About 3 months ago, seeds were sown for our company picnic. We wanted to have an outdoor event with food, fun, and festivities, plus tours of our new building for our family members. What started as a simple event then grew to include remote employees that normally aren’t part of our local gatherings.
Our planning committee searched for parks and rental areas that would be able to accommodate our needs before securing beautiful Cantigny Park in Wheaton, IL. We all wanted to be able to enjoy the time outdoors catching up with everyone, so we agreed to have the park cater our picnic with traditional tasty picnic foods like regular and veggie burgers, pulled pork, chicken nuggets, baked beans, and macaroni & cheese. Finally, we all agreed it was de rigueur for an ice cream truck to come because we all scream for ice cream.
The day of the picnic started off with self-guided building tours, during which I met Nia and her lovely family. I got to know them a little better over lunch, during which I learned that the lovely city of Cincinnati, named after the Roman citizen soldier Cincinnatus, had considered an alternative name to reflect their powerful porcine processing and packing prowess- Porkopolis! Alas, city leaders went traditional, and lost out on so many future marketable opportunities, like hosting a Porkemon GO event or a Frankenswine and Cheese Party with musical guests, The Bacon Brothers.
The weather was a little warm, so we were so thankful to have a pavilion area with lots of tables, along with lovely, chilled beverages to enjoy. After lunch, some picnickers stuck with one ice cream novelty, while others went back for… secondairy ones. 😉
There were families enjoying spirited games of bags, whiffle ball, KanJam, Spikeball and others that marveled at the many plants and birds/insects that were just outside our pavilion. Hooray for bubble wands and sidewalk chalk, which the younger ones enjoyed. It was lovely reconnecting with our faraway colleagues as well as getting to know some new hires. All in all, a simply wonderful way to spend a Saturday!