Carson Nugget Thanksgiving 2014: 60 years of Carson City tradition

When Carson City throws a Thanksgiving dinner, the Carson Nugget has always delivered. With 60 years now under its belt, the downtown capital city casino again outdid itself with community service, treating nearly 1,000 residents to a free Thanksgiving meal.

Teaming up with Friends in Service Helping, also known as FISH, guests were stuffed with turkey and all the trimmings, dished up by dozens of volunteers.

This year the dinner menu included the following: 200 turkeys, 100 of those being from FISH donors, 300 pounds of mashed potatoes, 250 pounds of stuffing, 300 pounds of mixed vegetables, 300 pounds of yams, 28 gallons of gravy, 48 dozen dinner rolls donated by Franco Baking Company and 128 pumpkin pipes.

It took several days of preparation but it was all worth it, said Carson Nugget Food and Beverage Director Ron Hogarth.

And once again the volunteers who made it happen are the ones who could just have easily spent the day at home with their families or had gone elsewhere for dinner. But that wasn’t the case. It never has and probably never will be. And that’s what makes this community dinner a standout.

Sure, it may have been a contentious year locally, and there’s no doubt many in the community are still struggling financially after the long-lasting economic recession. Yet Thanksgiving at the Carson Nugget is a time-honored tradition where residents of all ethnic backgrounds and socio-economic standings, come together to celebrate the holiday with each other and, most importantly, to give thanks.

What are people thankful for? In no particular order Thursday’s guests noted the following: Friends. Family. Community. God. Health. Happiness. Each other.

Virgil Cameron, an 83-year-old Carson City widower of five years, says he’s thankful for his buddy Michael Fodays, 75, who has been there to give him a nudge and coax now and then, especially on those days when he’s thinking of his late wife, Maxine.

“It’s been five years, four months and 18 days,” said Cameron of Maxine's passing. “You keep going on. Stay busy. That’s what you do.”

Wednesday the compadres were in Virginia City for a Thanksgiving dinner there, “and that was nice, but this is nice too,” said Fodays. “We give this an A-plus.”

Then there was Nina Spradlin, a retired Carson City realtor who worked at the Nugget Coffee shop in the summer of 1965 and has stories to tell about how Carson City was then and is now, saying one constant has remained.

“If they’re from here we know their kids and grandkids because they are now here working and doing all the good things in the community,” she said. “What I see today are people who walked the talk. They love the community. I’m sorry I’m not here serving with them.”

Spradlin sat next to Lori Hogan, 79, a 31-year resident of Carson City, who fancies herself as the oldest teenage comedian in Carson City. Though some of her friends are hard of hearing, Hogan puts the punch into punch lines, delivering them at rapid speed on topics ranging from weak coffee and non-dairy creamer to Frank Sinatra and Connie Francis.

“Someone has got do it,” said Hogan, threatening to spike the coffee and tea drinks with packets of sugar when her friends around the table weren’t looking. “I feel too young to be this old. We need a band and some dancing.”

A few tables away, Alice Mueller brought her son Fred Christiansen for Thanksgiving. It was their first time. Turns out the family patriarch, Lindsay Christensen, went to care for his parents on Thanksgiving and will return to Carson City this weekend. The family plan a Thanksgiving together. Alice said she didn’t want her son to spend Thanksgiving alone and decided to come to the community dinner.

“It’s really nice, the food is delicious, the people are friendly. It is our community,” she said. Fred, a 17-year-old Carson High senior and a CHS homecoming king this year, said even though he’s looking to get out of Carson City after he graduates, the community dinner will be something he will remember.

On the volunteer front, community leaders came out in full force as they always do. Sheriff Ken Furlong was on roll patrol, while Fire Chief Stacy Giomi was a pie servicer. New Carson City Manager Nick Marano brought his wife and son, Nick, along to volunteer, each helping seat people and making sure coffee, tea and water glasses were kept full for the guests.

Carson City Supervisors Karen Abowd, Jim Shirk, John McKenna, and Supervisor-elect Lori Bagwell all represented as did their spouses, as was Carson City Mayor Bob Crowell and Bob’s wife, Susan.

Wells Fargo Bank represented big time, having several volunteers on board, including Area President Sean French, and his daughter Elle, along with District Manager Hellen Barclay, and Business Specialist Jean Perpich.

FISH Executive Director Jim Peckham noted that the volunteer effort is extraordinary, where citizens and community leaders, elected officials and those in business, can get together and enjoy the spirit of community together.

“It is great to see this kind of outreach. It’s a real blessing to provide our community something valued and shared by everyone in the room,” said Peckham.