Bidens resume Thanksgiving tradition in Nantucket

President Joe Biden, first lady Jill Biden and other members of the Biden family woke up in Nantucket, Massachusetts, on Wednesday, resuming a Thanksgiving tradition that dates back to 1975.

The Biden family skipped Thanksgiving in Nantucket in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the family has spent Thanksgiving on the small island since the president was a senator and then vice president.

This year, the Bidens will stay at the home of longtime friend and billionaire David Rubenstein, co-founder of the Carlyle Group, whose property is on Abrams Point in Nantucket Harbor, according to the White House. They also stayed at Rubenstein's compound for Thanksgiving in 2014.

The president and first lady departed Washington, D.C., on Wednesday night along with other members of their family, including the president's son Hunter Biden and several of their grandchildren.

That came after the Bidens spent the first part of their week taking part in an event honoring military families and then packing meals for the needy in the nation's capital.

On Monday, they served up a Friendsgiving meal for soldiers and military families at Fort Bragg in North Carolina.

"Folks, I want to thank not only the warriors, I want to thank you families, because they stand and wait," Biden said. "I know how hard it is to have someone who's not at the table on a holiday, that are in harm's way, that find themselves out of the country," he added, referencing when his late-son Beau Biden was deployed to Iraq.

Shortly before leaving on the capital on Tuesday, the Bidens, along with Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff, also helped pack Thanksgiving meal kits at DC Central Kitchen, a local nonprofit that provides meals to homeless shelters and individuals in need.

The president was tasked with placing sliced turkey into containers, while the first lady scooped up sweet potato casserole. Harris and Emhoff helped pack green beans and gravy.

The first family will be in Nantucket until Sunday, and there are no public events on the president's schedule through the weekend. However, in years past, the president has been seen at the annual tree-lighting ceremony on Main Street, which will also be held this Friday while he is in town.