User:Sea Guardian/Thanksgoween

Thanksgoween is an alternative holiday that is held every year between Holloween and Thanksgiving. First held in 2004, the creators, who are citizens of the Colbert Nation, wanted to host a holiday potluck dinner prior to the relentless Festivus, Thanksgiving, and Co-Worker Holiday Parties that dominate December social schedules. Thanksgoween is a true opportunity to reconnect with your Kindergarden Kid because you must attend the holiday dinner wearing a costume "related" to Thanksgiving. Of course any connection to Thanksgiving counts, and as such the costumes have ranged from Pilgrims, to cardboard silverware, to corn on the cob, to Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade floats. Over the years, Thanksgoween morphed into a mechanism for collecting food bank donations during the holiday season. Since its inception, Thanksgoween parties have been held in


 * Norfolk, Virginia
 * Key West, Florida
 * Berkley, California
 * Williamsburg, Virginia
 * Arlington, Virginia
 * Washington, DC
 * Naples, Italy

Date
Thanksgoween falls on a Saturday, two weekends before Thanksgiving (technically 12 days prior).

Practices
First and foremost, Thanksgoween is a holiday dinner potluck, so it is the perfect time to bake your grandma's favorite recipe or make your first Trash Can Turkey. In addition to bringing something to eat, attendees seek the most ridiculous costume related to the Thanksgiving holiday. Costumes are generally literal aspects of the holiday, such as food items or historical figures, but can also be derived from social phenomena of the holiday season, such as the National Dog Show, the Dallas Cowboys or Detroit Lions. In 2009, the theme "Trick or Tryptophan" was selected and the annual best costume trophy was acquired - Mr. T-Weener. Those in attendance vote and the winner must defend the Thanksgotrophy the following year in person or by having it delivered to the party by an individual who has not yet attended a Thansgoween party.



Food Drive and Donations
There is no formal process required to hold a Thanksgoween party, but the eventual goal is to be recognized by the U.S. Congress in a similar way that International Talk Like a Pirate Day (ITLAPD) is recognized every September 19th. The goal is for members to donate 100 Tons (200,000 pounds) to food banks around the world by the year 2020.

Thanksgoween 2009, Washington DC, made an 87 pound donation to the Capital Area Food Bank.