Great Oak Block Party: Great Neighborhood Fun, Great Charity Event

On Saturday, Sept. 8, the neighborhood of Great Oak/Bittersweet/Harborview/Juniper/Lakeview/S. Indian Hill held its annual Block Party with about 70 neighbors in attendance.

The families dodged the tornado warnings and rain drops. Everyone had a great time socializing while the kids enjoyed face painting, a moon bounce with a slide and a special delivery of dessert from Ben & Jerry’s .

After each block party, the neighborhood makes a donation to a charity that has touched the neighborhood. This year $152 was donated to benefit the Yale Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). The money will be used to buy clothing, blankets, mobiles and other items for the premature babies and their families.

Yale’s newborn special care unit has preemie and newborn onesies and sleepers and blankets for the families to use — the staff washes them and make the cribs feel homey and the babies (when they can be dressed) look comfortable. This is particularly helpful because preemie clothes are not easy to find and the families aren’t prepared with any on hand.