Toronto student invites strangers for a picnic on social media. Then this happened

People gathered for a giant picnic in Toronto on July 5. (Submitted/@bricelan)

In late May, Winnie Chen took to TikTok with a simple question: “Was anyone down for a picnic?”

The recent University of Guelph graduate, who’s starting a masters degree in medical illustration at University of Toronto in the fall, was looking for a cheap way to meet new people and hang out.

Despite her modest social media following, her post blew up overnight, attracting hundreds of thousands of views and responses.

It appeared that overwhelmingly, people were down for a picnic, and it was now up to Chen to make it happen.

“I guess I just decided to take a leap of faith and risk to actually create a picnic,” she told CTV News. “Everyone was saying that they’re super, super interested, even though I knew there’s a lot of things involved.”

While Chen initially wanted to have her picnic at Trinity Bellwoods or Riverdale Park, the logistics of hosting thousands of people who had expressed interest meant she had to consider things like permits, cleaning fees and washroom rentals.

Luckily, the social media attention led to Chen connecting with city councillor Ausma Malik, who helped to secure a space at Centennial Park at Exhibition Place which could handle the crowds.

On July 5, an estimated 2,000 people showed up to Chen’s inaugural “third space” picnic – a place outside of work and home where people could come together without forking over any money. Attendees were encouraged to bring something to contribute.

“It was just a bunch of strangers showing up with their own picnic blankets and food to share,” she said. “I had a DJ that I had planned to play light music, but somehow it turned into a rave or a mini music festival, which was so funny. There was so many people playing board games and volleyball.”

Chen ended up setting up a crowdfunding campaign where she raised $2,000 to help pay for security, insurance, signs and picnic blankets.

Several sponsors, like Walmart and Canadian Tire, also pitched in some funding in exchange for mentions on social media posts. Chen had also put together a team of volunteers to assist with different aspects of organizing the giant picnic.

The experience of planning such a big event in a short amount of time has helped connect Chen with new friends and other content creators throughout the city, she says.

“A lot of people know me now, and I guess it makes it easier for me to talk to people,” she said.

Chen is planning another picnic for the Thanksgiving long weekend and even has some ideas for the colder months.

“What if we all got together and made a bunch of snowmen at Riverdale Park or we all had a snowball fight or something cute like that,” she mused. “I do have like some thoughts for activities I could do for winter.”