Mount Olive Area Chamber of Commerce President Julie Beck stands in the Southern Bank Parklet, where a Block Party will be held Thursday, Sept. 12, 5-8 p.m. The purpose of the event is to bring UMO students downtown to mingle with local citizens. (Kathy Grant Westbrook|mountolivetribune.com)
On Thursday, Sept. 12, from 5 to 8 p.m., the Southern Bank Parklet will be filled with food and music, during a Block Party designed to encourage more engagement between University of Mount Olive students and local citizens.
“The whole purpose is just to get our citizens and our college students together and just to have some fun,” says Julie Beck, adding, “We have no idea what kind of turnout we’ll get from the community or the college ‘cause we’ve never done it before.”
Beck, president of the Mount Olive Area Chamber of Commerce, co-chairs the newly-formed Tourism and Promotion Committee, along with Lynn Williams, and it’s this committee that is sponsoring the event, in conjunction with the Downtown Mount Olive Development Corporation and the Town of Mount Olive. (Beck and Williams are also co-chairs of the town’s uber-successful annual Pickle Festival, so event-planning is in their wheelhouse.)
According to Beck, the town used grant money to hire a consulting firm for guidance regarding how to revitalize the downtown area. One recommendation involved strengthening the bond between the university and the town, and the upcoming Block Party is the first step toward trying to achieve this.
Beck points out that many students have never been downtown, so just getting them there will be a good first step.
Throughout the evening, DJ Keith Waller will be playing music, and there will be a cornhole tournament. And, of course, the Pickle Train will be running (it wouldn’t be a Mount Olive event without the Pickle Train!).
A number of food trucks will also be on-site: Chubby’s On the Go, Skullies Street Q, Southern Ground Coffee, Pops and Pucker, Sunshine Slushies, Sisters II and Me Ice Cream, The Sweet Shack, and the food truck from Mount Olive First Presbyterian Church.
Members of the public will pay full price for their food, but UMO students will pay just $5.00 for their meal (the Tourism and Promotion Committee will pick up the difference between the $5.00 and the actual cost of their food). “We wanted to have a lower rate for our students to encourage them to come out and be a part of all this,” Beck explains.
She anticipates that this Block Party is just a first-step in incorporating UMO students into the town, stating, “We want to continue this on an annual basis, and I’m sure somewhere down the road, we’ll have additional events that will involve the college students and the community.”
