By Jennifer Russo

Perhaps Thanksgiving is not a holiday you celebrate. Maybe you can’t afford to (or don’t want to) go home to see all those relatives. Maybe the idea of eating turkey and cranberry sauce makes you gag, or perhaps you are just curious about how the Worcester area celebrates and want to check it out. Despite your reasons for sticking around for Thanksgiving, there is plenty you can do around the city this year instead of becoming the dorm hermit and playing Candy Crush all day. It all depends on what your interests are.

Do good ~ There are plenty of people who are in need of a good, hot meal this holiday and plenty of places that can use your help in providing it. Some perspective for you: 20.9 percent of the families in Worcester live below the poverty level, and 16.9 percent of households in Worcester experience food hardship. According to Project Bread, one in three children in 14 low-income neighborhoods in Worcester experience hunger or are at risk of hunger. If you are hanging around or a little sad you couldn’t make it home, helping someone else will likely make you feel a lot better. For a list of pantries and kitchens, visit foodpantries.org/ci/ma-worcester. You can also donate food to places like Rachel’s Table (rachelstable.org), which provide food regularly to those in the area who need it.

Check out festivals ~ Festivals are one of the best things about the fall season. Central Massachusetts has quite a few that you may or may not know about. Closest to Worcester, Red Apple Farm in Phillipston has its 11th annual Thanksgiving Harvest Festival from Nov. 23-24, featuring live music and tons of local vendors, games, hayrides, raffles and more. Find out more at redapplefarm.com.

Go turkey hunting ~ No, I do not mean literally. Wild turkeys, though plentiful and sometimes annoying, are protected. However, each year the town of Grafton hosts its Great Turkey Treasure Hunt that is hugely successful. For more information about the event and rules, call the Grafton Recreation Commission office at (508) 839-5335.

Eat some food ~ OK, so you reallllly want a Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings and aren’t sure where to get a meal that tastes like the home cooking you love. Look no further. The Publick House in Sturbridge (publickhouse.com), the Wachusett Village Inn (wachusettvillageinn.com) in Westminster and the Chocksett Inn (chocksettinn.com) in Sterling are all hosting Thanksgiving Day feasts that are sure to tempt you to loosen a button to make room for more mashed potatoes.

Have a drink ~ Fall and early winter is the best time to try hard ciders and pumpkin beer before the stouts come rolling in. My personal favorite, Southern Tier Pumking, boasts an 8.6% ABV and tastes like pumpkin pie in a glass. Our own Wormtown Brewing Company has a Pumpkin Ale, too. Not a beer person? Try throwing apple schnapps, butterscotch schnapps, cinnamon schnapps and vanilla vodka in a shaker with some milk or cream for a delicious Caramel Apple Martini; don’t forget the cinnamon sugar rim.

Get moving ~ While your buddies are stuffing themselves full of apple pie, you could be burning calories and competing for a prize. Go for a walk in the crisp air and admire the foliage, or better yet … run. Slattery’s Turkey Trot in Fitchburg on Sunday, Nov. 24, is a 5-mile walk or run with a cash prize. It’s only $25 to register and all proceeds go to a scholarship fund. Register at coolrunning.com/major/13/slattery/. You could also try rock climbing; though the Central Rock Gym in Worcester (centralrockgym.com/worcester.php) is closed on Thanksgiving Day, it is open the rest of the week!

Watch some football ~ Local high schools and colleges have some games going on; check out their schedules and cheer them on!

Learn some history ~ Alright, so maybe the last thing you want to do on school break is to learn something new, but since you live in the New England area ~ where Thanksgiving was born ~ there is the unique opportunity here to experience some of our nation’s history first hand. Old Sturbridge Village offers a chance to see what the holiday is all about every weekend in November. See re-enactments of a 19th-century shooting match and learn how Thanksgiving food was made. Get insight to dining customs back in the day and on Nov. 28, join in a traditional Thanksgiving Feast (reservations now accepted at osv.org).

Go shopping ~ Some stores will open Thanksgiving night to begin their Black Friday door-busters and sales before Friday actually hits. Get an early start to get the deals. Want to preview some ads and get your holiday shopping done before the last-minute crowds? Check out blackfriday.fm/2014.html.