Kelly Frazier (third from left), says she is excited about supporting an event that has been a part of her family tradition.
Picnic 174 is coming, and in honor of its longstanding, rich history, we’re asking some of our most loyal Picnic attendees to tell us about their most cherished Picnic memory. Kelly R. Frazier of Caldwell Tanks shares a few of her favorites.
Kelly shares a childhood photo of herself on the wagon she rode at Picnic.
Best Picnic moments: I can remember being little and my dad pulling me in a wagon through the Picnic. I’d be loaded down with stuffed animals, cotton candy, and everyone’s prizes that they were winning that night! I remember how exciting the twinkling lights were. We would run into so many friends smiling, laughing! It was always a magical night.
My family has been attending the Picnic since I can remember. It’s been a family tradition to save our change all year to spend at the Picnic. My grandparents would save their change all year too and it was always so exciting as a kid to sit down and count/roll all the change! My sister’s best friend lived on Birchwood so we’ve always had a parking space. We would all pile in the car together and come to the Picnic to play games, have dinner, and meet up with lots of our family and friends. For several years, my dad volunteered to count the change after the Picnic with some of our other church members.
The first time I volunteered at the Picnic was in 2022, and I was nervous to miss out on being on the other side of the booth. Watching others’ faces light up when they’d win was just as exciting as winning myself! Our group had a great time celebrating with all the winners, laughing together, and making new friends for a night with everyone that came to our booth.
Kelly (third from left) and the Caldwell Tanks team of volunteers.
Biggest takeaway: Working with St. Joe’s was such a joy because we learned so much! We are starting a public foundation as of July 1, 2023, and I feel very inspired to host fundraising events after working on an event that was so organized on such a large scale. We were very intimidated when we signed up to volunteer and we had so many questions before the first meeting. After receiving our packet of information and listening to everyone speak at the first meeting, we felt very confident that we understood exactly what we needed to do and everything fell together flawlessly. All of our questions were answered before we even asked. We greatly appreciate how much thought, time, and hard work goes into such a large event and it’s no wonder it’s so successful.
Now Kelly and the Caldwell Tanks team volunteer at Picnic and support the #sjkids.
What her team gained: Everyone who volunteered last year has asked about coming back. Not many of my teammates knew very much about St. Joe’s at the time but were excited to learn more. I feel like my teammates were blown away to see what an integral part St. Joe’s is in the community and they felt like they had been missing out on a local treasure. We are grateful to have had the opportunity to interact with our community and St. Joe’s. We have wonderful memories of laughing, celebrating, making connections, and hard work.
Don’t miss this weekend of mega fun: live music, food (CHICKEN DINNER IS BACK), games, and raffles.
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.
Thanks to the Arby’s Foundation for being the presenting sponsor for Picnic 174!
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