Here are several emails which have circulated concerning the future of the Potluck in the Park. If anyone quoted here prefers to remain anonymous or not have your comments included, email Edward Reid (see bottom of page). I've omitted email addresses to foil spambot harvesters. To join the discussion, write Edward Reid or anyone else involved in the IHLNA.

From Edward Reid

At the neighborhood potluck this past Sunday, all attending had a wide-ranging round-table discussion about the direction of the potluck, and we both agreed that some sort of reorientation is needed. OK, so by the end, 7 or 8 adults had shown up, but until almost 6:00 it was me and Rhonda and Claudia, and Claudia was at the park for a birthday party.

Attendance has been way down this year. No one has kept records, but I don't think there's been a single potluck with more than a dozen adults. There was one, earlier in the year, where I was the only one there. Once it was only me and Rhonda, though admittedly rain could have hurt that one. Several have had around half a dozen adult attendees. There hasn't been a single one with 20 or more adults. This is way down from what we all remember from previous years, and especially compared with five or more years ago.

And we don't have any good idea why. Perhaps some years are like that. Perhaps some regulars from a few years ago organized their attendance around their children, who are older now. Perhaps scheduling it every month has resulted in burnout. Perhaps ... well, one problem is that it's hard to ask people who aren't there why they aren't. The one obvious major factor, weather, doesn't seem to correlate -- last Sunday was great weather, dry, moderate temperature, yet we still didn't have the attendance. And while we can always blame the weather, overall this year just hasn't been much worse than past years, if any.

I've heard a variety of people express the belief that it continues to be a good idea. I hear that realtors mention it in describing the neighborhood. And despite the small attendance last Sunday, one couple was new to the neighborhood (they've bought one of the new houses on Ostin Nene). So it seems there is considerable support for invigorating, rather than abandoning, the potluck.

Here are some of the ideas we tossed around. I have probably forgotten some.

-- Have a focus for each potluck. The pony rides have always drawn a good crowd. What else could we do (without breaking the budget)? The focus might not need to be as profound as even pony rides: something as silly as "wear purple" might be enough.

-- Skip some months. Cold months? Hot months? Months where it's sensed as too close to the Nenefest or Halloween party? Months when no one comes up with a focus? Every other month? What's left if we skip too many?

-- Ask each regular to remind a few friends.

-- Announce it by email as well as by signs and newsletter.

Well ... for as long as we talked, we must have had some other ideas ... right? I'm blanking now, but I think I'll go ahead and send this to try to get some discussion going.

From Daphne Holden

thanks so much for taking the initiative to bring this up for discussion. Your email was very thought provoking.  My first reaction was oh no!  let's not loose our potluck!  When we first moved to the neighborhood we really loved that we had a chance to meet new people and eat together informally. We used to go almost every month.

Now, we sometimes go to the potluck (except for summer ones, which we almost never attend).  When we don't go, usually it's laziness, and sometimes it's because we've been in the park for hours already that day and I've already had a chance to connect with a lot of neighbors.  I think there's also a self fulfilling prophecy that I don't go because I don't expect many people will be there.

I think you're right that many people--including me--love the idea of them, but then don't go.  I'd love to think of ways to revive it.

I don't think we should take some months off, because people will get confused about whether it's an on or off month. Rather, I think we should try to increase attendence.  I'd say, yes, let's send out an email reminder.  What about putting your email out to the neighborhood list for a discussion?  Maybe some of those people who like the idea of it will (like me) be jolted into realizing that the idea is empty if no one actually shows up.

From Sandy Neidert

I also like the idea of an email reminder sent out a few days before the potluck. Grant, could you do that? I could send you a reminder-for-the-reminder if that would help. Because the ponies usually draw a crowd in November, maybe Daphne, Edward, and I could make an effort to talk to the neighbors who come that day and ask for their ideas too.

From Marie-Claire Leman

Your very thoughtful email about the Potlucks was forwarded to me and I wanted to share my initial thoughts with you.

We attended a few of the Potlucks the first year we were here, and then fewer last year mostly due to our newborn child. This year though that reason really doesn't stand any longer. Your email really made me think about why it is that we don't automatically want to attend them. Like many, we like the idea that our neighborhood is the kind of neighborhood that gets together for a potluck in the park once a month.

I think that one difficulty with attending the potlucks is getting the timing right. 4:30 to 7:30 might be too long a window to maximize intersecting with neighbors (and sharing food). It has happened for instance that we show up on the early side and share a few dishes with the few that are also in attendance and then others show up later with their few things to share after some have already eaten. There is something very relaxed and free-flowing about this, but some structure might be beneficial. We could for instance shorten the window to 5:00 to 7:00 or 5:30 to 7:30 with the explicit understanding that the first half hour is for arrival of neighbors and set up of food on tables and that the sharing begins at 5:30 (or 6:00 as the case may be). We would all have a better sense of how many are there to eat on a given night, so there would be enough for everyone and everyone could have a bit of everything.

Personally, I think that attendance is a bit of a vicious circle or self-fulfilling prophecy in that I have the impression that they are not well attended so I don't attend them. It was in examining why I find it difficult to attend them that I thought of the question of timing. Certainly the main purpose is to see each other and meet new neighbors etc. But if we want them to be Potlucks, I think that it is also important to make sure that it works as the meal it is suppose to be. We will all have put in some time in preparing something and my laziness will prevail and keep me from regularly attending if after returning from a Potluck I have to get back in the kitchen to make another meal for my family.

I guess another idea around this might be to have two concentrated eating/serving times - say the Potluck would run from 5:00 to 7:00 with 'eating times' at 5:30 and 6:30? This would provide more flexibility but might also seem more structured than is necessary...

Anyway, this is just one thought to add to the brainstorming of ideas of how to improve the format in a way that might suit more people and encourage them to attend more regularly.

Perhaps we could bill the next Potluck as a meeting to discuss the future of Potlucks in Indianhead - those who care will feel an incentive to attend :)

From Lia Chasar

Hi Edward (and all) - Our family stops going when it gets really hot in the summer because its so uncomfortable, and of course once out of the habit it is sometimes quite difficult for us to get started again.  Seems like we just need a jump-start and then we're good for another season.  Neneland needs more community activity not less, so it would be wonderful if we could all work together to get it really going again.

I agree with Daphne that it would probably be best to keep a regular schedule. 

Could be something as simple as the email reminders Sandy mentioned.   Might be nice to have other special things now and then such as easy water play options (eg, sprinklers) for the hot summer evenings, use of the clubhouse on really hot or on rainy afternoons, easy low-impact but interactive activities for folks and their friends and families (sidewalk art, kickball, softball, soccer, encouraging musicians to bring their instruments for an informal jam session). 

Patty sends an email out for Final Fridays and it seems to work well for them. 

Thanks Edward for shaking us up and getting the discussion started!

From Grant Gelhardt

I would be willing to send out an email before the pot luck - if someone reminds me - which Sunday is the second Sunday