Empty seats, delivered feasts as virus changes Thanksgiving
By REGINA GARCIA CANO, MATT SEDENSKY and HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH Associated Press
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Updated:
John Minchillo
An image of Ana Martinez rests on a table beside an American flag and Christian bible, Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020, in Deer Park, N.Y. COVID-19 claimed the life of the retired seamstress at age 78 on April 1 while she was recovering at a nursing home from a knee replacement.
Family members, reflected in the window, wave goodbye to nursing home resident Barbara Farrior, 85, at the end of their visit at the Hebrew Home at Riverdale on Thanksgiving, Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020, in New York. The home offered drive-up visits for families of residents struggling with celebrating the holiday alone.
Jessica Franz sets up a Zoom call with family members while her husband, John, helps prepare Thanksgiving dinner, Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020, in Olathe, Kan. The family was having a quiet scaled-back Thanksgiving with just their household due to concerns about the coronavirus.
Kerry Osaki, right, helps his wife, Lena Adame, in the kitchen in Fountain Valley, Calif., Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2020. For years, Osaki went with his mother to his aunt's house for Thanksgiving to celebrate with family. His wife spent the holiday cooking a spread of turkey and stuffing with her relatives. This year, both of their traditions have fallen to the pandemic that took the life of Osaki's 93-year-old mother.
Vivian Zayas adjusts the flowers adorning the walker once belonging to her recently deceased mother, Ana Martinez, before Thanksgiving dinner is served, Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020, in Deer Park, N.Y. Ana Martinez died at 78 on April 1 while recovering at a nursing home from a knee replacement.
Kara McKlemurry poses for a photo while writing Thanksgiving notes to family and friends at her home Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020, in Clearwater, Fla. On any normal Thanksgiving Day, McKlemurry and her husband would drive from their home to one of two places: his family's home in another part of Florida or her family's house in Alabama. This year, McKlemurry informed her family there would be no visits because of the pandemic.
Vivian Zayas holds onto the walker once belonging to her recently deceased mother Ana Martinez while her family prays before Thanksgiving dinner, Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020, in Deer Park, N.Y. Ana Martinez died at 78 on April 1 while recovering at a nursing home from a knee replacement. The family is having their traditional meal of turkey, yams, green beans and rice and beans — but Zayas is removing a seat from the table at her home in Deer Park, New York, and putting her mother's walker in its place.
Vivian Zayas holds onto the walker once belonging to her recently deceased mother Ana Martinez while her family prays before Thanksgiving dinner, Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020, in Deer Park, N.Y. Ana Martinez died at 78 on April 1 while recovering at a nursing home from a knee replacement.
Nursing home resident Jeannette Levy, 95, speaks with family members during a drive-by visit at the Hebrew Home at Riverdale in the Bronx during Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, Nov 26, 2020, in New York.
Nurse Jessica Franz leaves the Olathe Medical Center after working the graveyard shift Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020, in Olathe, Kan. Franz, 39, is celebrating without her mother-in-law, Elaine Franz, who died of the coronavirus on Nov. 10, just one day before her 78th birthday.
Jessica and John Franz have Thanksgiving dinner with their daughters, Amelia, 11, left; Molly, 8, back; and Quinn, 2, front, Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020, in Olathe, Kan. The family was having a quiet scaled-back Thanksgiving with just the household due to concerns about the coronavirus.
Nurse Jessica Franz, shows a photo of her mother-in-law, Elaine Franz, outside Olathe Medical Center after working the graveyard shift Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020, in Olathe, Kan. Elaine Franz died Nov. 10, one day before her 78th birthday, after contracting COVID-19.
Molly Franz, 8, hangs ornaments on a Christmas tree while waiting for Thanksgiving dinner Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020, in Olathe, Kan. Franz lost her grandmother to COVID-19 on Nov. 10 and her family was having a quiet scaled-back Thanksgiving with just their household due to concerns about the virus.
