Many of us celebrate Thanksgiving at home with our families or friends. In Brewster, a diner that’s been around since the 1950s has been quietly redefining the holiday tradition with one massive community potluck and fundraiser.
For the 14th year running, Sprague’s on Main — previously, and more commonly, known as Bob’s Diner before it rebranded — will open its doors on Thanksgiving Day to community members to bring dishes to share for the holiday, dine together, and donate. Owner Thomas Sprague expects the usual 60 to 80 guests to come grab a plate of Thanksgiving food at his diner at 27 Main Street in Brewster.
“It’s always really, really good food,” said Sprague, who has been working at the family-owned diner for 32 years. “You have to imagine it’s from everybody’s house. It’s all the best things your mom makes and then brings down.”
The diner isn’t shy about being a community mainstay. Ever since the eatery was established in 1955, Sprague’s grandfather, Bob, and his Uncle Jimmy gave back to Brewster in many ways. For one, the diner barely closed its doors.
The then 24-hour diner was open 364 days a year. On Christmas, Bob and Jimmy would close for the morning and reopen at night. When Sprague took over and pulled back on the 24/7 model to close in the evenings (and now on Tuesdays, too), there wasn’t even a key to be found to do so.
“When we made the change, we had to lock the doors, and they were never locked before,” said Sprague. “We had to have the doors rekeyed.”
Despite years of changes, the Sprague family, including Thomas, has remained committed to the community. The addition of a Thanksgiving potluck has been a notable way for residents of Brewster to come together.
Potluck inspiration
The buffet-style Thanksgiving dinner is comprised of dishes made from anyone who is willing to give.
Sprague's on MainThe idea to give back to the community at Thanksgiving first sparked for Sprague when he suggested to his family that they go into New York City and donate their time to a soup kitchen. Everyone was up for it, but he quickly realized he didn’t need to hop on the Metro-North to head 60 miles south to make a difference.
“I said, ‘Wait a minute, I have a diner. Why don’t we just do it in the diner and see who shows up?’” Sprague recalled. “I’d open it up, tell people to come, and it’s free.”
The first year, the Sprague family did all of the cooking. When someone suggested seeing if the community wanted to participate, the crowdsourcing approach took hold and has become tradition since year two.
“Now, what’s great about it is it gives everybody a chance in the community to chip in, help out and feel like they’re doing something,” said Sprague. “Everyone gives me all the credit — I do not deserve all the credit. The only thing that I really do is provide a space for it to happen.”
Today, the buffet-style Thanksgiving dinner is comprised of dishes made by anyone who is willing to give. Some families bring the same thing every year, so bases like mashed potatoes, stuffing and turkey, which comes from the Italian-American Club, are usually covered. Other usual offerings include sweet potatoes, corn casserole, candied yams, creamed spinach, and desserts like Key lime pie and pecan pie.
“It’s for anyone who wants to come,” said Sprague. “It was designed for the less fortunate when I first had the idea to give people a place who had nowhere to go to hang out and relax and eat. Now, it’s turned into whoever wants to come — please come and eat the food.”
Although the Thanksgiving potluck is free, Sprague asks people to donate if they can to the nonprofit Capital District Youth for Christ in Albany. The organization is run by Andy Lightcap, who is related to Ray Lightcap, who was a pastor at the First Baptist Church on North Main Street in Brewster for 25 years and is now the Spiritual Development Director in Albany.
Ray Lightcap estimates that around $18,000 has been donated by Sprague over the years since the start of the Thanksgiving potluck. The money partially funds a weekend camping trip to the Catskills for around 35 middle- and high-school aged city kids.
“This is a real adventure for these kids,” said Ray Lightcap. “Normally they wouldn’t be able to go on a camping trip, so they’re able to get out of the city, do something that’s completely different and hear positive messages about life.”
During the 25 years Lightcap was a pastor in Brewster, he spent every Sunday morning at Bob’s Diner writing his sermon at 5 a.m.
“We’re deeply appreciative,” said Ray Lightcap. “Tom is a real special guy … he’s always had a big heart and the personality to go with it. It’s been a tradition — his Uncle Jimmy had a big heart, too.”
This year, Thomas Sprague expects as many as 80 guests to pass through the doors of the diner at 27 Main Street in Brewster for a Thanksgiving potluck.
Cloey CallahanShelley Dell, 30-year resident of Brewster, has attended the holiday potluck for the past two years, and has donated a vegetable side dish for several years. She plans to go again on Nov. 25th.
“We do our family holiday celebration on the weekend because of my kids’ work schedules,” said Dell. “My husband and I are around on Thursday, and I don’t want to cook myself. It seemed like a great way to be a part of the community, so we started going.”
Dell’s favorite part? The family atmosphere that welcomes anyone and everyone with no judgement.
The Thanksgiving dinner at the diner lasts usually around three hours, with residents welcome to dine in at the diner’s signature green and red booths, or take food to go. Either way, Sprague recommends bringing Tupperware containers for extras.
“It’s just a nice community day,” said Dell. “It’s a big ‘Hi, hello,’ to anyone who comes in.”
In addition to cash donations to the Albany church, any food leftovers not taken home by the community are donated to Delancey Street Foundation, which Brewster residents know as “the Castle” for the Gothic-style building it occupies on Turk Hill Road. The Delancey Street Foundation is a residential self-help organization for former substance abusers, ex-convicts and the homeless.
“As long as Bob’s is here,” Sprague said, there will be the Thanksgiving potluck.
For anyone interested in donating food, call the diner at 845-278-2478. This year, Sprague said they are looking for side dishes like mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, vegetables, pasta dishes, rolls/biscuits, and desserts. He suggests bringing only a half tray of food to share.
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