Watching Thanksgiving From the Sidelines

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Metro Area Prepares for Thanksgiving

In Maryland, Virginia and the District, locals find ways to tell stories, give thanks and share blessings.

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This year, with a tournament in Harrington, Del., that doesn't start until Friday, the Ottos are indulging in a rare treat: a traditional Thursday holiday dinner at home. "My daughter who's coming home from college has already asked me three times: 'Are we really going to eat on Thanksgiving day?' " Kathleen said.

So many tournaments have sprung up during Thanksgiving because of its special status as a four-day national holiday, coaches say. It is one of the few weekends when teams don't have regular season games, when families can travel and when large amounts of playing time can be booked for soccer fields, baseball diamonds and ice rinks.

Such trips, however, can be costly financially and emotionally. Some families strategically split up over the holidays so their children can make it to different tournaments.

For the Skarupa family of Rockville, some Thanksgivings have meant spending more time apart than together. One year, Tony Skarupa took his daughter to a hockey tournament in New Haven, Conn., while Tony's mother traveled with his son to Syracuse, N.Y., for another hockey game. Meanwhile, his wife, Penny, attended a high school reunion in West Hartford, Conn. "It's not perfect, but it's part of the things we do for our kids," Tony said.

Lonnie Wilson, who coaches a youth football team in Waldorf, has spent almost all his Thanksgivings away from his family during the past eight years.

"As time goes on, your family comes to understand. Now my mom tells me: 'Just make sure you're back for Christmas,' " said Wilson, who left Monday night with a bus full of 12-year-olds and their parents.

This year, as others back home stress over oven temperatures and family tensions, Wilson will be in Daytona Beach, worrying about his team's uniforms, reservations, game times and, of course, whether his players win.

What makes it worthwhile, he said, is seeing the kids' faces the first time they walk into the college stadium where they'll play. "You see something happen to them when they're away from home, playing against teams they've never played before. You see how big their eyes get when they see the ocean for the first time down there," he said.

There are other memorable moments. Such as when parents from his team joined with those from a rival team to cook an impromptu Thanksgiving feast in their Florida hotel lounge. Watching the opposing players mingle over the mac and cheese was like seeing the pilgrims and the Indians again.

"It was like the real Thanksgiving story," Wilson said

And Thanksgiving on the road comes with other blessings as well. The many holidays traveling to hockey tournaments have helped the Otto family bond.

"I mean, think about it; you're confined to the car. No one in the family can escape," Kathleen Otto said. "You end up talking about everything under the sun, sharing about things you wouldn't otherwise. Most families are so busy these days running around. This forces some togetherness on our family whether we want it or not."