A taste of the Middle East — and one of the oldest faiths on earth.

Join us for our Annual Middle Eastern Picnic — a day of food, music, dancing, and family fun for the whole city. Come hungry, bring your friends, and pull up a chair at one of Worcester’s most welcoming tables. You don’t have to be Melkite — or Catholic — to belong here for the day.

But there’s a story behind the food worth knowing.

Our Lady of Perpetual Help is a Melkite Catholic parish — heirs of the ancient apostolic Church of Antioch, where the disciples were first called “Christians” (Acts 11:26). For more than fifteen centuries our community has prayed the same Divine Liturgy, in an unbroken line of faith. In 1923, a handful of Syrian and Lebanese immigrant families — about 47 of them — raised $800 in a single night to plant that faith here in Worcester. Their children and grandchildren still gather on Hamilton Street today.

The dishes we serve — chicken shawarma, kibbeh, kabobs, stuffed grape leaves, baklava — are the very recipes those founders carried with them. When you share this food, you share our heritage.

What to expect

• Authentic Middle Eastern food — chicken shawarma, melt-in-your-mouth kibbeh, chicken & beef kabobs, stuffed grape leaves, tabbouli, hummus, fresh pastries, and more, prepared by our own parish kitchen.
• Live music & dancing — the sounds of our heritage; come move with us.
• Family fun — kids’ activities and games for all ages.
• A warm welcome — meet your neighbors and enjoy the afternoon on our historic church grounds.
• Raffles — great prizes, with every ticket supporting the parish.

One day sustains a whole year

This picnic is more than a celebration — it’s how we sustain our parish all year long. Your visit, your gift, and your sponsorship help fund the Divine Liturgy and Orthros, our Sacraments, the full Lenten and fasting calendar, our charitable outreach (including support for Lebanese orphans), and the students and visitors we welcome to experience the Eastern Church. In short: you help keep an ancient, living faith present in Worcester for another year.

The cost of food and supplies has risen substantially. We humbly ask for monetary donations to help offset the cost of running the picnic — so we can purchase exactly what we need. Please consider a gift directly to Our Lady of Perpetual Help. Use the button below or complete this form and mail to the parish.