An Invitation to St. Mary’s Ice Cream Social

Photo Courtesy of Marie Skrobola.

by Janet Shurtliff

First, we certainly can all agree that every Manchester church ice cream social is excellent! And while all share many traditional elements for food and fun, each has its own special qualities.

May we introduce to you what makes the Ice Cream Social at St. Mary Catholic Church particularly wonderful? And may we invite you to stop by on Thursday, July 24 between 5:00-8:00 pm.

Let’s begin with “tradition.” Ever since 1892, St. Mary’s has hosted an annual summer Ice Cream Social, and each year the crowd has been highly pleased! This social is held on the lawn in front of the church, the space that was once known as the Village Green, an open space where in days long past you may even have seen sheep grazing!

But on Ice Cream Social day, the lawn in front of St. Mary’s is filled with festive tents, it bustles with friendly hosts – the young and the not-so-young parishioners of St. Mary’s – who are serving up a scrumptious assortment of traditional Ice Cream Social fare. The menu this year includes: Pulled Pork, Hot Dogs & Kielbasa, Homemade Mac & Cheese, Savory Sauerkraut, Cole Slaw, German Potato Salad, Cold Potato Salad, Fresh Cut Veggies, Watermelon slices, Cakes and Pies & Ice Cream.

The food alone is enough to satisfy nearly every guest, but there is more!

Back again this year is a fun “Basket Raffle” where you may win a wonderful basket of assorted treats. There again will be the Fun Foto Booth, a chance to take some really delightful (and sometimes hilarious) pictures of yourself with buddies or family. There will be musical entertainment throughout the evening. And as always, our famous Country Store will be stocked with homemade items provided by the ladies of St. Mary: breads and pies and jams and pickles and garden produce and knitted and crocheted items. And there will be lots of games and activities for the children, so be sure to bring the whole family. Oh — and finally — there will be FREE cake and Schwan’s ice cream for all the guests of St. Mary.

So be sure to mark Thursday, July 24 on your family calendar and accept the hospitality of the Church on the Village Green in downtown Manchester, right across from the Gazebo. And enjoy a lovely summer afternoon and evening at a wonderful Manchester ice cream social.

Editors Note: Originally this article was incorrectly attributed to Marie Skrobola but was actually written by Janet Shurtliff.

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by Sara Swanson

Sara Swanson is an editor, writer and founder of the Manchester Mirror.