The Great Pinchem Picnic scheduled to reinvigorate community spirit

Published 10:30 am Friday, July 11, 2025

Whether in the heart of the city or the outskirts of the county, churches and other organizations are looking for ways to gather the community. 

Allansville Baptist Church, located at 1270 Red River Road, is taking a positive step in such a direction. 

On Saturday, July 19, they’ll host The Great Pinchem Picnic from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. with the goal in mind to gather and welcome others in a free and fun community event. 

“This event is an opportunity to reach out to help build community,” said Allansville Baptist Church Pastor Paul Jorgensen. “One of those three things we do at church is encourage each other, and part of that is community building.” 

The event will feature free food – with Burley’s BBQ catering, cotton candy, and more. 

In addition, attendees can expect to find inflatables, games, music, and other excitable options.

When coming up with the present idea, Jorgensen and staff reflected on the past. 

“Not long ago, we had a strong sense of community, especially [in] Kentucky,” he said. “Historically, church has been a place where this happened.”

However, while people are more online today than ever before, Jorgensen fears that such connectivity has taken away from face-to-face interaction, leading to feelings of isolation. 

Thus, he and staff seek to reinvigorate community fellowship. 

“There’s been a significant shift in societal norms over the past…15 [to] 20 years,” he said, stating that research has qualified such beliefs. “People were created for community. Church is a place for community where people are loved and people are helped and encouraged.” Before long, Jorgensen and staff began asking questions. 

“How can we help build a place of belonging? How can we help people to have a place of purpose, and to discover [a] relationship that is deep and meaningful and abiding?’” they wondered. “We said, ‘well, how about a picnic?” 

Thus, the creation of The Great Pinchem Picnic came to be.

Beneficially, Jorgensen promoted that all were welcome. 

“We have different ideas. We’re from different walks of life. We may operate in different social stratospheres, but we’re still part of a community,” he said. “We just want to be able to provide a place…to be able to come together.” 

Jorgensen hopes that people throughout Clark County will enjoy themselves. 

“The church is here for you. The church is here for the community,” he added. “We want folks to just come out, have a free lunch [with] us, have some fun, bring the kids, we’ll play some music, and we’ll have a good time together just [getting] to know each other again.”