In the Virgin Islands, the Christmas season, or “Christmastime,” is not preparation for a single day, but instead a monthlong series of cultural events and traditional practices inclusive of African, European, and Caribbean influences.

While the overarching spirit of generosity, goodwill, and family remains, the specific customs, from the trees we decorate to the ways we communicate, have shifted over the decades, reflecting a Virgin Islands identity that continues to evolve.

While people living closer to the North Pole observe annual Christmas celebrations centered around the snowy cold of the winter season, here in the Virgin Islands, a year-round backdrop of warm sunny days, green rolling hills, and perfect beach weather is enjoyed. Christmastime is one of the longest seasons celebrated in the Caribbean region, traditionally stretching from Dec. 15- Jan. 6, Three Kings Day. However, with the annual St. Croix Crucian Christmas Festival aligning with the traditional Christmas holiday, the island of St. Croix begins its celebrations much earlier, involving horse races, Calypso concerts, parades, tramps, and other cultural events.

In recent decades, Virgin Islanders have shifted to adorning their homes with imported Evergreen Trees; however, in the early and mid-20th century, it was common to use the native “Randia Aculeata” shrub. Families would set off into the dense bush on the hillside to chop down the perfect tree; it would be used later that evening to decorate with bright-colored ornaments and candles. This practice highlighted a time when Virgin Islanders enjoyed a closer relationship to their environments, sourcing their needs from the natural world around them.

Another important fixture of a Virgin Islands Christmas is the traditional cuisine. Christmas menus were and still are defined by specific dishes, including kallaloo, fungi, sweet bread, ham, goat water, and black cake. Additionally, holiday drinks like guavavberry rum and sorrel are also important holiday staples. Similar to decades prior, today Virgin Islanders still source many of the ingredients for these cultural dishes and drinks from the land, when possible.

The melodious sound of Christmas in the Virgin Islands can be attributed to the “Scratch Band,” whose sound is often a blend of traditional Quelbe, Calypso, and Fungi music. At one point, many of these bands were comprised of handmade instruments created from everyday household items, including pans and kerosene tins. Today, popular Quelbe bands like Stanley and the Ten Sleepless Knights have become a quintessential part of the Virgin Islands Christmas experience, leading numerous tramps and featuring a catalog of popular Christmas music infused with Caribbean flavor, as well as self-written songs. This strong musical tradition was often paired with masquerading, in which groups like the Zulus, Devils, Wild Indians, and Pirates danced through the streets. These figures represent historical archetypes, engaged in performances intended to convey powerful stories.

Decades ago, before the digital age brought us high-speed internet and cellphones, Christmas cards held great importance for Virgin Islanders. These cards offered an opportunity to connect with friends and family who no longer resided in the territory, as well as loved ones who lived locally, but whose paths you never regularly crossed. The physical card, once a tangible symbol of connection across distance, has now been transformed into an instant text, social media post, or email.

While Christmas in the Virgin Islands looks different from decades prior, key cultural elements remain strongly rooted in annual customs. This reflection reminds us that culture is not static, but instead, is a living, breathing thing that requires participation, engagement, and space for continual evolution.

Impacting Your World Christian Ministries served Thanksgiving meals to more than 100 people this week at Bethlehem House, Ebeneezer Garden, and nearby homeless communities, providing food, prayer, and fellowship to residents in need.

Students from SPARKS — Students Promoting Awareness, Responsibility, Knowledge and Service — joined the effort, and organizers thanked Catholic Charities for supporting meal service at Bethlehem House.

“This outreach reflects our ongoing mission to support shelters, outdoor communities, and vulnerable individuals through consistent service and outreach,” Pastor McDonald said.

Bethlehem House Manager Silla Erilis said the Thanksgiving meal offered more than nourishment. “Feeding these families today is about more than a meal; it’s about hope and showing that someone cares.”

The group said additional initiatives are planned to continue assisting people experiencing homelessness.

For more information, contact Impacting Your World at 340-642-5598 or 340-715-2482.

Emancipation Garden was already busy by midmorning Thursday, but as the sun climbed higher, the familiar rhythm of the Penn-Scipio Thanksgiving Luncheon took hold. Volunteers in aprons moved between tables, pots and warmers were lifted into place, and longtime supporters greeted one another with the ease of family. Nearly 30 years in, the event has become a touchstone of the holiday on St. Thomas — but this year, the atmosphere carried a different weight.

Organized by Francine Penn-Scipio, the luncheon has always been about feeding the community in body and spirit. But with SNAP benefit reductions, rising grocery prices, and a surge in similar holiday events across the island, Penn-Scipio wondered whether attendance — or support — might shift. It didn’t.

“The need is there,” she said plainly, stepping away from the serving line for a brief moment. “I was a little concerned because so many people are doing it, and I thought maybe the turnout would be less. But it doesn’t seem that way. People like to come here. I’m happy for them, and I try to make them happy as long as I can.”

Even more striking: at a time when many households are stretched thin, donors reached deeper.

“In times like these, you think people might give less,” Penn-Scipio said. “But nobody who always gave said no. Some gave a little more. Others gave what they could. I’m grateful for my people.”

Her son, Kellen Phillips, echoed the surprise. “Even with the cost of living going up, people donated more,” he said. “I think the community recognizes it’s not about them — it’s about what you can do for others.”

This year, Phillips estimated that roughly 400 meals were prepared, with 27 to 30 volunteers and close to 20 donors, from individuals who contributed a can of vegetables to those who offered checks of $500 or more.

