Parents 25th Anniversary Party

My dad has been hinting rather heavily that he expects us to throw their 25th Anniversary Party. Their anniversary is in the fall.

Problem: My older sister and I are in college and have no money. My younger brother just graduated high school and will be going to college soon, and my younger sister is entering high school next year.

I flat out asked my mom what she and my father were expecting, but she said "not to worry about it". But my dad keeps hinting he wants a party.

Any suggestions as to what we could do? I'm not sure if they are expecting a small, intimate dinner with the kids picking up the tab or a big blow-out.

Our house is tiny and there's no way we could have the party there. Any ideas of a place we could cheaply rent? Would it be rude to ask guests to bring a potluck for a park or something? What did you or somebody you know do for their 25th?

Any suggestions greatly appreciated!

You don't have to have a huge party just invite a few of your closest relatives (Their parents if they are still living, aunts/uncles, close friends) and have a small get together or bbq at your house. Buy a few cheap anniversary decorations, start saving up a few pennies here and there for the food. They are your parents and they know your money situation so i'm sure they aren't expecting anything huge and extravagant.

I'm definetly not planning anything huge, but our house simply is not big enough to house a party. I have 3 grandparents still alive but I couldn't only invite my grandparents, I would have to invite the entire family....which, roughly estimated, would be about 30-50 people. We are a large family but everyone lives in the area and I see them all frequently, so they all have to be invited That's not including my parent's friends.

So I'm looking for suggestions on where I could rent the place....a bbq at my house would be a good idea but we simply cannot squeeze that many people there!

Do you think the bbq would work in a park setting? Would it be rude to ask family members to help out a little (one family bring plastic forks, another some hot dog buns...)?

You could have it in a park - but what about a rain plan?

Why not find a place that is reasonable to rent and have a pot-luck/BYOB party for as many guests as you can invite?

Oooh I did not think about the weather as a factor...

DN, do you know of any chain-type places that are cheap to rent? I tried to call my church (there's a place for wedding receptoins there) but nobody has returned my call as of yet. I don't really want to rent out a restaruent unless everybody pays for their own meal......which may or may not be tacky.

Do you have a community center in your area?

We do, but I can't envision anyone having a party there. It's just a weightroom, pool, track, and a few classrooms.

I liked the park idea because we are close to two beautiful parks. I know of someone who had a simple wedding in one of them, and it has buidings in case it rains, but I think it's a private park so I'm not sure how much it would cost.

The buildings at the park are considered community centers? Atleast in my area that's what they are.

Whoa I just looked up rental prices for the park with the buildings.....the cheapest one is $175 (to rent a large GAZEBO!) The other park is nice, but there aren't any buildings besides an open shelter and bathrooms in case the weather turns bad.

In my town there is a specific building that is "The" Community Center. It's not really what I'm looking to rent.

Can you ask a relative with a bigger home to have it there?

Look up your town website on Google and look for spaces to rent there.

Heart-- That's a good idea, but I'll be sure to ask around.

DN---I'm looking up things around town. I was just hoping there was a chain business/restaurent people know of that was cheap to rent!

Thanks for the suggestions everyone!

If you live in the U.S. try looking up "VFW posts" or "Knights of Columbus" in your area- both tend to rent halls for functions. I've rented them for b-day parties, for about $150

Thanks Bella, I'll be sure to look those up!