Outside of the annual Hanover Tomato Festival, the BLOCK Party that Fairmount puts on every other year is the largest free event that takes place in Hanover County. We anticipate 2,000+ people to attend our BLOCK Party. This year’s BLOCK Party will be held on Saturday, September 15th at Cold Harbor Elementary School from 3:00-6:00 p.m.
Let me remind you of what makes our BLOCK Party special:
First, it’s a completely FREE event. We are inviting our neighbors to come out to Cold Harbor Elementary School and have an afternoon of fun for their family for free. No strings attached.
Second, it provides us with opportunities to meet and engage in conversations with the families that live in the closest proximity to our church. We get introduced to them and can hear from them what their greatest needs, hopes and dreams are for their families and for our community.
Third, it moves us away from our church building and into the community. It’s very easy for us to become isolated at our church building with all of the events and activities that take place here. However, it is essential that we intentionally move beyond our own walls. We are taking the church to the community instead of having the community come to our church.
Finally, it brings our church together as we work to accomplish a huge event. The volunteer needs to pull off our BLOCK Party are enormous and yet everyone at Fairmount comes together with enthusiasm and excitement to make it happen. As a minister, to see a church work together like this is a wonderful blessing.
Here is what you can expect at this year’s BLOCK Party:
FOOD! Mike Banton will again be cooking his delicious barbeque, baked beans and cole slaw. There will be hot dogs for the kids. There will be plenty of bottles of water to drink and ice cream will be served. We will have a large tent that can seat around 250 people at one time.
MUSIC! Live music has always been part of our BLOCK Party entertainment. This year will be no exception. We are lining up several of Fairmount’s best to perform at the BLOCK Party.
GAMES! We will have 8 children’s games, balloons, face painting, a preschool play area and a kid’s craft area. All children will walk away with candy prizes at each game. This year we will have 10 large inflatable games that will be appropriate for children and for teens.
In addition, we’ll have a First Aid tent where we will be able to take care of any minor injuries. The Bloodmobile will be at the BLOCK Party providing a blood drive.
The BLOCK Party is a church-wide event. I can’t stress that enough. We need everyone to pitch in to make this the success that we want it to be.
Here is how you can help:
PRAY! Pray for the BLOCK Party as a whole to come together. Pray for good weather. We’ve scheduled the BLOCK Party in September in hopes of cooler weather. It always seems that our BLOCK Parties fall on some of the hottest days of the year. Considering the hot summer we’ve had, let’s pray that we don’t have a repeat in high temperatures. Pray for the families that will be coming to the BLOCK Party and the relationships that we can form with them.
INVITE! Make sure to invite as many people as you can. Talk to your family, friends and neighbors. There will be a series of three postcards mailed out in upcoming weeks promoting the BLOCK Party. Even with all of the advertising that we will be doing, the best advertising is still a personal invitation.
VOLUNTEER! Sign-ups begin on Sunday, August 19th. We have close to 270 volunteer slots that need to be filled. We need volunteers for set up, tear down, trash pick-up, food servers, parking attendants, greeters, game workers, etc. Enclosed in this week’s Forecaster is a master list of our volunteer needs and the time slots that we are looking to fill. You can sign up at the BLOCK Party Volunteer Table (located in the front foyer across from Children’s Check-In) for one or more of our volunteer needs. Every volunteer will receive a T-shirt to be worn at the BLOCK Party designating you as a volunteer for the event.
BE THERE! Make sure you come to the BLOCK Party! The BLOCK Party is for all ages. Due to parking limitations at the school, we’re asking all Fairmount people to park at the church and ride a shuttle over to the school. We want to make it as easy and convenient for you and for our guests to come to the BLOCK Party.
I am excited about what this year’s BLOCK Party will bring. Set aside September 15th on your calendar. We’re going to have a great day of fun meeting our neighbors and making new friends.
Outside of the annual Hanover Tomato Festival, the BLOCK Party that Fairmount puts on every other year is the largest free event that takes place in Hanover County. We anticipate 2,000+ people to attend our BLOCK Party. This year’s BLOCK Party will be held on Saturday, September 13th at Cold Harbor Elementary School from 3:00-6:00 p.m.
Let me remind you of what makes our BLOCK Party special:
First, it’s a completely FREE event. We are inviting our neighbors to come out to Cold Harbor Elementary School and have an afternoon of fun for their family for free. No strings attached.
Second, it provides us with opportunities to meet and engage in conversations with the families that live in the closest proximity to our church. We get introduced to them and can hear from them what their greatest needs, hopes and dreams are for their families and for our community.
Third, it moves us away from our church building and into the community. It’s very easy for us to become isolated at our church building with all of the events and activities that take place here. However, it is essential that we intentionally move beyond our own walls. We are taking the church to the community instead of having the community come to our church.
Finally, it brings our church together as we work to accomplish a huge event. The volunteer needs to pull off our BLOCK Party are enormous and yet everyone at Fairmount comes together with enthusiasm and excitement to make it happen. As a minister, to see a church work together like this is a wonderful blessing.
