There is no tired like a post-Jamboree tired. After days of preparation, setting up tents, preparing the barbecue pit, sorting thousands of books, cleaning, arranging, and pricing countless “attic treasures,” hauling signs, tables, and chairs from the church basement, and tending to hundreds of other details, our team of volunteers was ready for the Big Day.

It didn’t rain – good!

But it was HOT.  Wow.

But nothing keeps our volunteers down. They did a fabulous job.

If you happened by at 6:00 a.m., you would have found a chatty crew talking and laughing in the church kitchen as they prepared strawberries for the mouth-watering shortcake. The volunteers from the Muddy Brook Fire Department were out back tending the barbecue fire and putting 500 chickens into grilling racks. By 8:00 a.m. volunteers were scattered across the common, setting up signs and creating displays of baked goods, snow-cones, ice cream, jewelry, and soft drinks. The hot dog and hamburger folks were preparing for a long day cooking over the hot grill.

What do people experience when they come to the Jamboree? They discover a welcome that reflects our church and our faith. “Whoever you are,” our sign reads, “and wherever you are on life’s journey – you are welcome here.” That slogan is lived out all day long during the Jamboree.

Technology (besides our sound system) really doesn’t play a part on this old-fashioned day. People are welcome to pull up a chair, sit in the shade, and enjoy the music. Some folks bring a book or knitting and settle in for the day. Some families schedule their reunion time to coincide with the chicken barbecue and the upbeat tunes provided by the East Woodstock Cornet Band. Children laugh and giggle in the bouncy house, get their faces painted, and enjoy the bean-bag toss and the giant wooden puzzle of the 50 states.

There’s music – plenty of it. The Jamboree kicks off with the National Anthem. It is almost a sacred moment when hundreds of people stop in their tracks across the common to quietly listen to our country’s song. Throughout the day local musicians share their bountiful talents.

During the heat of the day everyone is invited into our 1832 sanctuary for our “pipe organ pops” concert which shows off the extraordinary sounds that those 300 pipes can make. Then there’s the sing-along, joining our voices together to celebrate the day in the relative cool of that peaceful place.

A cake walk (kind of like musical chairs – your chance to win a delicious cake) is filled with laughter and good cheer as beautiful desserts are distributed to lucky winners.

The day ends with “God Bless America,” our prayer for our country.

There were no lessons on “Jamboree” in seminary. It was nothing I ever expected to be part of. But it is a day that reminds me why I love being a pastor. Over 100 people are needed to make this day a success and every year they come together to create a day worth remembering. They offer a welcoming, relaxed atmosphere that invites people in and encourages fellowship and fun.

So yes, we all experienced that post-Jamboree exhaustion. But you know what? Next year we will do it all again.

It’s a tradition that started in 1957 and, God willing, it will continue for decades to come.