Values of Friendsgiving
Friendsgiving has become an important tradition that brings people together. The power of being able to choose your own family and make new traditions for the years to come. In a world where people often live far from their families, Friendsgiving serves as a reminder that gratitude doesn’t just stop at your bloodline.
Hosting a perfect Friendsgiving on a budget
The average cost of groceries for a Thanksgiving dinner with 10 people is approximately $66.15 in New Jersey. However, a more detailed estimate, including groceries, drinks, and decorations, is around $413. To make Friendsgiving still fun and budget-friendly, you can do a potluck-style dinner. When everyone brings something, it is less on the host to buy everything. You can also use online invitations to save money and paper. Websites like Evite allow you to send out invitations, get a list of who is coming, and create a signup sheet of things for people to bring, so they don’t bring the same thing.
Where did Friendsgiving come from
On average, about 17%-20% of Americans participate in a Friendsgiving. Though Gen Z and young Millennials celebrate this more, everyone is welcome to have a friendsgiving. The earliest usage of this term was found in 2007 in a tweet and other online posts. It was described as informal meals shared among friends who were unable to get home to their families for the traditional holiday.
Insights into what other people do on Friendsgiving
Christine Amorin an English teacher at Colonia High School, has been hosting a Friendsgiving for about 7 years now. She said, “ I started this tradition because I really love festive things and themed parties. I also enjoy getting together with my friends.” Amorin caters food from Bistro 1051. When asked why she caters her food she said “We choose to cater because we do our Friendsgiving the Friday before Thanksgiving every year, and that tends to be a work day for all of us, so by catering it makes it the easier option.” Amorin and her friends have traditions like praying and saying what they are thankful for before eating. They also play different games every year, she says “Sometimes the games are competitive, while others aren’t, but there’s still always a prize. The prizes range from Dunkin’ Donuts gift cards, chocolates, or scratch off tickets.”
From a younger perspective Marley Mercado, a Junior at Colonia High School also participates in a Friendsgiving. Mercado said, “ My friends and I started doing a Friendsgiving in our Freshman year and have continued to. We started doing this because we love hanging out and food, so we thought it was a perfect idea.” Mercado and her friends do a potluck dinner, when asked why she said “ we usually do ours on a Saturday, so we have time to make the food, and it is a way for us to all contribute to the meal.” Mercado and her friends don’t usually play any games, but are thinking of doing a gingerbread house competition this upcoming year.
