Thursday, July 22 we had a great time, block party veterans and new recruits shared ideas and asked question. At the Sanctuary CDC we see block parties not as a simplistic “crime-fighting” method, but as a strategy for building Beloved Community.
As neighbors connect: learn names, share dreams, and listen to each other. Neighborhoods are build with mutual concern and respect. Below are the THREE MAIN OBJECTIVES of a successful block party, followed by ideas on how to meet those goals.
The Block Party strives, from planning to clean-up, to involve all the demographics of the community.
1. Get people involved early in planning – Planning – not just assignments
2. Use multiple means to promote
i. Email
ii. Flyers door door
iii. Face to face (catch people coming and going
iv. BE INTENTIONAL
3. Use block party as more than an “end” but a step to something more
i. Garden project
ii. Street painting
iii. Building block club
4. LEAVE room for NEED / Creates opportunity to HELP
i. Ask for help
ii. Leave room for all to contribute
iii. don’t over plan so there is nothing left to do
iv. get parents engaged early
The Block Party is about Activities that Connect
1. Games
i. Relay races
ii. Water tub duckies – (no hands) draw prize
iii. Cake (candy walk)
iv. Water balloons
v. Hype and get all involved
2. Door prizes – and sign-up sheets (name, phone #, and addresses)
i. Seek donations
ii. City
iii. Neighborhood businesses (Solo and Corner stores too!)
iv. Dollar store
3. Resource table
i. Services (county, city, state, schools, church, non-profits)
ii. Fire dept
iii. K9 unit demo
iv. Peace foundation
4. FOOD
i. Seek donations / discounts
ii. Grills open for people to get involved
5. TALK
i. Ask questions you wanna know, people are at a party YOU help plan, you have a right to respectfully ask….
ii. Not snoopy but to see how neighborhoods can help with problem spots
The Block Party Creates Connections that Continue to shape the Neighborhood
1. Exchange info
2. Build into Block Club Plans
3. Keep Focus POSITIVE and PROACTIVE not focused on what’s wrong all the time…