Jessica and John Franz prepare Thanksgiving dinner while their daughters Quinn, 2, and Molly, 8, talk on a Zoom call with family members, Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020, in Olathe, Kan. Also in background middle, is daughter Amelia, 11. The family was having a quiet scaled-back Thanksgiving with just their household due to concerns about the coronavirus.
Evelyn Maysonet, 53, looks on as food is provided by Weber-Morgan Health Department Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2020, in Ogden, Utah. Maysonet has been isolating with her husband and son in their Ogden home since all three tested positive for COVID-19 over a week ago. None of them have been able to leave home to buy groceries so Maysonet said they were thrilled to receive the health department's delivery.
Evelyn Maysonet looks at the food delivery from the Weber-Morgan Health Department Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2020, in Ogden, Utah. Maysonet has been isolating with her husband and son in their Ogden home since all three tested positive for COVID-19 over a week ago. None of them have been able to leave home to buy groceries so Maysonet said they were thrilled to receive the health department's delivery.
Kerry Osaki and wife, Lena Adame, pose for photos outside their home in Fountain Valley, Calif., Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2020. For years, Osaki went with his mother to his aunt's house for Thanksgiving to celebrate with family. His wife spent the holiday cooking a spread of turkey and stuffing with her relatives. This year, both of their traditions have fallen to the pandemic that took the life of Osaki's 93-year-old mother.
Molly Franz, 8, hangs ornaments on a Christmas tree while waiting for Thanksgiving dinner Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020, in Olathe, Kan. Franz lost her grandmother to COVID-19 on Nov. 10 and her family was having a quiet scaled-back Thanksgiving with just their household due to concerns about the virus.
An old photo of Kerry Osaki's mother, Rose, center, who died of COVID-19, hangs on the wall at Osaki's home in Fountain Valley, Calif., Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2020. For years, Osaki went with his mother to his aunt's house for Thanksgiving to celebrate with family. His wife spent the holiday cooking a spread of turkey and stuffing with her relatives. This year, both of their traditions have fallen to the pandemic that took the life of Osaki's 93-year-old mother.
A nursing home resident holds a sign addressed to the staff before a small Thanksgiving Day parade with nurses, other staff and residents at the Hebrew home at Riverdale in the Bronx, Thursday, Nov 26, 2020, in New York.
Kara McKlemurry writes Thanksgiving notes to family and friends at her home Thursday, Nov. 19, 2020, in Clearwater, Fla. On any normal Thanksgiving Day, McKlemurry and her husband would drive from their home to one of two places: his family's home in another part of Florida or her family's house in Alabama. This year, McKlemurry informed her family there would be no visits because of the pandemic.
Nursing home residents hold signs as staff members walk by during a Thanksgiving celebration at the Hebrew Home at Riverdale, Thursday, Nov. 26, 2020, in New York. The home also offered drive-up visits for families of residents struggling with celebrating the holiday alone.
Americans are marking the Thanksgiving holiday weekend amid an unrelenting pandemic that has claimed the lives of more than a quarter of a million people in the United States.
Turkey and pies still came out of ovens, with football on TV. Families gave thanks. But this holiday has been altered after months filled with sorrows and hardships: Many feasts are weighed down by the loss of loved ones; others have been canceled or scaled back with the virus surging.
“It’s a painful Thanksgiving. You don’t even know, should you celebrate?” said Vivian Zayas of Deer Park, N.Y. “It’s a lonely time.”
Millions of Americans bought tickets to fly somewhere for the holiday, crowding airports despite pleas from officials to avoid travel and gatherings. But more often, Zoom and FaceTime were a fixture at dinner tables, the best way to connect with family members who don’t want to travel.
Here’s a look at the changed Thanksgiving rituals this week for families around the country.
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Associated Press journalists Tamara Lush, Jennifer Sinco Kelleher, Sophia Eppolito, Amy Taxin and John Minchillo contributed to this report.
