The 11th annual, free Village of Oak Creek Community BBQ returns on Saturday, Sept. 13 from noon to 4 p.m. at the Village of Oakcreek Association Park located at 690 Bell Rock Blvd.
“What began over a decade ago as a small gathering has grown into a cornerstone celebration of the Village’s spirit and togetherness,” a press release reads. “This free, family-friendly event brings neighbors and friends together to enjoy delicious BBQ — chicken, pork and beef — from Clark’s, live music, fun activities for kids and of course, ice cream — all in a relaxed, welcoming outdoor setting.”
Typically about 250 people have been coming out in recent years for this barbecue put on by event organizers Andrew Bailor, Damian Bruno, Danielle Giann and Omar Kenney.
“It typically was done in May [but] this year we are doing September for various reasons, whether other busy-ness and for people’s schedules in the area. In September, people [are] kind of coming back into town for school,” Bruno said. “We’re getting a pretty healthy response with word of mouth and also on our Facebook event. There are no other major changes this year.”
Organizers will be serving up 500 hot dogs along with 90 pounds of barbecue along with coleslaw, chips and watermelon.
“We keep going through more food,” Giann said.
“Back when we held this event for the first time when we had our son, there weren’t many things in the [VOC] for kids to do,” she said. “We were already hosting a lot of barbecues, so Damien suggested, ‘why not make it bigger and better?’”
While the picnic remains primarily youth focused, it has been trending a bit older in recent years since adding live music.
Music has “brought more of the adult community out than in the past, and we might see that trending in that direction,” Bruno said. “Part of that, of course, is that all of us organizers, our kids are in high school now … We’re still, predominantly youth-orientated, but trending to more of what the community is.”
Several members of local reggae group Local Honey will be providing the musical entertainment for the duration of the picnic — with free facepainting, bounce house, an 18-foot dry slide and other activities for the youth.
While everything from the activities to the food is free, a few local groups will have booths set up such as the Pickle Ball Club and the Rotary Club of Sedona Village.
It is recommended attendees bring blankets, chairs and sunscreen. Guests should also bring water bottles, as refillable stations will be available on-site. The barbecue, Giann said, emphasizes a low- environmental impact approach, using compostable silverware and minimizing single-use plastics such as disposable water bottles.
While there’s no signups to volunteer to help put the event on, “If somebody wanted to show up at 11 o’clock to help move some boxes, set up tables I guess we’re not going to say no,” Giann said.
“People should come out because it should be a beautiful day, this is something that people look forward to [and] it’s just a nice way to bring people together,” Giann said.
“Come see your neighbors, friends, family and strangers … it’s just a community event,” Bruno said. “It’s a great way
