To many, Memorial Day weekend is the “official” kick-off to summer. A blocked off time to remember and honor those who have served in our armed forces and lost life in the fight to preserve our freedom and how we live in this country. While it opens up the opportunity to travel out of town, for those who choose to stick around the Mile Square, Hoboken Grace has its annual Memorial Day picnic as a means of bringing our community together on this day for some fellowship, good food and fun games.

This was the first picnic we were able to have in our very own space after having access to the lawn after the holiday weekend last year. We at Hoboken Grace love a good park! But having our space allows it to feel more intimate and safe for those still not feeling up for being among a crowd of strangers. Fortunately, the rain held off, which meant the many hours of cornhole, Oreo stacking and general chit-chat were on and full of competitive spirits (except for the chit-chat. I’m not sure that could be a competition…yet!)

The fun of events like this is getting to spend time with families and individuals of all ages.

There aren’t too many events where you can witness kids interacting with adults, kids interacting with other kids, and adults interacting with high stakes, sweat inducing lawn games. Some folks are still seeing each other for the first time since last year, and what better way to bring everyone together?