksgiving Day meal at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Creagerstown.
Courtney Topper, a twenty-one- Then there’s…let me see, Madeline
year-old member of the Seiss family, Valentine; Glenna Wilhide; Dick
one of the long-time member families Wilhide; Bill and Regina Dinterman;
deeply involved with this tradition, Mark, Sherry, and Melanie Topper;
has helped since the age of four. Vicky Troxell and her daughters,
She said, “I’d rather do this than Kelsey and Payton; Nancy Heyser;
anything on Thanksgiving Day.” Judy Zimmerman; Betty Seiss; Dot
Thirty-seven volunteers served Lare; the Ferrell Family; the Thayer
over five hundred dinners and over Family; and my husband, Frankie
one hundred carry-out orders. Linda Seiss. We can’t forget about him.” to flock to the stores in search of the
Seiss, Courtney’s grandmother, Linda said she hopes that the
coordinated the event. She said, “It’s Thanksgiving Dinner event, “makes
the giving and joy and love that it to 200 years of Thanksgivings
make this event so great! Everybody someday.”
came in so jolly and happy… At the Ott House Pub in
and so thankful. It’s a wonderful Emmitsburg, the Ott family, extended
thing!” Linda tried to name all of family, friends, and sometimes people
the volunteers because, “That’s right off the street, gather to enjoy
important,” she said, “Phyllis Kolb a pot-luck Thanksgiving feast. This
is known for her sweet potatoes. year, one hundred and four gathered
Everyone is overwhelmed by them. for this tradition at the family’s
restaurant.
Their tradition started when
Bernard Ott, a painter by trade,
and his wife, Evelyn, opened the
Residential Customer
Ott House in 1970 as a hobby and
301-447-2804
“something for their son, Pat, to get
www.TheCatoctinBanner.com
into,” said Chris (Ott) Wilson. They
Emmitsburg, Maryland 21727
had nine children, Buddy (deceased),
515B East Main Street
Pat (deceased), Dave, Susie, Chris,
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Cathy, Bobby, Rosie, and Ritchie.
Today, four are still heavily involved
in the day-to-day operation of the
business. At the time, the family had
grown too large for any one’s house
to host Thanksgiving dinner, so the
restaurant was the perfect alternative.
To this day, the Ott House Pub
still operates with about half of the
work force comprised of family
members. Most Ott family and
extended family members have
worked at the pub at some point
during their lives. It is truly a family-
run business. The Otts, Susie, Bobby,
Chris and Rosie, and the greater
Ott House family and staff wish the
community a happy holiday season
and expressed, “Thanks for all of
your support.”
This year, as always, after our
Thanksgiving feasts were consumed
and our family members filtered
home, the chaos of Black Friday
arrived. The season of thanks
continues and becomes the season of
giving as the holiday shopping frenzy
builds.
Many families see the end of
Thanksgiving as the beginning of
Christmas, pushing moms and dads
perfect holiday gift for their children.
The transition from November to
December brings lights, candy canes,
and plenty of holiday cheer, but what
is it that spurs shoppers nationwide
to begin checking off those holiday
lists one by one?
The holiday deals cannot be
denied, with stores around the world
slashing prices to entice customers to
spend their hard-earned cash in their
stores. Parents often begin gathering
ideas for gifts as early as summer,
officially beginning the countdown
until the holidays. The holiday
crunch is finally here.
There are a few different
types of holiday givers, with each
finding different ways to make
… Story continued on page 14