At a school in Redford Twp., students gather for only one meal a year

At a small one-story brick school in Redford Township, students unite in the cafeteria to eat a meal together just one time in the school year.

The other days, students eat in their classrooms at the specialized school for students with emotional disabilities.

The tradition is sacred at the Keeler Center: It is a Thanksgiving feast where students balance multiple plates heaped with mashed potatoes and generous slices of pie. Where students write on butcher paper what they're thankful for, where they gesture loudly in conversation or eat quietly and where they sit amid their teachers, who eat beside them.

"It's a blessing," said Carter Waddell, 9, a third grader clad in Spiderman pajamas, a red Spiderman robe and matching slippers. "You get to sit with all your friends."

Carter exited t