Church Picnic Festival Brings Community Together

St. Michael's Church and St. Gregory Armenian Apostolic Church held their Picnic Festival on Sunday, Sept. 12. Seventy volunteers helped prepare the festival, which drew about 1,000 members of the community for family fun, music and food.

"Everyone who attended had a ball," said Mary Alice Rock, staff member of St. Michael's Church, who helped coordinate the event."It's impossible to say what the most popular attractions were, because each attracted people with different tastes."

The street was blocked off so the festival could take place, and there were tents and picnic tables set up for families and children to enjoy themselves.

Events included Armenian dancers, a wiffle ball game, tug-o-war, dancers from the Center for Performing Arts, face painting, a clown, balloon-making and a water balloon game. There was also a DJ as well as a variety of food and beverages.

"The kids were having the time of their lives playing wiffle ball in the middle of Main Street," Rock said. "The peer ministers (high school volunteers) were so great, making sure all the little kids got turns at all the games and making sure they had fun."

Attendance was a little lower than expected -- about 800 people -- which Rock said was probably because of the cooler weather and other events going on in the area.

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