Annual Community Thanksgiving Celebration

Guest Speaker – JT Mestdagh Best-Selling Author of “Untether”

By Rev. Bob Henley

The Club’s first Community Thanksgiving Celebration was held in November 2017, following Hurricane Irma. It was an important moment for the entire Ocean Reef Community – Associates, Club Members and community members – to gather and recognize the protection we experienced and the blessings we shared. The gathering was co-sponsored by both the Club and the Chapel at Ocean Reef.

Our annual Community Thanksgiving Celebration this year will be on Tuesday, November 26, at 3 p.m. in the Carysfort Hall foyer. The service is for all Associates, Club Members and guests alike.

Our guest speaker this year will be JT Mestdagh. JT is a young entrepreneur and inspirational speaker based in Grosse Pointe, MI. A graduate of High Point University in North Carolina, Mestdagh is also an experienced mountaineer, extreme skier, boater, hunter, and adventurer who has made it his life mission to encourage people to untether from natural or self-imposed limitations and live full, passionate lives.

Born with life-threatening VATER/VACTERL syndrome and extreme dyslexia and short-term memory loss, Mestdagh established the JT Mestdagh Foundation to bring encouragement, joy, and laughter to people with physical and learning disabilities and to encourage their families to never, never, never give up.

His recent best-selling book, “Untether,” was reviewed in an article written by Joan Birsh in the November 6 issue of the Ocean Reef Press.

JT, a Legacy Member of Ocean Reef, will be telling his story about the impact of the power of gratitude as he faced the many challenges he has overcome. To say he is an inspiration is an understatement – an inspiration to live a great and grateful life!

We will also feature the music leadership of Craig Aven, songwriter and artist who is now serving on the staff of the Chapel. Chaplain Bob Henley will serve as host for the gathering.  Thanksgiving is an interfaith celebration, a uniquely American holiday. It celebrates the history and experience of those came to these shores, seeking refuge and freedom. It is a day set aside each year to gather as a community to recognize the blessings of God we all share.