Church Picnic Season Here In Wisconsin...

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polkanut

polkanut

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 14, 2005
Messages
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Location
Wausau, WI
Just curious if other parts of the US have church picnics like we do here. Besides the food stands and dinners that go with it, they also have beer, soda, bottled water, wine coolers, and Mike's Hard Lemonade or something similar for sale as well. The bands that are mentioned in the link are all polka bands, of course!

 
My parent's Parish (St. Peter's in Council Bluffs, Iowa) was originally a German Catholic Church. They have a huge fundraiser dinner every October called - appropriately enough - Oktoberfest, where they prepare German food made from recipes passed down through the years.

It's really good, but I was shocked to find that they stopped serving beer! Some nonsense about "the children" (of course, none of us who grew up with the beer seem any worse for the wear, thank you very much, but apparently we were hardier stock ;)

But I ask you: What's an Oktoberfest without beer?
 
My parish here in Tucson is St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church. Our Patronal Feast is on Sept. 29, the feast of St. Michael and for 4 days we have "English Faire" consisting of dinner of fish and chips or shepherd's pie, English Tea, big sale/flea market, and of course, a High Mass.

Ross
 
Here in the Northeast ...

it's Italian Catholic Feast Time. The most famous feast is San Gennaro in Little Italy, in New York: http://www.sangennaro.org/, but just about every Italian Parish will be hosting a feast dedicated to it's patron Saint. (Even though I'm neither Italian nor Catholic, I go to as many of them as I can. Sing: "Tis the season to gain weight! LOL")

IMHO, the most fascinating feast is the Feast of the Giglio, which is highlighted by a procession where a seven story tall statute, a band and at least one priest are carried through the streets of Brooklyn! The pics don't do it justice (http://community.webshots.com/album/82459697KNXqct/0) see the You Tube Video in the link below.

In Saint Ann's in Hoboken, NJ, the woman of the Parish carry a one ton statue of St. Ann through the streets of Hoboken. Some of them do it barefoot! http://p.vtourist.com/1104648-my_mom-Hoboken.gif

Similar feasts take place all over New Jersey and in Boston and Philadelphia.

They can be a lot of fun!

Mike

 
Mike, I was visiting Boston last summer, and I stayed at a friend's condo in the north end. Throughout the course of a Sunday afternoon there must have been seven parades (or just one really long one that snaked around for a while) all honoring the Blessed Mother. The band that marched with the parade ran out of devotional music fairly early on, and soon I started to hear things like the theme from Dallas and "La cucuracha". It was a hoot!

Omaha has a really cool one down by the Train stations in the old Italian neighborhood. There's a small parade, a carnival, and the Sons of Italy put on a big spread. Lots of fun!
 
Nicean Creed: I believe in one Holy, Catholic and Apostolic

Yes, in my area they area they are called church bazaars and are fund-raisers. Ethinic food, drink, souvenirs and a flea-market are common

BTW: (---eyes roll--- here he goes again pontificationg (sorry pet-peeve of mine)):

There are MANY Catholic Churches.
Catholic means complete/universal (unedited, if you will).

Episcopal/Anglican are Catholic in these sense that they are basically Roman Catholic, just no Pope.

Eastern Orthodox churches are Catholic, they just worship differently and are autocephalous (yes, ditto no Pope). They vote to chose a leader amoung themselves.

There are even segments of the Roman Catholic Church (someties called Greek Catholic) that are techincally Roman Catholic under the Byazantine (eastern) Rite. (Break-away Eastern Orthodox Churches that are under the Pope) [Think Hybrid of Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic).

So please DO let us know if Roman Catholic is what is implied when on says Catholic (which is annoyingly erroneously refered to by the media as THE Church....., there are actually others).

I have heard non-Roman Catholic churches called *Catholic-lite*. Same services, same theology, no Pope and none of the accompanying "poop". (politics/policies about everyday life, contraception, homoseuality, divorce, ex-communications etc).

Editor's note: There is no malice, ill-intent, judgement or
any other offensive act stated or implied against anyone's beliefs. TYVM.

I have taken Communion in a R.C. church (not my faith) at my in-laws renewal of wedding vows on their 25th wedding anniversary. EVERYONE (except the priest) was honored that I would do so. He, of course, made an announcment [specifically to embarass me], that communion there was reserved for R.C's ONLY. You see R/C cross themseleves : Spectacles, Testicles, Left then Right. My version does S, T, Right THEN Left. Apparently I outed myself.

ME out myself? PREPOSTEROUS!

 
We must have been in Boston at the same time, Dan. (The first weekend in August!) I was with some friends (including one who grew up in New York) who had never seen anything quite like it!

Here in Hoboken, we have three feasts during the course of the summer. The processions tend to go on for a couple of hours as they snake through the neighborhoods. And, your right, the bands very quickly run out of devotional music!

Here's a link to another You Tube video of the Giglio.

 
Church picnics-what a great idea!

And those potluck suppers of old-oooh, yeah. Sadly our church hasn't done any for several years now. There are abhout 3000 members and growing esp. with young families. I don't exactly know why we don't. Probably easier for smaller churches to do this, whether protestant, RC, Eastern Orthodox, etc. Since our summers are often unbearably hot and humid (and long), those outdoor activities come to a screeching halt come July. Everyone would rather drag race to a restaurant or cafeteria for sunday dinner. Unfortunately thats the norm here. Polkanut and others-enjoy your picnics over the summer. I'm envious!
 
