An appetizing day was enjoyed at Milltown's Thanksgiving Feast

The students in the SPED classes at the Milltown Primary School certainly know how to celebrate Thanksgiving–and in a very tasty way.

The four SPED classes under teachers Dayna Thomas, Beth Hopkins, Katelyn Navarro and Quinn Hickey served as the hosts and then enjoyed their meals when the Milltown Primary School’s Second Annual SPED Thanksgiving Feast was served on Tuesday, November 22.

According to one of the coordinators of this fantastic meal, Debbie Shah-Patel, who is the Milltown Special Language Therapist, the traditional event has been enjoyed at the school for 15 years.

But, she explained, this is the second annual affair when all four classes in the SPED program teamed up to celebrate the holiday meal.

“This feast is growing and now we are all together as one team” Ms. Shah-Patel said.

She explained how the students put in a lot of effort to continue this school tradition.

“All four of our classes prepared the food and set up the tables,” Ms. Shah-Patel said. “This is a big life skills approach for these students.”

The appetizing menu featured  turkey that was donated by Wegmans, mashed potatoes, stuffing, corn, cranberry sauce, mac and cheese and biscuits. The delicious assortment of desserts was also a big hit by the students and the adults, too.

The meals were cooked by the staff  in the SPED kitchen that opened up 10 years ago due to a funding received through a grant, according to Ms. Shah-Patel. 

“Our classes cook and use the kitchen at least once a week during the year,” Ms. Shah-Patel said.

The staff was assisted during the serving of the meals by the school’s instructional assistants, child study and related services instructors and classroom teachers.

The students and the staff were the hosts to school district officials, including Superintendent Bob Beers, and Dr. Dan Silvia, the Assistant Superintendent for Special Services.

And one of the biggest supports also dug in and enjoyed the entire feast—Milltown Principal Matt Lembo.

“This is one of my favorite days of the year,” Principal Lembo revealed. “This is not only a great moral event for the kids but for the adults as well.”