My friend and neighbour Rachel Goetz (rachel.goetz@gmail.com) and I hosted our 6th neighbourhood block party (We held the first one back in 2017.) on September 15th, 2024, from 3:30 to 7:30 pm. It ended up being a beautiful afternoon and about 45 people (including adults, teenagers, children and toddlers) showed up with smiles and lots of conversations.
Block parties are a terrific way to meet neighbours, build a sense of community, show our PoCo Pride, and just plain have fun. The 3 best things about your block party were:
1) Connecting and catching up with neighbours you don’t see often;
2) Talking about what’s going on in our neighbourhood; and
3) Sharing stories and good food.
We sent a few few emails using our Block Watch Group email address. We also printed a flyer (image attached) that we put in each household’s mailbox, as not all of them are a member of our Block Watch Group. We also used word of mouth, text messages and phone calls.
Many neighbours helped setting up and cleaning up. They brought their own chairs. One of them went to pick up the street barriers and dropped them off afterwards.
We provided burgers (which our husbands cooked on two barbecues set up on the street), condiments, cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, caramelized onions and pickles. We asked our neighbours to bring drinks, snacks, appetizers, salads, desserts, treats, etc. to share. We also asked them to bring their own plates, bowls, cutlery and cups/glasses, reusable if possible, to reduce waste. We had the garbage, recycling and green waste bins set up as well.
Some provided tables, tablecloths, and canopies (to shelter from sun and/or rain). My next door neighbours set up a kids’ play area and put background music.
We have been fortunate not to come across challenges. It stopped raining in the morning, it warmed up, many people helped before, during and after the party, like they always did in the past. Nobody ever complains about the day and time, the food, who is being invited, etc. Rachel and I gave at one point a welcome speech during which we thanked everyone for being there and helping, and mentioned the grant we received from Neighbourhood Small Grants and that went towards purchasing the burgers, condiments, etc. We also asked for their permission to take photos and have them posted.
What we learned by making this project happen is that no matter how our block party will turn out, our neighbours will always be appreciative and looking forward to the next one. Maybe next year, we’ll try to have some live music. 🙂
We are now hoping to have a small gathering in December, to welcome the Holiday Season. We had a few small pre-Holiday events in the past and it put a lot of joy in people’s hearts.
Thank you!