Episcopal/Anglican are Catholic in these sense that they are basically Roman Catholic, just no Pope.

Hi Steve, yes, the Anglican/Episcopal Church does not have a Pope or Bingo....had to go to Roman church for Bingo....otherise, we have all the fun stuff...

divorce, abortion, birth control, gay priests and bishops, female priests and bishops....but sure miss bingo....guess you can't have everything.........

Ross
 
There's a big stink going on in Calgary right now between the Bishop and the Catholic School Board. The Board has always relied heavily on Casino's to get the extra cash for school trips, equipment etc. but the Bishop is telling them that if they continue to do so he will not officiate at any of the schools that take the casino money for the school board.. BTW these aren't little gym casino's. We have about 5 large Vegas type Casinos in town but about 70% of their profit goes to the government, 15% to the charities that provide volunteers to run chips in them, and the casino owner gets 15% (something like that anyways). Even the 15% the charity gets is a lot of money and can be 100's of thousands per year to them. The charities can't get that type of money holding bingos and bake sales and carwashes.
 
Let's hear it for Boston's North End feasts. I was organist at St. Leonard's in the North End for a very short time and the feasts all end with a Mass in honor of the patron saint of the feast. They are a pain in the a-- to play for because they have a special hymn to each one of these saints, in Italian, and either very poorly written or no written music at all. These feasts generate loads of money to the church, and the priest/pastor at the time was none too pleased with me when I said I wouldn't play these crappy ditties anymore without the proper music. One word led to another, and suddenly a hymnal flew across the sacristy at the priest's head. That was the end of my job at St. Leonard's!
Toggles, I am dying again with laughs at the spectacle testicle thing. Pisser!
Bobby in Boston
 
Well......

This morning after church, we had a "make your own ice cream Sundae bar."

I asked my friend Sula (chair of Fellowship) about a picnic, and they've decided to try alternate events this year, the Sunday Sundaes being but one of them.

It was a nice idea, and a good time, and was certainly welcome after the warm warm Sanctuary.

I do love potlucks, though. Since I am currently living alone, it is far too easy to live on peanut butter sandwiches, or on "Cut Film Cover to Vent" frozen things.

Lawrence/Maytagbear
 
Yay for Casinos!

The town I grew up in (Council Bluffs) was/is vintage "rust belt" . For years, my dad and the head librarian tried to get the library replaced, but the people kept voting down the bond issue.

When the casinos came in, all the higher haired clergy threw a gasket and declared the town was headed straight to you-know-where, but the casinos promised not only to take the dead mall in the center of town off the city's hands, but also to pay for half of the cost of a new library if the voters would approve the bond issue.

Ten or so years later, they have a really beautiful library, the dead mall is now contributing to the tax base, and the town is actually a lot less seedy. We're down to only one adult bookstore, from a peak of seven in the pre-casino days!!! (not that I have anything against "adult entertainment" per se, but when your beautiful old movie theatre on your main street "goes blue", you know you've got problems in the old hometown)

And, best of all, the old library - which is a vintage carnegie library - was totally redone, and is now the Union Pacific museum. Council Bluffs now has a bona fide he-storical attraction!!! ;-)
 
Church Picnic

Our church just started having picnics for the past two years. Myself and another woman do the organinzing, food shopping and cooking. Hamburgers, Hot Dogs, Kielbasi and sauerkraut sandwiches. Homemade potato, coleslaw and macaroni salad, homemade cakes, ice cream, watermelon. Games for the kids also. Everyone has a great time. The problem is that we tried 2 years ago, and now all of the parishoners want to have it every year.
 
Church Lady

One of the funniest skits ever, on Saturday Night Live, was with Dana Carvey as "Church Lady". She was trying to impress the pastor with a casserole made from two whole, boiled and plucked from the bone, turkeys.

I grew up immersed (pun intended) in the Baptist church. Church potlucks were fun and the choices were endless. In the food industry, if anyone has ever catered an event for church goers, you know to double the food, cause they will be sure to get their money's worth.

The problem with modern potlucks is that the majority of people, fifty and younger, no longer cook. Potlucks are a miserable smattering of deli salad, Sara Lee and Colonel Sanders. The few homemade dishes that appear are hogged by the first five people in line.

Our church provides funeral dinners and there is a call list of people to bring food. We get a cereal bowl filled with a deli salad, bags of salad mix and bags of cheap Sandwich cookies. The food is now ordered from a deli since running out, was becoming a pattern.

Kelly
 
Was an annual Parish Picnic years ago. Community BBQ, mini-carnival, prizes & games, auction, etc. I remember my mother was often involved in running the fishing booth -- hang a blanket or sheet across the stall, kid throws a fishing line over and somebody clips a prize to it and tugs the line to signal a "catch." Dad once bought a typewriter at the auction, and sometimes had an item for sale. I don't know if the Picnics are still held, or if so, to the same "Gala Event" degree. I dropped out. Years ago.
 

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