Over the Thanksgiving holiday, President Trump issued an annual Thanksgiving Proclamation. The Proclamation urged the American people to pray for our armed service members, our law enforcement officers, and our first responders -as well as their families. President Trump’s Proclamation followed in the footsteps of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln who both issued Thanksgiving Proclamations.
“On Thanksgiving Day, we remember with reverence and gratitude the bountiful blessings afforded to us by our Creator, and we recommit to sharing in a spirit of thanksgiving and generosity with our friends, neighbors, and families,” Mr. Trump said.
“This Thanksgiving, we pause and acknowledge those who will have empty seats at their table. We ask God to watch over our service members, especially those whose selfless commitment to serving our country and defending our sacred liberty has called them to duty overseas during the holiday season,” President Trump said.
“We also pray for our law enforcement officials and first responders as they carry out their duties to protect and serve our communities,” Trump said. “As a Nation, we owe a debt of gratitude to both those who take an oath to safeguard us and our way of life as well as to their families, and we salute them for their immeasurable sacrifices.”
“As we gather today with those we hold dear, let us give thanks to Almighty God for the many blessings we enjoy,” the president said. “United together as one people, in gratitude for the freedoms and prosperity that thrive across our land, we acknowledge God as the source of all good gifts. We ask Him for protection and wisdom and for opportunities this Thanksgiving to share with others some measure of what we have so providentially received,” the President said.
George Washington issued his Thanksgiving Proclamation – the first of its kind – on October 3, 1789. The proclamation designated “the People of the United States a day of public thanks-giving” to be held on “Thursday the 26th of November,” of 1789. George Washington’s proclamation marked the creation of the first national thanksgiving celebration which has now become an annual tradition.
Abraham Lincoln issued a “Proclamation of Thanksgiving” on October 3, 1863. Prior to Lincoln’s proclamation most states marked their own separate dates for celebrating thanksgiving.
