It was full, it was great! People of all generations celebrated summer, sun and neighborhood at the first participatory summer festival of the Herringhausen church community. 77 “wish lists” were filled out during the festival, with great ideas for the future of the neighborhood. We are pleased to to support this innovation project of the Herford church district! A big thank you goes to the more than 50 active people and the musical band Krawallo.
Church as social space
Creating positive opportunities for encounters in the city neighborhood: the central goal of the Neighborhood Festival was achieved with a variety of offers as well as the large number of visitors. Neighborhood chat on colorful picnic blankets, cake buffet with recipe exchange, live music by the band Krawallo, design of a joint neighborhood painting, giant twister, Viking chess, tug-of-war, seed and herb exchange, suggestions for nature-oriented garden design, wood workshop, board games and a relaxation zone show the range of activities of the Neighborhood Festival.
Build your district of the future!
Visitors could also literally build visions for the neighborhood: How do we want to live in the surrounding districts? How can we strengthen our neighborhood(s) and meet more often? What do we want to share with each other? Our favorite recipes? Our time? Our hobbies?
Churches as “third places”
Not only due to their often central location churches are “third places”. The term “third place”, shaped by sociologist Ray Oldenburg, describes places of community besides home or the workplace. Churches and community centers offer numerous possibilities to use already existing offers or to play with the available space in a new way.
