On a picturesque day overlooking the harborside, hundreds of attendees gathered at Munro Preserve for the Mattapoisett Land Trust’s and Mattapoisett Museum’s Great Community Picnic on August 1.
The event, a collaboration between the two parties, offered guests to sit at a table for the purchase of a ticket and a “free reign” to bring food, wine and a centerpiece of their choice to the event. Guests enjoyed music from Seth Asser and Gary Brown and circulated among one another.
“The important thing is to provide a pleasant venue for people to come together, enjoy each other’s company and some great music, all while supporting two community-focused, nonprofit organizations (Mattapoisett Land Trust and Mattapoisett Museum),” Mattapoisett Museum Curator Connor Gaudet explained in an email. “And while we do provide people with the opportunity to purchase beverages and oysters, all attendees know that members of each group or table must, in true picnic fashion, provide the bulk of their own food.”
The guests decorated tables with themes like the Kentucky Derby, western theme or the 2024 Olympics, sporting Kentucky gowns or cowboy hats that go along with their theme.
According to Gaudet, guests take part in a contest for the most creative centerpiece.
“The idea caught on right from the beginning. Several tables each year really love running with a theme,” said Mattapoisett Land Trust Secretary Jennifer McIntire.
McIntire explained the importance of three local oyster men, Bob Field, Dale Leavitt and Mike Ward, in their work donating and shucking oysters for the event.
“They are incredibly generous with their product and their time,” she said.
The Mattapoisett Land Trust announced the table winners. Taking first place was Table 6 with its Derby theme. The runner-up was Table 9 with an Olympic theme, and third place went to Table 1 with its Western theme.
The MLT and Mattapoisett Museum are already in the works on next year’s Great Picnic.
By Jared Melanson