The members of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Penryn and St. Luke Lutheran Church in Schaefferstown are always looking for ways to connect with the wider community. This year, they're inviting everyone out for a carnival.

The carnival will be held at the Penryn church at 1258 Newport Road on Saturday, Aug. 22, from 4 to 7 p.m. It will feature food, fun and fellowship.

"We wanted to do something to give back to the community," said pastor Angie Hammer, who serves at both churches. "This is a way to thank the community for their help with various projects we do and a way to support families in our community."

For more than 100 years, the church has held a summer picnic, but this year that wasn't possible due to updates needed at the picnic grove.

So, the church members pivoted and decided to take advantage of the space behind the church, known as "The Backyard," which features a playground, plenty of room for activities and cafe string lights for ambiance.

Although the event is a carnival, there will not be any rides. Instead, the event will focus on carnival-style games, including a fishbowl game, a Ping-Pong cup game, a bean bag toss and more. A highlight of the event will be a dunk tank, where Hammer has been "voluntold" to be ready to get wet.

"We're very excited to have our pastor in the dunk tank," said Amanda Hookway, event chair. "It's going to be a lot of fun to watch."

Bingo will also be available for people of all ages to play, and prizes will be awarded for both the carnival games and bingo.

People will have the option of two types of wristbands for the event - one that includes the games and one for bingo.

JP Welliver, whom organizers describe as a "local celebrity" known for his charisma and his appearance on "Wheel of Fortune," will be the caller for bingo.

"He's very entertaining. He's a fan favorite," Hammer said. "You can come and play bingo to your heart's content. Everyone is welcome."

There will also be some games available to play for free, including oversized yard games.

"I'm envisioning the prizes for the carnival games to be sort of 'Chuck E. Cheese' style," Hookway said. "People can win tickets and then buy prizes with them at a prize table."

Bingo prizes have been donated by community and church members and will include gift cards.

Food will be available for purchase from Kurtz's Concessions, including hot dogs, cotton candy, snow cones, funnel cakes, fried Oreos and beverages. The church will provide freshly popped popcorn as well.

Proceeds from the carnival will benefit students in both the Manheim Central and Eastern Lebanon County school districts to help fund meals for students in need.

"Both churches have really great feeding ministries," Hammer said. "St. Luke's has a ministry where they offer a noontime lunch on Thursday and a Sunday evening meal, and it's all free for the community. Penryn has a community food pantry. We thought it would be nice to support a need in our community that goes along with this food ministry."

Both churches have also collected back-to-school supplies to fill backpacks, and people who come to the carnival will be able to pick up what they need while supplies last.

"If you're looking for something really fun for your family that's low-cost and offers a little bit of something for everyone, this is it," Hookway said. "It's going to be a fun way to wrap up your summer before you launch back into the school year."

St. Paul regularly hosts community events in its Backyard space, including First Friday Fire Pit gatherings, which will be held on Sept. 4 and Oct. 2 from 7 to 9 p.m. These low-key evenings are open to anyone and include casual conversations in a relaxed atmosphere.

The raindate for the Penryn carnival will be Saturday, Aug. 29. The event is pet-friendly, and people are welcome to bring their dog. Payment at the carnival will be by cash or check only. For more information, visit https://stluke-stpaul.org.