What's Working Wednesday: Community Potluck

I know that it's Thursday but we didn't get home until almost midnight last night so What's Working Wednesday is a day late.

This is an idea that I can take no credit for but we think it's really great and want to implement it at every place we live in the future. At one of the last AWANA events of the year a mom that
volunteers there announced that they host a community picnic at the Croghan Town Park on Tuesday nights at 6pm. They told us to bring a dish to pass, and our own plates, silverware, cups, and drinks and to invite anyone we wanted. We weren't sure where Croghan Town Park was but it sounded like fun.

We've made it to the community picnic 3 times (it's been rained out a couple of times - why does it have to rain on Tuesdays?? and we haven't been available to make a couple of others). When we've attended there have been anywhere from 3-7 families with anywhere between 11 and 25 kids (yay for living in Lewis County where my family is average size, not big!) It has been so much fun meeting and getting to know people, sharing yummy foods that aren't normal fare at our house, and the best part? None of us have to clean our houses to do it! Hurray! We need to eat on Tuesdays anyway, why not eat with friends?

What do you need to do to start your own community pot luck?

1. Find a location
Any park would do but I recommend the one you choose should have: a bunch of picnic tables close together, a pavilion (in case of rain or to shade from the sun), a playground, and a bathroom.

2. Pick a night and time
Mid-week at 6 works well as most people are done with work by then and weeknights aren't as likely to be as busy as weekends (for people or pavilions).

3. Invite People
Invite a few friends and tell them to invite their friends.

4. Go and enjoy the fun, food and friendship

These community potlucks have been very fun. Since it's a pot luck you never know what kind of food will be there (for example, one week only 2 families made it and one of them brought meatballs and the other brought stuff for homemade ice cream) but we always have a great time and my family looks forward to it every week.

If you live in Lewis County come join us any Tuesday night at Croghan Town Park at 6pm. If you don't start one in a park near you. You'll be glad you did!

Thanks Craig and Mary Anne for inviting us! Hope you don't mind that I have stolen and shared your great idea :)