The year 1947 brings the winds of change to the Walton family. Elizabeth feels it the most. All she wants is the family gathered together around the table for a traditional Thanksgiving dinner, the way it used to be when they were all kids, but now everyone is scattered and that holiday wish may not come true.

John Sr. is in Arizona with Olivia who is recovering from tuberculosis at a sanatorium. It doesn’t seem likely he would leave her and return to the mountain.

John-Boy is working as a reporter in New York City, currently struggling with a difficult bout of writer’s block. It couldn’t come at a worse time as deadlines loom and the Thanksgiving holiday is fast approaching. His boss urges him to take a break, as does his girlfriend, Jane, who has, once again, been stood up for dinner because of John-Boy’s commitment to work. Now the words just won’t come and the more frustrated he becomes, the harder he tries, the more difficult it is for him to write. In the end, he sends a letter to Elizabeth, saying he would not be home for Thanksgiving.

Paul, Erin’s husband, is uncomfortable around her large family. He feels they crowd him out and he never has time to himself. In an attempt to placate him and possibly heal some of the troubles in their marriage, she, too, tells Elizabeth they will not be coming to dinner, and instead will go to Paul’s father’s house.

After playing piano at the Dew Drop Inn, Jason begins to wonder about his career choice, questioning his ability and whether or not he should return to music school. In his way of thinking, there’s only one way to find out if he’s cut out for the life of a musician, and that’s to go to New York and test the waters. So he packs his bags and finds his way to John-Boy’s apartment, leaving another empty chair at the dinner table to Elizabeth’s disappointment.

Meanwhile, Yancy turns up at Jim-Bob’s garage and trades his beloved turkey, Isabella for an inner tube, as he has no cash for the much-needed purchase and later a seemingly lucrative deal finds them in business together. The Baldwin sisters are desperately trying to get out of another Thanksgiving dinner with their demanding cousin Octavia, to the point of hoping Miss Emily comes down with pneumonia!

In the midst of all these events, Mary Ellen’s son, John Curtis, keeps disappearing into the woods to play with a mysterious friend.

In this heartwarming movie, discover the unbreakable bond of family, love, friendship, traditional values and the deep emotional ties to that place we call home.

“Blessings need not always be understood, only deeply felt. That Thanksgiving Day in 1947 became a day of release and discovery. I’d come home again, and home was still there” – John-Boy