This year’s Mid-Autumn Festival is being held at Pleasant Vineyard and Winery in Columbia, TN. Both the location and nature of this event are unique for GNCA, so please be sure to read the “Planning Ahead” section below to ensure a wonderful experience for you and your family.

ADMISSION AND REGISTRATION

This event is open to all! Some of you have noted that the online registration form, which we had asked you to fill out in a previous email, is now closed. This form was primarily intended to give us an idea of how much food and drink to prepare ahead of time. If you were unable to reserve a spot online, we still welcome you to attend but cannot guarantee refreshments, so please should bring your own.

GENERAL DETAILS

• Date: Saturday, September 10
• Time: 2-5pm
• Location: Pleasant Vineyard and Winery, 2018 Les Robinson Road, Columbia, TN 38401
• Refreshments: Mooncakes, grapes from the vineyard, bottled water, other light snacks (registered attendees only)
• Tickets: Attendance is free!

PLANNING AHEAD

The event is being held on the grounds of a working vineyard. It has no built-in shelter, seating, restrooms, electricity, or drinking water — everything must be brought in. Because of this, you should expect to make additional preparations to ensure a pleasant and comfortable experience for you and your family:

• The event will be held in an open field with no seating or shelter, so please bring your own chairs, picnic blankets, bug spray, etc.
• Light refreshments will be provided for those who have registered, but you should definitely bring your own water and snacks regardless of whether you have registered or not. 
• Currently this is a “rain or shine” event, so please bring your own umbrellas, rain boots and other rain gear in case there is rain during the event or parts of the field are muddy. We will continue to watch the weather closely throughout the week and will notify you if we think there is a need to postpone the event. 
• Portable bathrooms are limited and quite basic, so if you have young children, make sure they have enough diapers and other supplies.
• All cars will be parked in the field adjacent to activity area.
• The vineyard owners will provide details about self-picking grapes during the event.
• Covid advisory: We have chosen this outdoor location in part to ensure a safer environment. We will not provide masks, however. If you feel sick, we ask that you do not attend. 

ACTIVITIES

We have planned a number of activities for the event; if you have suggestions for others, please let us know at info@gncamembers.com.

• Pick your own grapes (hosts will provide details at the event)
• Games and contests
• Variety show 
• Gift bags for all registered attendees

BAKE SALE FOR GNCA JOURNAL

In the summer of 2020, a group of our members published the first issue of GNCA Journal, a Chinese-language e-magazine “intended to serve as the collective voice of Middle Tennessee’s Chinese community”. Two years and six issues later, the publication is going stronger than ever. (If you haven’t had the chance, check out some of the past issues on our website!)

This year, the GNCA Journal team is looking to organize some community competitions, such as cooking competitions, gardening competitions, and the like. As part of their efforts, they will hold a bake sale at Saturday’s event. A variety of Chinese and Western goods will be offered, and all proceeds will be used for the competition prize. So come out on Saturday, buy some delicious foods at the bake sale, and stay tuned for news on the upcoming competitions!

Note: We are only accepting cash and checks for the bake sale.

MEET OUR HOSTS

The vineyard is run by two of our members. Watch the video below and visit their Youtube page to learn more about their story! You can also check out this story about the vineyard (Chinese language only) from our e-magazine, GNCA Journal.

If you have any questions about the event, please contact us at info@gncamembers.com. We look forward to seeing you there!