JAMESTOWN – More than 150 businesses and organizations are expected to welcome new University of Jamestown students to the community on Wednesday, Aug. 28 in downtown Jamestown.
The Community Block Party will take place on Wednesday, August 28th from 5pm to 8pm.
“It’s grown into something we never imagined,” said Dustin Jensen, vice president of student affairs at UJ. “It’s just a great community event.”
He said the block party was originally intended to welcome UJ’s first-year students to Jamestown.
“Now it’s over 4,000 people from the community throwing a huge party for three hours with music, food and fun,” he said. “With that comes the chance for about 350 new students to experience Jamestown at its best.”
John M. Steiner / The Jamestown Sun archive photo
Jensen said that typically about 115 to 120 businesses and organizations participate in the Community Block Party with booths. This year, more than 150 businesses and organizations will line the streets in downtown Jamestown.
“We’re just going to take 1st Street and go as far as we can on both sides because there’s really no other place we can go and have a party,” Jensen said.
Stalls will also be set up in the first two blocks south of the train tracks on 1st Avenue.
The Community Block Party is an opportunity for businesses and organizations to show what they have to offer to new UJ students and the community, said Emily Bivens, executive director of the Jamestown Area Chamber of Commerce. She said there may be some Jamestown residents who were unaware of the existence of a particular business or organization.
“I love it because Jamestown shows off and shows all the great things we have in town,” she said.
John M. Steiner / The Jamestown Sun archive photo
Bivens said businesses and organisations recognise the value of attending the event to welcome new UJ students.
“All of our businesses and organizations and our community know that the university is a very important part of our community,” she said. “If we can get students to understand how great Jamestown is and hopefully they can finish their studies here and then think about joining our workforce here locally, that’s the ultimate goal. If they feel like Jamestown is a great community and a great place to live, then maybe they’ll be more inclined to stay.”
UJ President Polly Peterson said freshmen students choose the Block Party as one of the top two events of the year
“They just don’t expect it. It’s not something every college does,” she said. “The idea of coming down the hill and seeing the whole town there to greet them is really reassuring that they made the right choice.”
The new students will arrive in downtown Jamestown between 5:15 and 5:30 p.m. wearing orange t-shirts. Students will gather on Allen Field and hear a brief message from Peterson before the “sea of orange” leads them to 1st Avenue.
John M. Steiner / The Jamestown Sun archive photo
She said her message to students will include being grateful for a community that supports her. She said many people in the community provide scholarships for UJ students.
“In a small community like this, we need each other and care about each other,” she said. “There will be times when the community needs our students to volunteer and help with a project in one form or another. This is an opportunity for them to really show gratitude for what the community does for them and also get to know each other.”
Jensen said the university’s mission is to help students connect with different people in the community. He said it’s important for students to be connected to the community.
“This is the perfect way to do that,” he said. “You can learn about Safe Shelter, you can learn about churches, you can learn about jobs, you can learn about medical assistance, all the way to grocery stores. It gives our students, and it’s not just our freshmen that come there, but it gives them 100 to 150 of our top companies in town that want to partner with the students.”
Drift Prairie Brewing Co. is excited to have a booth at the Block Party, co-owner Nick Bruns said in an email.
“Our goal has always been to build community,” he said. “… At the Street Festival, our goal is to create a positive experience and engagement for the new students coming to town and for the community as a whole.”
Bruns said Drift Prairie’s participation in the block party fits with his mission.
“We want to be a fixture in Jamestown and a company that promotes growth and a connected community,” he said.
Masaki Ova joined The Jamestown Sun as a reporter in August 2021. He grew up on a farm near Pingree, ND. He studied communications at the University of Jamestown, ND
