At A. Rifkin Co. in Wilkes-Barre, Thanksgiving is in the cards

An assortment of A. Rifkin Co. Thanksgiving cards, a tradition that began in 1958.

The first holiday card arrived in our mailbox a couple of weeks ago, but it wasn’t for Christmas or from a friend or family member.

It came from A. Rifkin Co. in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., which is in its seventh decade of sending an annual Thanksgiving card to customers. Incredibly, that long history represents only half of the company’s existence, which dates to 1892.

I spoke about the card tradition with Darcy Lantz Buck, a fifth-generation member of the Rifkin family and the company’s president.

“This is our thing,” Darcy said. “We do Thanksgiving.”

16,000 recipients

A. Rifkin is best known for its reusable fabric security bags for customers ranging from banks and the federal government to schools and restaurants. If you’re moving cash or documents, you might use an A. Rifkin bag.

Stay was among some 16,000 recipients of this year’s card, Darcy told me. A. Rifkin made our Ben’s Bolt mini zip bag (which is a great stocking stuffer, if you’ll pardon my commercializing this post.)

Darcy’s grandfather, Arnold Rifkin, sent the first Thanksgiving card in 1958, when it was a full sheet of paper.

It included this line: “We observe Thanksgiving happy in the thought that our relations with people like you are among our proudest possessions.”

Since the second year, the sheet has been folded to card size. It’s typically printed in brown ink on off-white paper.

The first card

Arnold Rifkin initiated the company’s Thanksgiving card tradition with this page in 1958.

‘The nation he loved so much’

Early cards might have featured a poem or quote.

Arnold Rifkin, a World War II veteran, served as company president from 1968 to 1996. Upon his death in 2015, the company dedicated that year’s card to him.

“In recent years,” that card noted, “he took great pleasure in singling out an individual or event that had great impact on America, the nation that he loved so much.”

Those subjects included Iwo Jima (1994), Wilbur and Orville Wright (2003), the Star-Spangled Banner (2014).

Since Melanie Quintanilla joined A. Rifkin several years ago as marketing specialist, she has assumed the task of compiling possible topics for each year’s card. Darcy reviews them and makes the final selection.

Several years ago, it was the 50th anniversary of “Sesame Street.” Last year, it was the Statue of Liberty; this year, the 50th anniversary of the launch of the space shuttle program.

The back of this year’s card notes that it was “created by the people of A. Rifkin Co. for our friends.”

For friends and family, for good health and good cheer, and for A. Rifkin’s quirky, sweet card tradition, we are thankful.