Back in 1621, when the Pilgrims at Plymouth settlement sat down with the Wampanoag Indians to share the first autumn harvest feast, they had no way of knowing their meal would become the first Thanksgiving dinner, or that the tradition would continue, off and on, for at least another 386 years ~ right up to today.

While we celebrate that tradition on the fourth Thursday in November, the first Thanksgiving feast actually went on for three days and guests included the famous Indian king, Massasoit, who is largely credited with saving the colonists from starvation during those first grueling years of the settlement.

Although historians don’t necessarily agree as to what the first Thanksgiving meal consisted of, they do all seem to believe that a lot of our modern day staples weren’t in evidence back then, including pumpkin pie, mashed potatoes or cranberry sauce.

According to historians, there were probably no sweet potatoes, or potatoes of any kind, on the table, as many Europeans still considered potatoes (and tomatoes) to be poisonous. And while there may have been some type of corn-based fried bread, there was probably no corn on the cob, as corn was usually being dried out during the fall season. The Pilgrims didn’t bring any cows over on the Mayflower, so there was probably no cheese or butter ~ unless they whipped some up from goat’s milk. They had pigs, but historians claim none were butchered at that time. They had cranberries but no sugar, so cranberry sauce hadn’t even been conceived of. Nor had pumpkin pie been created yet. There were recipes for stewed pumpkins, but not pie. There may have been eggs and chicken, if any were left from the trip from England, but that’s just a guess.

So while no one knows with certainty what those first celebrants actually dined on, we do know deer meat and wild fowl were definitely on the menu. Wild fowl, of course, was in abundance ~  cranes, geese, swans, duck, partridge, eagles and our own perennial favorite, turkey. Other possible food items could well have included seafood, as they were so near the coast. They could have eaten lobster, cod, clams, eel or possibly even seal meat.

Vegetables could have included pumpkin, onions, beans, peas, carrots, or maybe a rudimentary salad of lettuce, watercress and radishes, possibly with a little olive oil dressing. They could have had fruit, such as grapes, plums or berries. Or nuts, such as chestnuts, walnuts or acorns. They also could have whipped something up from grains of the day, such as Indian corn and wheat flour. Whatever they had could have been seasoned with parsnips, leeks, dried currants, liverwort or salt. Their diet would have included a lot of dried foods, as there was no refrigeration and food items were easily spoiled.

The Pilgrims, who were originally members of the English Separatist Church, left England to pursue their faith. Before sailing to America, they first tried settling in The Netherlands; but after a time, the conservative Separatists began to view Dutch society as ungodly (I can’t help but wonder how different the world would be today had they chosen to stay in The Netherlands). Interestingly, of all the ones who traveled to the new world aboard the Mayflower, only about a third were Separatist. The rest were crew members or men hired on as protection. Of the 102 Pilgrims who settled Plymouth, 46 died within the first year due to illness and hardship ~ nearly half their number.

One of the most detailed first-hand accounts of the first Thanksgiving can be found in Edward Winslow’s “A Journal of the Pilgrims at Plymouth,” written between 1620 and 1621. I encourage everyone, especially our young people, to learn all they can about the history of our great country and where we come from as a people and a nation. Only by understanding what came before can we reasonably plot a path into the future.

Although World War I ~ The Great War ~ officially ended with the Treaty of Versailles on June 28, 1919, the fighting had actually ceased seven months earlier on November 11, 1918 (“the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month”), when an armistice went into effect between the Allies and Germany. A year later in 1919, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed November 11 to be “Armistice Day” ~ a day of national remembrance to honor the sacrifice of the 116,000 Americans “who died in the country’s service” during WWI. On May 13, 1938, Congress enacted legislation making Armistice Day a national holiday.

Ironically, WWI was referred to as “the war to end all wars,” but sadly, that turned out not to be the case, and after suffering through another “great war” in Europe and the Pacific, as well as the Korean war, Americans decided it was time to honor all veterans, not just those of WWI. So it was that on June 1, 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a bill replacing “Armistice” with “Veterans,” and thus was born what we now call “Veterans Day.”

For 10 years, beginning in 1968, the date of Veterans Day was moved to the fourth Monday in October in order that Americans could enjoy a three-day weekend. Ostensibly, this was to allow for plenty of time to attend memorials, remembrances and ceremonies. But a lot of folks were concerned that the importance of Veterans Day would be lost in the heady anticipation of a long weekend. In fact, many states refused to acknowledge the fourth Monday date and continued to observe November 11 as the one true Veterans Day. It was for this reason, in 1978, that President Gerald Ford signed another bill into law re-designating November 11 as the official date of Veterans Day. So it remains today.

