GPHC Update: Time To Plan Those Block Parties
By Robyn Fishman, GPHC Executive Director
After April’s snowstorms, it looks like spring has finally sprung in Park Hill. We’ve now hosted our first community-wide garage sale, in conjunction with Cherry Creek properties, encouraging households to purge items that became another household’s treasure. I hope you all found some good bargains!
With warmer weather comes lots of opportunities for outdoor enjoyment. See our Events Listing on pages 28-29 for upcoming events in and around Park Hill, and plan to join GPHC for the first Park Hill Family Bike Ride of the season on Saturday, May 25, the Garden Walk on Saturday, June 8, or our Evening of the Arts fundraiser on Thursday, June 20 – and those are just the early summer events. If you’ve got a green thumb, please consider volunteering to plant and maintain the GPHC vegetable garden, to help provide fresh produce for our Emergency Food Pantry clients.
Something else you might want to consider for warmer-weather fun, is organizing a block party. It’s a great way to get to know your neighbors, and to celebrate the sense of community that Park Hill offers. There are several blocks that have made an art out of annual parties. Andra Parks described moving to the 2600 block of Bellaire as finding “instant best friends,” and now she and her husband Brad help organize their block’s annual party held each August. They usually have a bounce house, waterslide and a DJ. Some neighbors roll out their grills to the middle of the street to barbecue, while others provide potluck side dishes and desserts. They use their recycling bins to help block off the street during the event. The neighbors sell cookies at garage sales over the summer to help raise money toward the party, which has become a great annual tradition to catch up with neighbors after summer travels.
Other block parties in the area have games set up in various yards, or Dads-on-trikes races. You can organize a scavenger hunt or “neighbor bingo” where cards are filled in with fun facts about neighbors. The only way to win is to talk to people and find out who corresponds with what information (like “has 6 brothers” or “has lived in Park Hill since 1972”). Winners get white elephant-type prizes donated by neighbors, or a gift card that everyone chips $1 toward.
If you don’t want to go to the expense of closing your street for a block party (for which a City permit is required), consider hosting a “progressive” barbecue for your block that would only involve a few neighbors/yards, but which everyone could attend. As highlighted in our March issue, Tom Jensen of the 2600 block of Fairfax suggests something even simpler: a “porch party” that’s BYO drinks and snacks to share. Neighbors gather outside to drink, eat and chat, and they update a spreadsheet of contact information, so that everyone knows how to reach their neighbors in the event of an emergency or community concern. One more idea – how about getting your block together with a creative entry in the Park Hill 4th of July parade?
There are a lot of ways to get to know everyone on your street. If you have suggestions for planning a great block party, or need ideas, please contact me at GPHC for a guide I’m developing. Please send your tips and/or questions to director@greaterparkhill.org. Enjoy the spring weather with your neighbors!