Newsflash: November means Thanksgiving is upon us. It’s a holiday we love, and we usually mark the occasion by closing early so that our employees can avoid the travel turmoil and be home with their families – and get started on that homemade cranberry sauce that isn’t going to make itself.

It also means that we start ramping up to the end of the year, with ICSC New York just around the corner, and holiday activations and winter preparations in full force – not to mention the holiday season and the five-day shopping extravaganza that runs from Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday. There’ll likely be a lot less travel this year – for all the obvious reasons – but this is still a seasonal highlight, and we have many things to be thankful for. And, frankly, with a hotly contested election coming to a close, we’re looking forward to focusing on food and family!

A Message of Thanks

First things first, we want to give a huge Thanksgiving shout-out to all essential workers, who have gone above and beyond this year. There are many groups that fall under this banner, and we want to say to all of them, “we see you and we appreciate you”.

 

Of course, we start with the frontline workers – the brave and dedicated people who risked their own lives, separated from their families, and carried an incredible burden of care during the peak of the pandemic. Thank you.

Photo courtesy of Rappaport retailer, Ciao Osteria

Another group who deserve some love are the local businesses, like Ford’s Fish Shack, Ciao Osteria, Water’s End Brewery, and others at our centers. You not only managed to keep your own doors open, but you pivoted your business models and you set up donations and charities. You rallied in our time of need. Thank you for everything you’re doing, and for all the people you are helping.

 

And if you’ll forgive us a little “internal memo” here, we also want to say thanks to our own Rappaport staff who have kept the business running and clients served, despite incredibly tough circumstances.

 

To you all, we say thank you.

Photo courtesy of Rappaport retailer, Ciao Osteria | Ciao Osteria worked towards reshaping their business model to acclimatize to these unprecedented times.

In the Spirit of Giving

And then, there’s the giving part of ‘Thanksgiving’. Rappaport donates to various charitable organizations throughout the year, including the remarkable Skyland Workforce Center, and Anacostia AMP Outreach and Empowerment Center who are setting up for their third annual Pre-Holiday community dinner.

We’re also so excited about the potential for the newly constituted Skyland Workforce Leadership Council – so we want to give them a special mention here too.

 

Non-profit She Believes in Me will be at Worldgate Centre, coordinating food packaging so that volunteers can distribute these as needed, primarily throughout the Herndon area.

 

At Rappaport, our philosophy is one of “Doing Well by Doing Good”. We are rooted in the communities we serve, and we try to give back to those communities whenever we can. If you are in a position to do so and looking for a way to help, we encourage you to look into donating to these incredible groups or volunteering your time with them.

Count your Blessings

Yes, there has been a lot of difficult times during 2020, but we are always grateful for the simple things in life – quality time with loved ones, peace, and being able to help those in need.

 

So, this Thanksgiving, when your uncle makes a rude remark or your siblings start fighting, distract them with sports or The Family Stone, and be thankful because of – and in spite of – their presence in your lives.

 

If all else fails, eat pie.

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