- It's not your usual downtown spot, a refuge from the towering glass monolith, office towers and skyscrapers that surround it; a place of spiritual, religious and cultural significance tucked gently beneath a modernized world of big business and healthy commerce, a world center dedicated to the preservation of gratitude and praise and thanksgiving. But for hundreds of thousands of pilgrims and curiosity tourists who have sought peace within this unique, tiny sanctuary in the heart of downtown Dallas since 1976 it has been a place of meditation and personal, spiritual refection. Thanksgiving Square is a three and half acre inter-religious and multicultural shrine and research center located at the confluence of Bryan, Pacific, Akard and Ervay streets in downtown Dallas. Located at the hub of the underground tunnel system, between the Akard and St. Paul stations of the DART rail line, it is in walking distance to the Dallas Museum of Art, Fountain Plaza, the Dallas Public Library, Dallas City Hall and the Dallas Convention Center. Dedicated to Thanksgiving and its many faces in various cultures around the world, the 'monument of praise' is a tribute to Thanksgiving in Texas, to the traditional American Thanksgiving, and to thanksgiving practices and celebrations around the world. The park-like grounds provides access to the striking, chalk-white, spiral Chapel of Thanksgiving Architect: Philip Johnson and Associates of New York City, the Hall of Thanksgiving exhibit area and meeting room, and the Mosaic of Norman Rockwell's famous painting, The Golden Rule. At the opposite end of the grounds you'll find the Bell Tower, the Court of All Nations, the Ring of Thanks, the Wall of Praise Garden Courtyard, and the Wall of Presidents. It's a spectacle (and natural relief in an ocean of concrete) to behold, but begs the questions, "what does the center do, and who is behind it, and how did it all start?" According to the Thanksgiving-Square Web site, the Square serves as a common ground, a sanctuary, where there can be a confluence of faiths and traditions in discussion of shared concern. In Dallas, Thanksgiving Square is a central meeting place where citizens from diverse backgrounds can use thanksgiving as a way to heal divisions and enhance mutual understanding. Founded by Peter Stewart, funding for and management of The Center are provided by The Thanksgiving Square Foundation, a Texas nonprofit corporation. The Center comprises the National Thanksgiving Commission, Thanksgiving Square, a full-time staff, and the support of thousands of visitors who come to the Center each year from all 50 states and more than 100 countries. Perhaps the Center is best known fir its  research and themes developed for presidential proclamations related to the National Day of Prayer and Thanksgiving. The center also plays host annually to the National Day of Prayer breakfast and an annual Thanksgiving dinner. The Center also hosts meetings of the Thanksgiving World Advisors and seminars on thanksgiving and gratitude at various locations around the world, including Japan, Argentina, India, Liechtenstein, China and other countries, and stages a Thanksgiving World Assembly for spiritual leaders from around the world. It may not be your usual tourist destination but Thanksgiving-Square offers a unique and refreshing environment and the exhibits, art, and landscape are powerful enough to justify a visit if you venture to or around Dallas this holiday season. After all, what better time to visit that the Thanksgiving holiday?