RHYTHMS | PRAYER, PRACTICE, PLACE
Vol 3. Issue 16
Friends,
The end of summer holds wonderful opportunities to regather and reconnect from gatherings with neighbors on your street to statewide celebrations.
This issue focuses on ways we come together. There is a Prayer for Celebration, the Practice of Block Parties, and the Colorado State Fair as a sacred Place. May you find the end of summer an invitation to community celebration.
All blessings.
Jared Mackey
PRAYER | CELEBRATION
By Nathan Hoag
Beyond the shame and pain for the world,
In You there is hope and joy.
We celebrate today the many gifts You have given to us:
Our life, Your breath, the hope of the world.
We celebrate all You have done today
And hold on to hope for all You will do tomorrow.
Though our vision clouds and the future is unsure,
In You there is hope and joy.
We celebrate the peace that passes understanding:
Shalom, harmony, and the tables that bring us together.
We celebrate all You have done today
And hold on to hope for all You will do tomorrow.
Despite our bygone shortcomings and failures,
In You there is comfort and rest.
We celebrate the sabbath rhythm and jubilee freedom:
A fresh start, new life, connection and reconciliation among neighbors.
We celebrate all You have done today
And hold on to hope for all You will do tomorrow.
In the midst of the gravity of systemic and specific sin,
May we experience the levity of your grace.
For our neighbors and neighborhoods, we raise a prayer and toast:
Bless them, keep them, and grant them peace.
We celebrate all You have done today
And hold on to hope for all You will do tomorrow.
Amen.
Nathan Hoag is the Parish Pastor for Sacred Grace Englewood. He and his family are deeply committed to both preservation and progress in Englewood through schools, businesses, neighbors, and government.
PRACTICE | BLOCK PARTY
By Jared Mackey
“We make the city better one block at a time, and it starts on your own street.”
Practice
Create a team. Find three households to share the work of organizing and hosting.
Go door-to-door. Gather signatures for permits and give a printed invitation with the date and time.
Get permits. Apply for the permit from the city to close the street. It’s worth the work.
Make a plan. Organize the music, games, tables, seating, food, and shade.
Make it memorable. The Flower Street block party ends with a glow stick parade.
The Kallander family attended their first Flower Street block party before they closed on the sale of their home in the Lakewood neighborhood. That first block party began to build a foundation of community and connection with their neighbors. The next summer, the neighbors who had lived on the block since 1956, passed the baton to Karin Kallander and two other families to organize the party. For the last 16 years, at the end of every August, there is a beautiful block party on Flower Street.
A block party is a unique neighborhood event. It’s a moment where the street is closed and front yards, driveways, and sidewalks merge into a shared, communal space. It reshapes the physical space between homes, and in doing so, reshapes how we see the people and place around us.
The ingredients for a good block party aren’t complicated. The recipe is surprisingly straightforward: "Music, food, games, a closed street...and shade." Melissa Reed shared. She hosted a block party on her street in Virginia Village for 4 years. A block party requires intentionality and invitation.
Block parties need multiple people to become a reality, the work of organizing a block party needs to be shared. "There has to be more than one family," Karin advised. "You need at least three families on board to do the work, or you will burn out.” The collaborative approach not only lightens the load, but it creates the sense of community a block party aims to build. Melissa said encouragingly, “Create the space. Once you’ve done that, the party takes care of itself.”
The first step in securing a city permit to close the street is gathering signatures. The necessary work of getting signatures for the permit serves a hidden purpose. As Melissa Reed discovered, "Walking door to door on your block to get signatures is in itself a good activity because I got to meet every neighbor." When she experienced initial rejection to participation, she learned perseverance pays off. Neighbors who initially declined later became regular participants.
The outcomes of a block party are far more than an individual event. Karin reflected, "It's the intangibles of everybody coming together. It is a way of knowing people and knowing people's needs." The connections that begin at the block party transform into practical care throughout the year. Perhaps the most powerful outcome is the deep love for the neighbors and neighborhood. "Nobody wants to leave Flower Street," Karin shares. "We considered moving to a new house for 5 years, but we can't move because it’s not easy to find neighbors like this!"
Helping host a block party is a practice that requires collaborative effort. The reward is an opportunity to watch a street become a beloved community.
Thank you to Karin Kallander and Melissa Reed for their conversations and contributions to this article.
PLACE | STATE FAIR
By Katie Lukashow
The Colorado State Fair has been a place where agriculture, community, and celebration converge since 1872. It began as a gathering of farmers bringing their best crops, swapping tips for difficult Colorado soil, sharing the latest seed innovations, and competing for bragging rights. Pueblo’s fair wasn’t just a momentary reprieve; it was a lifeline. A place where scattered communities came together to learn, connect, and thrive. Over 150 years later, that spirit of community celebration endures.
Pueblo’s first horse show in 1869 drew more than 2,000 people, laying the foundation for what would become a cornerstone of Colorado culture. By 1872, the Southern Colorado Agricultural and Industrial Society formally organized the fair. They did so without state funding and little outside support, but with a fierce belief in the power of gathering.
The fairgrounds moved before settling in 1900 on land accessible by rail. By then, Pueblo had grown from a military outpost into a hub of agriculture and steel. A place where people brought cantaloupes and cattle, iron and ingenuity. Each chapter of the fair’s history reflects the resilience of Coloradans. Through seasons of growth, hardship, and war, the fair always returned.
Today, at the Colorado State Fair, you’ll see children learning to milk dairy cows while grandparents reminisce about their first rodeo. Historical buildings, more than a century old, stand beside modern carnival rides and corn dog stands. The state fair is proudly quirky—pig races for Oreos, high dives, and deep-fried candy bars. But beneath the spectacle is a commitment to connection—to food, to land, and to one another.
Ask someone in Pueblo what the state fair means, and they’ll give you a memory. A parade. A handshake. A chili-smothered cheeseburger. They'll tell you how it connects urban and rural communities in Colorado, how it bridges generations and preserves traditions.
The state fair remains one of the few places where recent transplants and long-time Coloradans meet with open hands. Linger in the livestock barns or pause by the quilting demonstrations, and you'll likely meet someone whose family has worked this land for generations. You might hear how Pueblo’s famous green chiles became a point of pride or meet the girl who raised the Grand Champion steer and sold it for a college scholarship. A 4-H kid who learned to program a robot. A Fiesta Day queen inspiring the next generation of Latinas toward leadership.
When the gates open in Pueblo, step through them not just for the funnel cake or fireworks, but for a connection to land, neighbor, and legacy. The Colorado State Fair is a sacred place.
“Harvesting joy since 1872.”
Colorado State Fair is held the 11 days before Labor Day.
The 2025 fair is Friday, August 22 thru Monday, September 1.
More rhythms to root your faith in place.
Sacred Place provides a beautiful bi-weekly publication to share the rhythms of a Prayer, Practice, and Place as simple ways to help cultivate love for our neighbors and neighborhoods.
