From left: Tiffany Allgeier, Grace Akers, Suzy Hillebrand, Pam Stone, and Carrie Fanelli.
Picnic 174 is coming, and in honor of its longstanding, rich history, we’re asking some of our Picnic attendees, volunteers, and sponsors to tell us about their most cherished Picnic memory. Suzy Hillebrand, Chief Advancement Officer with St Joe’s shares a few of her favorites. The St. Joe’s Picnic for the Kids is presented by Arby’s Foundation.
Since I was born, my family has had a part in the St. Joe’s Picnic. My Grandma made China dolls for the doll booth. When I was a child, Mom and Dad ran a booth where you rolled big dice down steps. When the booth officially opened, they’d kick the kids out with $20 each to go win cakes and inflatables.
Participating in the St. Joe’s Picnic has been a tradition of the Hillebrand family for 55 years. Mom and Dad ran the Cotton Candy, Popcorn, Slushie Booth and now my parents’ grandchildren run it. They’d be proud.
As part of the St. Joe’s Advancement team, I can experience Picnic in a whole new way. At midnight on the Saturday of Picnic 2022, we snapped this photo in the raffle booth. Over three days, I had 13 hours of sleep, a pure sugar diet (poor planning), and loads of water and coffee. The five of us were slap happy, exhausted, and thrilled with the outcome of Picnic #173. It summed up three days of the final nonstop action for us that is “Picnic.”
We thank our volunteers. We appreciate our donors. We could not do Picnic without our generous community. But my favorite Picnic memory in 55 years is this moment in 2022 with this team plus many more moments with St. Joe’s staff who make this event happen. Every employee helps make Picnic happen and for that I am appreciative and humbled.
We can’t wait to have our #sjfriends here on August 11 and 12 to celebrate our #sjkids and to make more memories with all of us! If you see a staff member at Picnic, give them a high five! We love that stuff!
Don’t miss this weekend of mega fun: live music, food (CHICKEN DINNER IS BACK), games, and raffles. Pre-purchase your food, beverage, activities, and wristbands. When you pre-purchase online, you can choose to have your tickets mailed to you if done before July 31.
WHEN: August 11, 5-10 p.m. and August 12, 12 p.m. – midnight
WHERE: On the St. Joe’s lawn – come ready to have a good time and support our #sjkids.
I was a St. Joes kid way back in the 80s and 90s when the likes of Dennis Davis, Mary Talberg, and Father Nebor walked the halls and administered the place. Ruth and May ran the kitchen, and also oversaw the fried chicken dinners at The SJ Picnic.
Each year us kids would be given money to play the booths and win prized. A couple of years I saw my parents volunteer and the Showdown Pocker Booth, and I also volunteeeed a couple of years. The last year I lived at St. Joseph during the picnic I got to drive the golf cart around and help collect trash from cans. It was before I was old enough to drive so that was cool.
After dark when we kids had to go inside I would look outside my bedroom window upstairs down at the fun, the crowd, and the lights. I knew even then how unique it was to have such an event just outide my window. I have rarely missed a picnic since I was ten.