Juniata High School

It’s officially the holiday season, and I know I’m excited for the holidays this year. I was thinking about all the fun traditions necessary to have a good holiday, when the presidential pardon turkey of Thanksgiving came to mind. This tradition sure is an interesting one. Every year one or two turkeys hope to be picked and left off the menu for that year’s Thanksgiving feast. This year President Biden pardoned a pair of four month-old turkeys. Their names are Liberty and Bell.They were named after Pennsylvania because both President Biden and the First Lady lived there during their childhood years. The National Turkey Federation and the Poultry and Egg National Board began sending U.S. presidents turkeys in 1947.Through out the years the presidents decided to just spare the turkeys sent but the tradition wasn’t official until 1989. A theory about this tradition is that President Lincoln spared the first turkey although this is likely a myth. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!