Our communities are bursting at the seams with exciting events, activities, and opportunities to get the party started. This can mean something different for everyone depending on your community . Is your community 55-and-older or multi-generational? Does your community have a recreation center to hold large events or are you working with only outdoor space? No matter what the case, we’ve got ways to keep your residents engaged and partying all year long!
HOLIDAY HAPPENINGS
Take a look at your calendar and see what holidays are approaching. Many times, you can plan events to coincide with these upcoming dates. Looking for inspiration? Try some of these tried-and-true events:
• Thanksgiving Potluck – Have residents sign up to bring a main dish, side, drink, or dessert. Set up tables and chairs decorated with autumnal touches and you’ve got yourself a fairly simple, low- cost event.
• Breakfast with Santa – Who doesn’t love seeing the big guy dressed in red? Cater in a breakfast from a local restaurant and hire a Santa. (Tip – you may have a resident in your community who can play the role!) Along with the breakfast you can have other child- friendly activities like cookie decorating, horse and carriage rides, or indoor crafts and games. This event works well at both 55-and- older and all-ages communities!
• Valentine’s Day – The goal here is to find an event that appeals to couples as well as those who are riding solo. A dueling piano dinner show checks all the boxes for this. When you take reservations, make sure to highlight a “captains” table for those coming without a plus one. Decorate with touches of red and gold for an elegant night out.
• St. Patrick’s Day – An often- overlooked holiday but there’s so much opportunity for fun and frolic with this one. Start by catering in corned beef and cabbage. Guinness may be optional!
Encourage green attire and take it up a notch by hiring an Irish dance troupe to perform for your homeowners. You can even hide gold coins around the event for a fun twist.
• Halloween – Trunk or Treat events are all the rage these days – mainly because all you need is a parking lot and your car. Pop your trunk and decorate to your heart’s content. The children all come to one location and go car to car trick-or-treating. Hire a food truck serving up fall fare for an extra special treat.
• 4th of July – Think patriotic! Decorate with red, white, and blue. Go full Americana with hot dogs, burgers, and potato salad. Have a watermelon eating contest – or seed spitting if you want to keep your clothes a bit cleaner. If allowed, have a parade through the community and encourage the different clubs/groups to participate. Bike decorating for the kids is always well received, especially in all-ages communities. If your budget allows pull out the real showstopper – FIREWORKS!
SEASONAL EVENTS
Use the changing seasons to your advantage. Every changing season brings an opportunity for fresh new events.
Fall • Tailgate Party – Are you ready for some football?!? You can bet your homeowners are. Host a tailgate party in a common parking lot where residents can mingle with each other while enjoying snacks, music, and yard games. Sport your favorite team’s apparel and head into your clubhouse to watch the big game.
• Oktoberfest – Take a (pretend) trip to Germany and celebrate Oktoberfest. There are so many ways to celebrate, from traditional German foods to having an Oktoberfest band perform. Let’s raise a beer stein to Oktoberfest!
Winter • Puzzle Exchange – This is another easy, low-cost option. Have your homeowners stop by on a designated day and time with a puzzle(s) that they have completed. Trade with someone else and you’ve got yourself an indoor activity to do on those gloomy winter days.
• Trivia Night – Time to put your smarts to the test! This event is best held indoors, perfect for those cold and dreary nights. Have residents form their teams, and maybe they can come up with team names for added fun. There are local companies that will come out and host the event for you, or you can come up with questions on your own. These events always create friendly competition and your homeowners will be clamoring for the bragging rights of trivia champions.
Spring • Garage Sale – Lean into that spring cleaning feeling and host a community garage sale. At the same time, why not host a paper shredding or an electronics recycling event? You can also work with a local donation center to pick up unwanted items after the sale. Getting rid of your unwanted junk has never been easier.
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