Reno and Craley children at St. Luke picnic, c.1920.
When I was a child, just about every country church had a picnic grove in which they held the annual Sunday School Picnic. Many churches carry on the tradition. In fact, the church picnic often provides needed funds to help keep many small congregations solvent.
Every first Thursday in August, my church, St. Luke Lutheran Church at New Bridgeville (Chanceford Township), still dishes chicken-corn and ham-bean soups out of the big kettles to accompany various hot sandwiches and home-baked pies and cakes. Besides feeding hundreds of people in the air-conditioned social hall, we do a very brisk business in soup carry-out, selling soup by the quart. (That's usually my job.)
After they eat, people can pull their lawn chairs out of their cars, sit down and listen to live music. Community bands still provide the tunes at some picnics, but St. Luke has lately opted for smaller bands. This year Just Plain Country will be followed by the Harold Tipton Band. Ice cream, soda, and sandwiches are sold at outdoor stands in case hunger strikes again. Many attendees, who come from all over the county, stroll around the well-kept cemetery. Since St. Luke was organized in 1772, there is a good chance that they can find some relatives there.