A lot of people confuse Veterans Day with Memorial Day, which is observed on the last Monday of May. This is a common mistake in that both days are dedicated to the sacrifices of American servicemen and women. But while Veterans Day is designed to celebrate our living veterans, Memorial Day is designed to remember our dead. Although it can be argued that it is impossible to honor the living without honoring the dead. And vice versa.

On a more personal level, Bradley County has had its share of veterans who have served honorably and consistently over the years in peacetime and in war (in fact, many of them are now deputies and employees of the Sheriff’s Office). Some of our local veterans are publically recognized ~ like Sgt. Paul Huff ~ but most are not. And some never return home to friends and family, as was the case last year with Sgt. David Weir, who made the ultimate sacrifice in Iraq.

But Bradley County veterans have performed their duties with honor and dignity, then returned home without fanfare to build lives of normalcy as spouses, parents, daughters and sons. It’s hard to know exactly how many veterans Bradley County actually has, though, because there are no good tracking systems in place. Even the local VA office has trouble coming up with an exact number. A rough estimate of cases they service each month would be between 140 to 160, but that includes the surrounding area, not just Bradley County.

Our nation was conceived in war 231 years ago ~ the Revolutionary War. Since then, the U.S. has been involved in a number of conflicts around the world, at home and abroad ~ the War of 1812, the Mexican War, the Civil War, the Spanish American War, WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, the first Persian Gulf War and now Iraq. And although I doubt there’s a single person reading this who celebrates war, there are many who recognize its necessity ~ especially in this day of global terrorism. I pray we never lose the courage or heart to stand against tyranny and oppression, wherever we find it.

So, it is with great humility that I lend my voice this Veterans Day to the voices of countless other grateful Americans and say thank you to the men and women who willingly face unknown danger in hostile lands to defend the freedoms we all too often take for granted.

Well, I’ve passed my one-year mark as Sheriff of Bradley County and I must say, it’s been a pleasure serving you all. We’ve faced some tough challenges, but overall we’ve seen a lot of improvements in this office and I feel we’ve laid down a firm foundation upon which to build for the future.

But one of my greatest pleasures this first year has been having the opportunity to personally meet so many Bradley County citizens. I’ve said it before but it bears repeating ~ we have some of the greatest folks on earth living right here in Cleveland/Bradley. This community has supported the BCSO in a big way and I think it’s only fair the BCSO give something back.

That’s why we’ve decided to invite you all to the first Sheriff’s Family Day which will be held on Sat. October 13, from 12:00 noon until 5:00 p.m. at Stuart School (Keith & 20th - Click for Map ). This will be a time when everyone can turn out and enjoy a day of family-friendly activities and entertainment, courtesy of the Bradley County Sheriff’s Office.

Bring your lawn chairs and blankets and plan on enjoying plenty of free food, live entertainment, fun for the kids, door prizes and a whole lot more. And no taxpayer money will be spent on this event, thanks to the efforts of volunteers and sponsors who are donating their time, services, food and merchandise.

This Family Day is still evolving, but at this time we have arranged for air toys for the kids, the moonwalk, face painting, horseback rides and give-aways. There will be various contests that will test the skills of young and old alike, a kissing booth, live music and stage performances, the TWRA diorama and a whole lot more. We’ve also gotten some of our local vendors and artisans to donate wares and products to be given away as door prizes. Folks, I’ve seen some of these door prizes and believe me, they’re nice.

The mission of the Bradley County Sheriff’s Office is to provide honest, fair, professional law enforcement services to the citizens of Bradley County while managing resources effectively to prevent and reduce crime. To this end, it has always been my goal to continually upgrade, modernize and enhance the professionalism and effectiveness of the BCSO. One of the latest methods by which I hope to accomplish this is through the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA).

CALEA is a nationally recognized professional law enforcement model that will bring cohesion and consistency to the operations of the BCSO. Some of the advantages include greater accountability, controlling liability insurance costs, offering a stronger defense against civil lawsuits, advancing greater support from government officials and increasing community advocacy. Currently, there are three sheriff’s offices that are accredited in Tennessee.  My hope is Bradley County will become the fourth.

This is a gradual process, but my goal is to at least be close to accreditation by the end of my first term. The CALEA model is the yardstick by which modern law enforcement agencies are measured in terms of professionalism and accountability, and I’m anxious to move forward with it.