The tradition began decades ago with Penn-Scipio’s late husband, Clarence Scipio, whose vision of fellowship and faith shaped the earliest gatherings. Over the years, it has grown with the support of longtime sponsors such as CC1, the Barbel family, Caribbean Foods, and I. Levin — names that have stood behind the luncheon even as it outgrew church halls and small kitchens and found its home in Emancipation Garden.

But at the heart of the effort is a single donor who helped make the event possible for decades: the late Leo Barbel, who once told Penn-Scipio, “This is a ministry you’re doing.” Before his passing, he promised that support would continue — a promise kept faithfully by his niece, who still delivers a check every year.

“He told me, ‘When I’m gone, they’re going to carry on,’” Penn-Scipio said. “And they have.”

Other supporters, including Hugo Hodge Jr., CC1, Caribbean Foods, and I. Levin, along with a growing roster of individual donors, continue to show up in ways large and small. “Some people give soup, some give a check, some do vegetables — whatever they can, they do,” she added.

The volunteers are just as varied. Newcomer Lindsay Shauss, development director at VI Help at the St. Thomas East End Medical Center, joined Thursday for the first time after being invited by Diane Morales — Penn-Scipio’s daughter. “I’ve lived on island for two years,” Shauss said. “It felt good to give back today, to be part of something bigger.”

Meanwhile, longtime volunteer and Charlotte Amalie High School counselor Lorna Daniel has spent a decade helping at the luncheon, originally invited by her former seventh-grade student, Penn-Scipio’s granddaughter, hospitality teacher Alliyah Dessout. “The joy on people’s faces keeps me coming back,” Daniel said. “You see them, and you just want to keep showing up.”

This year’s menu, as always, blended tradition and comfort: turkey, chicken, ham, baked dishes, saltfish and soups prepared by close friends and supporters. Penn-Scipio used to cook much of the food herself, but as the luncheon grew, she turned to trusted hands to help with the volume — “once in a while, I still make my stuffing,” she said with a smile, “but not this year.”

The operation moved in four steady shifts, serving walk-ups, seniors, and those who passed through between other holiday gatherings. And as always, the luncheon fed those who needed the warmth of community just as much as the meal itself.

“We live a life of service and gratitude,” Phillips said. “A lot of people don’t have family anymore. They don’t cook because they’ve lost loved ones. Here, they can come get a meal, laugh with us, even cry with us if they need to. That’s okay. We’re here.”

As in years past, the luncheon drew cruise visitors, local families, and the seniors from Ebenezer Gardens, whom Penn-Scipio makes sure can get there safely. And even with the backdrop of rising costs and deeper need this year, the spirit of the event held steady: a table open to all.

As the line thinned and the volunteers gathered for their final tasks, Penn-Scipio looked out over the garden where she has spent so many Thanksgiving mornings.

“I’m grateful,” she said. “Grateful that people still come, grateful that people still give, and grateful that we can keep doing this.”

What started as a simple idea — a shared meal in the heart of town — unfolded Wednesday night into something far larger, as nearly 200 Virgin Islanders gathered at Emancipation Garden for the inaugural Thanksgiving Community Dinner hosted by May Leader and Friends.

For three hours, the park became a shared table, a crossroads of stories, and a rare moment where neighbors from every corner of St. Thomas came together with no agenda beyond food, fellowship, and gratitude.

The evening began quietly, with prayers and reflections from community voices who set a tone of warmth and welcome. Those early moments felt like the start of something intimate, but as the crowd grew — elders arriving with friends, young families settling onto benches, familiar faces from nonprofits and local agencies mingling with those who simply needed a hot meal — the heart of the gathering revealed itself.

Local chefs, meanwhile, took the lead on the feast: Chef Benji of Blue 11 and Indigo 4, 11-year-old Chef Alexandre of the BVI, and Barefoot Buddha’s Chef Cory. Together, they shaped a menu that pulled from both tradition and place — Thanksgiving staples layered with Caribbean flavors that felt rooted in home. By the time the trays came out and the serving line opened, the atmosphere had shifted entirely. Long conversations formed in the line, laughter carried from table to table, and the park filled with the smell of herbs, roasted vegetables, and every imaginable dessert. Truckloads of donated food and beverages ensured that no one went without; each person left with a full plate and a sense of satisfaction that went well beyond the meal.

Music from The Eljhaie Braithwaite Project & Friends threaded through the night — jazz that softened the edges of the park and turned it into something that felt like a neighborhood block party. Between songs, vendors and local organizations moved through the crowd, sharing resources, checking in, and reconnecting.

It was during those moments that May Leader, founder of May’s Kitchen, felt the heart of the gathering most clearly.

“I felt so happy and grateful looking around and seeing our entire community represented,” Leader said. “People experiencing homelessness shared a meal with government officials, and everyone belonged. That’s rare — and exactly what this gathering was created for.”

The gratitude extended to the volunteers, whose work before, during, and long after the event made the gathering possible. “This wasn’t just about my vision for the community,” Leader said. “It showed the love and care we all have for one another. Without my amazing team, there is no way I could have accomplished this.” She also acknowledged WSTA, DJ Robbie, Lawrence Boschulte, 90.9FM, and AllAhWeTV for amplifying the effort and bringing people to the park who otherwise might never have heard about it.

The inaugural dinner drew support from Race Track, the Epsilon Zeta chapter of Iota Phi Lambda Sorority, Inc., Laurie’s Legacy, and dozens of other individuals and organizations who contributed food, services, and hands-on help. For more, visit mayleadervi.org.