NTF Chairman Presents President Bush With "Flyer" The National Thanksgiving Turkey
Washington, D.C. - President George W. Bush and National Turkey Federation (NTF) Chairman Mike Briggs continued a 59-year-old holiday tradition recently when Briggs presented the president with the National Thanksgiving Turkey in a White House Rose Garden ceremony.
Briggs gave Bush "Flyer," a 20-week-old, 36-pound tom. Visitors to the White House Web site (www.whitehouse.gov) voted on the name for the National Thanksgiving Turkey and its alternate, "Fryer."
The National Thanksgiving Turkey presentation has become an annual ritual in the nation's capital, signaling the unofficial beginning of the holiday season and providing the president an opportunity to reflect publicly on the meaning of Thanksgiving.
"Tomorrow is our day of Thanksgiving. It's a national observance first proclaimed by George Washington," said President Bush. "In our journey across the centuries from a few tiny settlements to a prosperous and powerful nation. Americans have always been a grateful people, and we are this year as well. We're grateful for our beautiful land. We're grateful for a harvest big enough to feed us all, plus much of the world. We're grateful for our freedom. We're grateful for our families. And we're grateful for life itself."
President Bush then "pardoned" "Flyer" and "Fryer." Later that day, the turkeys were flown first class on United Airlines to the Disneyland Resort in California. "Flyer" will serve as grand marshal of "Disney's Thanksgiving Day Parade" as part of the "Year of a Million Dreams" celebration. After the parade, guests will be able to visit "Flyer" at Santa's Reindeer Roundup at Big Thunder Ranch in the park's Frontierland.
NTF President Alice L. Johnson, D.V.M., joined Bush, Briggs and his wife Sue and their two sons, Matthew and Daniel, at the event.
"It is a true honor and a once-in-a-lifetime experience for my family and I to represent our industry at the White House during the National Thanksgiving Turkey presentation," said Briggs. "This event plays such an important role in what is a uniquely American holiday, and the turkey industry is very proud to be associated with both.
"Having the opportunity for the National Thanksgiving Turkey to be invited again to participate in the Disneyland parade is a wonderful bonus," Briggs added.
The National Thanksgiving Turkey and its alternate were raised outside Monett, MO, under the supervision of Briggs, president of Willow Brook Foods, headquartered in Springfield, MO.
Briggs delegated the day-to-day responsibilities of raising the birds to Lynn Nutt, Willow Brook's director of live operations. "Flyer" was raised using normal feeding and other production techniques. The one exception is that the bird was provided increased interaction with people so that he would be prepared for his roles at the White House ceremony and then at Disneyland.
SOURCE: The National Turkey Federation