We forgot about block parties. Let's bring back the magic...
- Vanessa Elias
- Feb 5
- 2 min read
Dear Friends,
One of my absolute favorite, beautiful things is watching adults' eyes light up after I've told them about the mission of Block Party USA.
Joyful memories are suddenly unlocked, their eyes sparkle, their faces soften, and with a big smile, they begin to tell me about the block parties of their childhood. It's powerful.
Just last week, I watched it again as a man in his late 50s, I’ll call him Dan, who couldn’t wait to share about his childhood block parties growing up in Philadelphia. Dan enthusiastically motioned with his hands of how trash cans were pulled into the street to block the traffic, told me about the food, music, playing stickball, and how everyone on the street knew each other, knew him, and he knew them. Dan’s excitement about bringing this forgotten tradition back to America was palpable and inspiring.
We forgot about block parties.
We started to think our neighbors don’t want to meet us.
Or we created unsustainable block parties that got too elaborate to organize.
We felt pressure to make it “bigger and better.”
The truth is most of your neighbors really want to know each other. We crave the connection, but don’t know where to start.
Bigger is not better.
No roads need to be closed.
It doesn’t need decorations, themes, or months of planning.
A block party is a micro-local gathering of the people who live closest to you, in your building, on your street, or in your cluster of homes.
It’s simply 20–30 neighboring residences coming together out the front door, in a driveway, on a lawn, in a lobby, a common area, or right in the road.
Small. Local. Connected.
That’s the magic.
If you’re curious about hosting a micro-local gathering (or just want to hear what others are doing), I’d love for you to join February’s Block Party USA Office Hours:
Wednesday, February 11th from 12pm–12:30pm ET
Wednesday, February 25th from 3pm–3:30pm ET
Meeting ID: 820 0975 1912
Come learn, ask questions, or simply listen in. Whether you’re thinking about hosting something this winter, planning ahead for spring, or just curious about what’s possible this is for you!
I invite you to sign up here, but you are also welcome to just show up!!
