As we prepare to gather with friends and family to celebrate
Thanksgiving, it is my hope that the holiday will give all of us occasion to
reflect on our many blessings and to commit ourselves to creating a better
world for our children and the generations to come.
Let us focus not on what divides us, but what unites us; let
us work toward a more civil public discourse, with a tone of tolerance and
respect; let us seek a more peaceful world built upon common bonds, common
interests, and common kindness.
Let us resolve, in the words of Abraham Lincoln, who formally
established a national day of Thanksgiving in 1863, to follow the “better
angels of our nature.”
Despite the difficulty that has marked recent years, we, as
a state, have much to be grateful for and many reasons to feel optimism for
the months and years to come. I wish you and your loved ones a safe, peaceful,
and happy Thanksgiving.
Lincoln D. Chafee
Governor
