Holiday Bash and More
To many native cultures of our continent, the Roundhouse was the symbol of community, serving as a gathering place for social and ceremonial events. On Dec. 12, the Truckee Roundhouse Community Makerspace will take on a similar role as it hosts its annual Holiday Block Party alongside the Sierra Community House and Tahoe Food Hub.
The free, family-friendly event will be put on from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. by the three standout entities that make up Nonprofit Row and share the roof at 12116 Chandelle Way near the airport. Centered around the holiday makers market (creatives galore, gifts galore), the party will also feature live music and food trucks, folks dressed in festive costumes, freshly farmed food, an appearance by Santa, beer and libations, super good hot cocoa, smiles, hugs, warmth, and a partridge in a pear tree.
The Holiday Block Party is an evening to get off the couch, to be out among the people, and to absorb some seasonal spirit.
“It’s just a great time to connect with each other,” said Alissa Aiton, community manager of the Truckee Roundhouse. “To spend the holiday with the community, supporting our makers, our farmers, and our community-support efforts. Not only can you shop locally and support our local economy, but you can try something new, try out a making activity … maybe make an ornament on the laser.”
Connection. Community. Lasers. Yeah, at the makerspace you can design something digitally and cut or
engrave it via (insert Dr. Evil air quotes here) a laser. 3D printers and other gizmos too. And the awesome, old-school opportunities of woodworking, metal working, ceramics, textiles, and generally using one’s hands to make something cool are widely available and celebrated as well.
But the Holiday Block Party is a fully ripe event that encompasses all of Nonprofit Row.
Over at the Sierra Community House, indulge in hot cocoa and see if you made Santa’s naughty or nice list (that’s where the big guy in the red suite will be), while also learning of all the local good the organization does on multiple humanistic fronts. Like some supergroup rock band of altruism and good deeds, back in 2019 four area stalwarts — Tahoe SAFE Alliance, Family Resource Center of Truckee, North Tahoe Family Resource Center, and Project MANA — combined forces to become Sierra Community House. The group combats domestic violence, hunger, offers legal assistance and family support, and engages community across a range of other superpower initiatives.
At Tahoe Food Hub, meander through the nosh-rich space and get to know your local farmers as they vend what they’ve grown. Learn how best to infuse your diet with fresh, local, delicious, and regeneratively grown food that originates within a close radius of the basin.
“It’s a community-centric event,” said Maddie Rohner, general manager of the Tahoe Food Hub. “There’s lots of opportunities for family participation and to purchase directly from our farmers. It’s a great experience.”
The food hub’s block party experience will feature everything from satsuma mandarins to olive oils, farmed flowers to value-added products such as jams and honeys. Fresh evergreen holiday wreaths and wellness products like teas, tinctures, and candles can also be found, along with heaps more.
Two bars will be serving up the social lubrication, local band Nate & His Roommates will be unleashing their rhythmic inspiration, and Mountain Lotus’ Provisions and Mogrog Rotisserie food trucks will be cooking up their culinary satiation.
All vendor sales are retained by the artists and farmers, and proceeds from the party go right back into the nonprofits themselves. It’s events like these that keep everyone’s needle moving, that allow the individuals and the organizations to keep providing their benefits to our community.
With help from previous block parties and fundraising efforts, the Makerspace, celebrating its tenth anniversary, is in the midst of an expansion that will allow it to provide more classes and school programs, and to welcome more members.
“All our classes have wait lists now,” Aiton explained. “We’ve had a lot of demand and are excited to fulfill that for the community.”
And who knows to what heights a successful block party will allow all of Nonprofit Row to soar.
Santana Row in San Jose is known as the Rodeo Drive of Silicon Valley, Savil Row in London is where The Beatles gave their final, rooftop performance, and Murders’ Row was the nickname of the imposing batting lineup of the 1927 New York Yankees. Yeah, well, Truckee has its own all-time row, too. The Tahoe Food Hub, the Sierra Community House, and the Roundhouse Makers Space of Nonprofit Row add to our community in countless ways. The Holiday Block Party is one of them.
I went to the party last year and was floored by how many smiling people were there. I saw friends I hadn’t seen in far too long. I met people it’d taken me far too long to meet. I ate good food and found a couple cool Christmas presents. I learned a lot and lived a great evening.
Maybe this year I’ll see what I can do with a “laser.” And maybe I’ll see you out there too.
