Turkey, family and friends make the day special for Greece students

The creamy mashed potatoes, crunchy corn and stuffing - teacher Marianne Stanchus' second-graders are looking forward to a Thanksgiving dinner with all the fixin's. But the turkey, for sure, is the best part of the meal, many of the Holmes Road-Buckman Heights Elementary students said.

Except for one. Asked whether he liked the turkey, Joshua Holdaway, 8, gave a quick, "No!" He'll eat at his cousin's house, where he'll have "corn and some other stuff." Corn, he said, is his favorite.

For his classmates, the main course can't be topped.

"I like the turkey," said Sarah Gnage, 7, who is going to her grandma's for the big dinner. Her family says a special blessing before the meal.

Kira Sage, also 7, likes the stuffing and turkey best, she said. A special tradition in her family comes after dinner, when the person who eats the most gets to pull the wishbone from the turkey and make a wish.

src="http://www.youtube.com/v/O2MtNgRJ0IYrel=1" width="425" height="355" scale="ShowAll" loop="loop" menu="menu" wmode="transparent" quality="1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed> Giuseppe Falzone, 7, is going to his grandmother's for dinner, where he'll have turkey, mashed potatoes, corn and cranberry sauce, he said. Sometimes, they play board games, too. Constance Lepsch, 7, can't wait to dig into her favorite Thanksgiving food - sweet potatoes. And Madeline Rivera, 7, is looking forward to turkey and pumpkin pie. The best part of the holiday, the kids said, is spending time with their families. Madeline is thankful for "having a great family and a great teacher," she said. Giuseppe is thankful for his friends and family, he said. Kira is thankful for her three sisters, brother, parents, bird, dog and car "'cause that way we can get to places a lot faster." Constance is thankful for her family's dogs. Coincidentally, Constance mentioned, one of them is named Diva, and Constance has a hat emblazoned with that name. She's also thankful for the hat. Sarah is grateful to have a little sister, Carolyn, 3. "I'm thankful for my sister 'cause I think she's really sweet," Sarah said. "Even though we fight sometimes - well, not sometimes, a lot - I will always be there to catch her when she falls." <em> Colleen M. Farrell can be reached at (585) 394-0770, Ext. 265, or at cfarrell@mpnewspapers.com.