Creating Community and Planning Events

Creating community is the strategic practice of bringing people together with a common goal, mission, and/or purpose in an effort to create something impactful and long-lasting. Whether you are coming together virtually, in-person, or in a hybrid fashion - the ways in which you come together and the activities you do are important parts of your groups longevity.

Here you will find our guide to planning events and activities that are sure to help you create community!

Planning the Event

8-6 Weeks Prior to Event (Larger Events)

  1. Reach out to those you want to collaborate with
  2. Choose a tentative event date and time
  3. Choose your venue (virtual, in person, or both - need a zoom link? We can provide you with one!)

4-2 weeks prior to Event (Medium to Small Events)

  1. Confirm with w/those who you are hosting with to schedule a logistics meeting (time to start drafting your day of agenda!)
  2. Create promotion materials, save the dates, and/or meeting reminders 
  3. Post/Submit event for promotion across all your social media (it doesn’t hurt to reach out to community members to ask them to promote as well)

Week of Event

  1. Ensure that your equipment is sufficient to support your event (i.e. internet speed, mics, speakers, whatever you may need).
  2. Have an agenda prepared the week before and tasks delegated, remind everyone of their tasks 2 days before the event and let Grapevine know about any polls, breakout sessions, and any relevant details about the event 
  3. Day of the event, do a quick run through and get ready for a successful event!

Suggested Community Building Activites:

Volunteer work in your community - contact a local school or shelter and offer to prepare backpacks, meals, or hygiene kits. This is the perfect opportunity for you and your group members to bond, listen to music, create new memories, and to give back to your local community.

Host a retreat - pick a weekend and plan out a retreat for you and your group that includes some form of self-care, exchange of ideas, and a charitable act (consider something like a benefit auction).

Icebreaker - at your next meeting ask your members to do an icebreaker, ask questions that will reveal something new that you don’t know about each other! (I.e. where was the first place you ever vacationed, where was your first job, if you could pick any skill what would you like to excel at?)

Tip: How ever you choose to create community be sure to take pictures and document your experience, this is great not only for future reference but also to share across your social media and promote your group.