The Flea market held in Petrey on Nov. 20 to benefit the Northeast Crenshaw Volunteer Fire Department netted $2,036.90.

Chairman Gaye Beasley was glowing when she added up all the profits.

"It was a great success," she said. "We have some good people in the Fire Department."

The fire station building fund has grown tremendously because of the hard work of members of the fire department, their wives and others.

"A hearty thanks to all members of the Fire Department who worked long hours," Fire Chief Tommy Petrey said.

Many volunteers worked through the night cooking the Boston butts and the campstew.

The wives and others baked tasty desserts for the sale.

Chief Petrey wants to thank all who participated by selling advance tickets for the Boston Butts, by donating items and for coming to the sale and purchasing items. Mickey Mills, who furnished the big grill and his labor, deserves a special thank you.

Fifty quarts of camp stew, 190 Boston Butts and numerous cakes, pies and other sweets were sold. Chief Petrey said he also was thankful for Pepsi Cola Company of Luverne, which furnished the Pepsi wagon.

"One of the biggest benefits of the Flea Market was the camaraderie and the fine team spirit that developed," said Chief Petrey.

Workers from Petrey, Patsburg, Helicon and the area spent a lot of time together in a common cause and enjoyed getting to know each other.

Most of the merchandise that remained was given to the Hannah House charity.

The fire department is planning another camp stew sale in the near future.

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Valeta Spradley's daughter, Carole Hinshaw of Orlando, will be visiting this week. Spradley's son Darren and his new wife Maria are also coming later in the week.

Spradley and Carole will enjoy Thanksgiving dinner out at the W.L. Petrey Company lodge with the family of Jim and Lucy Jackson.

Curtis and Nancy Petrey are spending Thanksgiving in Denver, Colo. this week. They are visiting their son Jim, his wife Tricia and their three granddaughters, Taylor, 7, Hannah, 6, and Madeline, 1.

Jim and his family moved from Mobile to Denver last July, and this is the first time Curtis and Nancy have seen them since the move.

Lawrence and Margaret Petrey are having their entire family over for Thanksgiving dinner, including their great granddaughter from Albany, Ga.

An even dozen will be around the table, laden with Margaret's out-of-this-world, good food!

Next week we will probably have more reports of the various ways that families in Petrey spent the Thanksgiving weekend.

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Here is a suggestion for making your Thanksgiving celebration more meaningful.

Have a program after your meal and let several people take turns reading the story of the first Thanksgiving. Sing some patriotic songs and hymns of thanksgiving to God. Have a time of sharing, encouraging each family member to tell what they are most thankful for. Then end with sentence prayers.

You can find the Thanksgiving story in the encyclopedia or on the Internet, or you may find information in magazines and newspaper articles. The survival of the Pilgrims in the New World was nothing short of miraculous. Of the original 102 that sailed to America on the Mayflower in the year 1620, 46 of them died during the first winter.

It was at that point that the Pilgrims had an encounter with two Indians, Squanto and Samoset.

Providentially, Squanto knew more English than probably any other Indian in North America at that time.

He and Samoset had previously visited England. Squanto decided to live with the Pilgrims and teach them how to survive in this new place.

The story of their prosperity from then on and the first feast with their invited guests, the Wampanoag Indian tribe, is extremely interesting. The Pilgrims appreciated the help of the Indians. Surely it was God who had orchestrated the meeting of the Pilgrims with Squanto and Samoset that day at the deserted Indian village of Patuxet.

This part of our nation's history is something we should recount every year at Thanksgiving time. We can appreciate our brave forefathers and the help of the Native Americans, giving thanks to God for His many blessings and for allowing us the privilege of living in a free country.

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If you have any comments, suggestions or information you would like to submit to this

column, call Mrs. Petrey at

335-6700.