Thanksgiving is a holiday filled with food, friends, family, and traditions. It is a time when we all come to together to give thanks for the good things we have and what we can look forward to in the future. It is also a time when many help others in need, so they may have a more joyous holiday season.

Everyone celebrates Thanksgiving with some of their own favorite traditions, but here is a list of some of our favorites:

Travel: Thanksgiving is about spending time with family, and often times seeing family members involves traveling. That is why Thanksgiving is the busiest travel day of the year!

The Feast: From the traditional spread, including turkey, stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce, to the contemporary vegetarian options, this is one holiday that’s all about the food.

Volunteering: To help those in need during this holiday, many volunteer their time a local food kitchens or donate canned goods/other food items to food pantries. We hope that everyone has a chance this season to give back to those in need in their community.

Football: This holiday wouldn’t be complete without the Dallas Cowboys and the Detroit Lions. For some, including our Columbus, Ohio, and Indianapolis, Indiana, offices, this holiday means some good old-fashioned rivalry between The Ohio State University and Michigan, and Indiana and Purdue.

To celebrate the OSU rivalry each year, our Columbus office holds a chili cook-off competition. While employees taste and rank their favorite chili, clips from previous OSU vs Michigan games play on a projection screen.

This year’s Columbus Chili Cook-off winner was Greta Snell. In the spirit of giving for Thanksgiving, she is letting us share her recipe with all!

•  2 to 3 lbs. of lean ground beef (Greta likes to use a lot of meat in her chili!)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 15 oz. can tomato sauce
• 1 stalk celery, chopped – optional, but if you have the inside of the celery with leaves, she recommends you use it (Greta says there is more flavor in celery leaves)
• 1 small can of diced tomatoes
• 2 cans Brooks Chili Hot Beans 
• Chili powder (to taste)
• Tabasco or other hot sauce (to taste)
• Salt and black pepper (to taste)

In an iron skillet (best option) or saucepan, cook and stir ground beef, chopped celery, and chopped onion over medium heat until meat is brown and onion and celery are tender. Drain off fat.

Stir in tomato sauce, undrained beans, undrained tomatoes, chili powder, salt, and black pepper. Bring to a boil then reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 20 minutes. Taste and add hot sauce to suite your taste.

Enjoy! And Happy Thanksgiving to all!