Good Neighbor Festival
GOOD NEIGHBOR FESTIVAL 2024
October 19, 2024
Fall is Near and so is “Hickory's Festival”!
It’s time for the annual Good Neighbor Festival – the community event filled with a day of family fun, fantastic food, crafters, vendors, and so much more! It all starts with our famous all you can eat pancake breakfast! And the food doesn’t stop there – lunch is hot off the grill, sweets from our homemade bake sale goodies, and cool drinks!
You can eat, drink, and be merry while you shop in one of the largest one-day community yard sales in the area. Get your Christmas shopping started early with vendors from jewelry to handbags, candles to kitchen, homemade designs by local artisans, and maybe even find something for yourself. So, join your neighbors, old and new, come for the food, and stay for the fun!! We’ll see you on October 19th.
YOUR SUPPORT SUPPORTS OTHERS!
The GOOD NEIGHBOR FESTIVAL IS MORE THAN JUST FUN! It is the mission of Hickory United Methodist Church in action – to serve our neighbors with compassion and generosity.
Everyone who supports the GNF helps provide aid and support to families in need within our community and sometimes beyond. Within the past several decades, hundreds of thousands of dollars have been raised to assist individuals and families in times of emergency or tragedy. Want to know how and why GNF began? Read the brief history below…and come out and join us for GNF 2021 and be a part of the good!
GNF – A LEGACY OF SERVICE
In 1986, a hard-working HUMC farm family found themselves in a financial situation not of their own doing: debt due to decrease in the value of local farmland and an increase in the cost of grain, fertilizer, and equipment. The tough economic circumstances grew greater as the income from crop sales became smaller. They did all that they could – sold the land and all their equipment with the goal to save their home. Yet, after all this, it was not enough and the reality of losing it all was evident. However, this was not an option to the members of Hickory United Methodist Church. One man stepped forward with the idea to organize a festival to help the family - to be "good neighbors" - and every member of the church banded together to make it happen!
The festival idea soon caught the attention of the media and in no time, The Virginian Pilot, WVEC Channel 13 News, and our local CBS affiliate were on board with stories and interviews to bring attention to the need. Contributions from all over the community began pouring into the church for the family. On the day of that very first Good Neighbor Festival, reporters and television crews were on the scene. Before the first all-you-can-eat pancake breakfast had ended, cash boxes were full and the generosity of our church family and local neighbors continued throughout the day. A need was presented, God directed, money was raised, and the family's home was saved!
And now, thanks to HUMC, our congregation of caring people, and your support, the HUMC Good Neighbor Festival is now an annual event! For as long as there are families and communities, there will be needs.
GOOD NEIGHBOR FESTIVAL ASSISTANCE
If you know of someone with HUMC or within the Hickory, Great Bridge, or Moyock communities who are currently in an emergency or facing a crisis event, please contact our GNF Assistance Coordinator, Tim Schorr at (757) 525-6134 or tim.schorr@yahoo.com. ALL NEEDS AND INFORMATION ARE KEPT CONFIDENTIAL!
If you are interested in becoming a volunteer helping with the Good Neighbor Festival, contact Clyde Harrell (757-286-6513 or ch.chassoc@gmail.com) or Don Brewer (757-642-9261 or Djbrewe@aol.com).