November 24, 2020 – Thanksgiving will look a little different this year as families are apart to help stem the surge of COVID-19. But you can still enjoy turkey and all the fixings while protecting your friends and loved ones by moving your extended gatherings online this year.
Local health officials and hospitals are urging people to use virtual options to spend time with family this year as COVID-19 cases are surging. In addition, hospitals are being strained to dangerous proportions.
“We recognize how much people anticipate and enjoy coming together at Thanksgiving,” said Gina Carnduff, system director of infection prevention for Memorial Health System. “Unfortunately, gathering together this year has to be approached with an unrelenting focus on safety. That means limiting contact to only those in your immediate household.”
If you have never hosted a virtual event before, here are some helpful links with easy “how to Tutorials from some of the major conferencing platforms:
Zoom Meeting – Bonus! Zoom will allow for free video calls and no time limit on Thanksgiving day.
It’s a good idea to assign a tech-savvy family member to be the host. This person can collect emails, send the invites and help troubleshoot for family members who might need support. Having them set a timetable and schedule can help keep the conversations flowing smoothly.
Here are some ideas for your virtual Thanksgiving:
- If you are close enough to porch-deliver (contact-free) your favorite dishes, assign a distribution time and then join back together onscreen while you eat dinner. Even if you can’t deliver an actual dish, you still can “share” by asking each group to prepare the same recipe. Another fun idea is to “show and tell” – have each family make something special to show off and discuss. But remember to use your mute button when people are actually eating – or discussing politics!
- Coffee and dessert: If dinner seems daunting, arrange for a time after the main meal when everyone can join up for coffee, dessert and conversation.
- Count your blessings: Invite younger guests to draw a picture of what they are thankful for and share online for the group to enjoy. Ask the more senior guests to share memories of their most unusual Thanksgiving celebrations.
“The bottom line is we want all of our families to return to Thanksgiving tables next year intact, not with empty places at the table,” Carnduff said.
