FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Why does St. Joe’s have a picnic?

The St. Joe’s Picnic was started in 1850 by a group of Ursuline nuns to raise funds to care for the orphaned children living at St. Joe’s. The Picnic has continued for 173 years and remains as the largest annual fundraiser providing much needed support to cover the day-to-day operating expenses of the Home.

Many people do not realize that children still live at St. Joe’s. However, the days of the traditional orphanage are gone. The children who now reside at St. Joe’s were removed from abandoned, abusive, neglectful, violent, and broken homes. They are wards of the state who are placed at St. Joe’s for therapeutic treatment to help them move beyond their traumatic experiences and grow into successful young adulthood.

As expected, funding is provided from the state to assist with the cost of caring for these children, but this covers less than 77% of the actual expenses. This leaves a significant amount that must be raised by other means. The picnic is the major source of these additional funds and EVERY DOLLAR RAISED HELPS THE KIDS.

Can I take a tour of the landmark building?

Unfortunately, only essential personnel are allowed inside the landmark building due to COVID-19 restrictions. Building tours will resume upon lifting those restrictions under state and federal guidance.

How can I help St. Joe’s make up for income lost due to the cancellation of the live Picnic event?

Although there will be no large event on the grounds this year, Picnic will go on, and there are multiple ways that you can participate to help support our mission.

• Please consider donating the amount that you would normally have spent at the Picnic. Visit our online Picnic Virtual Event Center at https://tinyurl.com/sjpicnic2021 and click the Donate button to make your gift.
• Be a fundraiser for St. Joe’s. Visit our online Picnic page at https://p2p.onecause.com/sjpicnic and click Register to sign up to be a peer-to-peer fundraiser. Follow the simple steps on the page to create your personal page that you can share with your friends and family via social media and email to encourage them to make donations. Win prizes: all participants who raise a minimum of $500 will receive a free Picnic t-shirt, and there will be larger prizes for top fundraisers, top social media posters and top recruiters. Contact Pam Stone via email at pams@sjkids.org for more information.
• Visit the Picnic Virtual Event Center at https://tinyurl.com/sjpicnic2021 to find details about raffles and other Picnic activities you can participate in to support the St. Joe’s Picnic for the Kids.
• Buy a Picnic t-shirt and other St. Joe’s merchandise to show that you are a proud supporter of St. Joe’s mission. Visit the online store at sjkids.org/shop/ to view the selection and make a purchase.
• Do you love the awesome quilts made by the talented ladies of the St. Joe’s Sewing Society? A limited selection of beautiful handmade quilts and pillowcases are available for purchase at sjkids.org/shop/.
• Wondering what to do with those dimes and quarters you had saved since last year to play the wheel games at this year’s Picnic? You can still bring them to St. Joe’s on Picnic Day. There will be a special drive-through donation collection site at St. Joe’s on August 14^th from 12:00 noon to 5:00 PM sponsored by Byerly Ford. Bring your cash donations and follow the signs from the Frankfort Avenue entrance to place your gift in one of the donation jars.

How can I purchase raffle tickets this year?

Raffle tickets are restricted to online purchases only, with limited in-person purchases. No raffle sales can be made via mail. Purchase raffle tickets online here: https://tinyurl.com/sjraffle. In-person purchase of raffle tickets will also be available on August 14^th from 12:00 to 5:00 PM at the St. Joe’s campus. Enter via the Frankfort Avenue entrance and follow signs for Raffle Sales/Buy A Raffle Ticket.

Will there be a Chicken Dinner this year?

Since there is no large live Picnic event on the grounds this year, there will be no Chicken Dinner. Yes, we did consider the possibility of having a carryout option for the Chicken Dinner, but after much discussion, we concluded that it was not logistically feasible to host even a “carryout only” version of the Chicken Dinner.

I bought a raffle ticket online. How will I know if I won?

Winners for all raffles will be drawn at 8:30 PM on August 14^th. Drawings will be viewable via live streaming on the Picnic Virtual Event Center and at our Facebook page. Winners will be notified by phone on Monday, August 16^th, and will also receive a letter via mail. Winning names (first initial and last name only) will be posted on the Picnic page of the St. Joe’s website at http://sjkids.org/picnic/ within the week following Picnic.

How do I claim my prize?

If you are the winner of a raffle or one of the other prizes during Picnic, you will be contacted on the Monday following Picnic. You can also contact the Picnic Coordinator, Pam Stone, via email at pams@sjkids.org or by phone at (502) 893-0241 ext. 262 with any questions or to make arrangements to pick up your prize. To protect our staff and the children in our onsite programs, no walk-ins are permitted, so you must schedule a time to meet with our Picnic Coordinator at a designated location on the St. Joe’s campus.

COVID Safety

We take the health and safety of you, our children and our employees seriously. 

An inherent risk of exposure to COVID-19 exists in any public space where people are gathered, even at an event that is fully outdoors. All guests who enter our event must behave responsibly to prevent the spread of COVID.

We are closely monitoring government policy changes, Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines, government mandates, and public health announcements and any guidance provided will be strictly followed. Guidance can evolve quickly, so please  for the latest updates before you head to St. Joe’s on Friday August 13^th or Saturday August 14th.

Mask up! Regardless of vaccination status, we encourage you to wear a mask in order to help keep yourself and others healthy. Masks will be available for purchase at check in.

Keeping Kids Safe! We are for the Kids here at St. Joe’s. If you will have children with you at Picnic, please plan to mask up.

Keep your distance. Be courteous to other guests and make sure to give them space — on your way in, in the food line, on the lawn, wherever. We will continue to evaluate the layout prior to each evening to ensure the opportunity for attendees to social distance.

How are you feeling? If you’re not feeling well, please STAY HOME. We cannot emphasize this enough. Help keep each other healthy.

Vaccination. You’re social distancing, washing your hands, and wearing your mask. Vaccinations are one more critical step in providing protection against the COVID-19 virus and getting back to the people and activities we love. While vaccinations are not currently mandated by state guidelines to attend outdoor events, we strongly encourage those attendees who are eligible to be vaccinated.

If you have questions about the COVID-19 vaccines or need resources to find a vaccination location near you, please check out www.vaccinefinder.org.

Have more questions? Please email info@sjkids.org or call (502)-893-0241 for further information.