Traditional Thanksgiving Procession at Wekiva Presbyterian Church

 In the photo, church member Martha Newhart, dressed as the famous Pilgrim, Priscilla Mullins

On Sunday November 23, the members of Wekiva Presbyterian Church will mark Thanksgiving by a visit from Governor Bradford of the Plymouth Bay Colony, inviting worshipers to gather in the spirit of the first thanksgiving. 

The procession of Pilgrims and Native Americans is led by Don Blackadar, dressed as and portraying the Pilgrim leader, William Bradford.  He will deliver the Thanksgiving Day Proclamation, and then welcome a procession of people dressed in Pilgrim and Native American costume.

“The celebration evokes the earliest days of our nation”, says John Dalles, the church’s pastor.  “We look to those first 51 Pilgrims and their Native American friends who gathered in 1621, and remind ourselves that we have been richly blessed following their example.”

The Thanksgiving celebration is open to all who wish to attend, and will be presented at 8:30 and 11 a.m. in the Sanctuary of the church which is located at 211 Wekiva Springs Lane in Longwood.