The invite! pic: R.T.
By Edith Morgan
We’ve come a long way!
Free to everyone: this year’s Green Hill Neighborhood Picnic – our sixth annual celebration, and we want the whole community to come and celebrate!
Here are the details:
🌸the 6th annual Green Hill Neighborhood Community Picnic will be held:
🌸Thursday, August 9, 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
🌸At Grant Square Park (corner of Windsor and Northampton streets)
🌸FREE TO ALL!
Up to this year, we have always had the picnic on a Saturday, but this year for the first time we are having the picnic on a weekday, in the late afternoon/early evening. The change is largely due to our expanding the groups and organizations who want to participate.
Volunteers from our association, as well as from neighboring organizations, will be helping. The picnic is funded by donations from individuals, as well as corporations – all of whom will be mentioned and thanked at the picnic.
As usual, there will be:
🍦Free food
⚾Fun for children – games and more
🎵Music
🎁A raffle
🔆and numerous agency tables there to explain what they do, offer aid and get to know the neighbors.
🚒A Worcester Fire Department Fire Truck will put in its yearly appearance
🐎🐎and the Worcester Police Department 💙💙HORSES💙💙 will come pay a visit – a special treat for all!!!
😧New England weather being its usual unpredictable self, we have a rain date set for the following day, Friday, August 10, same time and place.
The picnic idea grew out of one of the Green Hill Neighborhood Association monthly meetings, a suggestion first put forward by State Rep Mary Keefe, who helped with the first picnic. We all felt a need to showcase our area and to bring together the many different groups who live in our area.
Under the very active leadership of the co-chairs, Winifred Octave and Debra Bolz, the group has grown and prospered. It all really began with Winifred (Wini) who lives right across from the park and saw every day that the facilities needed to be greatly improved.
It is said around here that no one says “No” to Wini, and so gradually the park saw many improvements: fencing, community gardens, an upgraded basketball court, improved parking, handicapped parking, seating – and other amenities. (Look out, Worcester city councilors! Wini is still looking for lights – which were promised!)
While the Grant Park area has for too long been one of our city’s more neglected backwaters, that seems no longer to be true; the gardens in the park, monitored by REC, and the added attention by various City of Worcester departments, all attest to the fact that this area is up and coming.
And while this area seemed to have more social service agencies than anywhere but Main South, our group has found a way to pull in many residents who regularly attend meetings, volunteer at events and take on tasks that help keep the area cleaner and safer. The City Code Department and the WPD Community Police Officers are a regular presence at monthly meetings and provide fast and efficient help wherever they can.
There is a lot more to tell – so come and meet us all, share good food, music, information – and FUN!!