For students like Johan de Beer, Thanksgiving holidays are rarely spent with family. Many TCU students, for different reasons, stay on campus during the holidays. With the campus like a ghost town during the holidays, students who stay must come up with alternative Thanksgiving plans.

Because of cost or time, international students like de Beer, find it difficult to fly home for the holidays.

De Beer, a senior finance major, said he has been spending Thanksgiving in the area since his freshman year. Originally from South Africa, holiday travels can cost up to $2,000 and require 17 hours worth of travel.

“It’s really expensive to get a ticket back home,” de Beer said. “It’s unreasonable to fly all the way back.”

Instead of traveling to South Africa, de Beer said he spends that time with friends.

This year, de Beer said he will spend Thanksgiving in Coppell with his friend and his family. He said each year he “mixes it up” and spends time with different friend’s families.

“I’ve been in a different place each year, and it’s fun seeing the different ways people do Thanksgiving,” he said.

Several campus employees also spend holiday breaks on the TCU campus. Milton Daniel Hall resident assistant and sophomore nursing major Laura Posluszny is one of them. 

“I went home last year,” Posluszny said. “The only reason I’m staying is because I have to work.”

Originally from Round Rock, Texas, Posluszny said because she is on duty throughout the break, she cannot be farther than 30 minutes away from the campus. Instead of Round Rock, she said she will be spending Thanksgiving Day with her friend in Arlington.

Market Square will be closed until Sunday, Oct. 27.

“I guess I’m going to have to stock up on cereal,” Posluszny said. “I’ll go to places near campus, like Subway, and stock up on food in my dorm.”

Several local restaurants such as Blue Mesa, Red Hot & Blue, Dutch’s Hamburgers and Fuzzy’s Taco Shop will also be closed during the break, which could make for limited food options for students on campus. With campus dining closed, students are encouraged to make meal arrangements before the break, Kelly Raw, marketing manager for TCU Dining Services, said.

Raw said she suggests students use campus cash and Frog Bucks in Market Square’s absence.

Union Grounds has frozen dinners and food options that students can stock in their fridges over the break. She said Union Grounds accepts Frog Bucks and campus cash.

“My best suggestion is to stock up a little bit,” Raw said.

If frozen dinners will not do, TCU Catering annually offers Thanksgiving packages that can be purchased for $139.99, with applicable sales tax not included. Raw said these meals come with the choice of “turkey or ham, four sides with all the fixins’,” and the choice of pecan, apple or pumpkin pie. The meals can serve up to 10 people, so students can pull their money together and purchase a Thanksgiving meal and share the day with friends, Raw said.

Even though the ordering deadline has passed for these meals, the option should be available next year, Raw said.

Thanksgiving Break Closures
1873 will also be closed Nov. 23 – Nov. 26.
Bistro Burnett, NRG and Frogorrito will be closed until classes resume on Monday, Nov. 28.
Market Square opens at 4 p.m. on Nov. 27.
1873 will reopen at 11 a.m. on Nov. 27.
Union Grounds will be closed Nov. 24-25, but will reopen on Nov. 26 at 7 a.m.