An Oktoberfest, filled with German food, beer and music, will take place this Saturday at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in Chatham Borough.

The Oktoberfest—the parish's first—will mark the second of seven "Many Hands, Many Hearts, One Community" events over six weeks to celebrate the life of the late pastor, the Rev. Edward Hinds, who was murdered last October.

"It was such a tragic thing that happened, that we wanted to direct energy toward something positive," Karen Swartz, a parishioner assisting with the event's publicity, said. "Luckily, we have a number of wonderful volunteers who have helped to bring all of this together."

Swartz said the basic feel of the evening will be light and casual, with a buffet of various Bavarian foods available, to give the night a feeling of community camaraderie. Along with food and music, there will also be German-style, glass beer mugs available for attendees to buy.

Swartz stressed that the event is not a fundraiser but a reason to bring people in the community together.

"We don't want all of the focus to be on death," Swartz said. "Instead, we want to focus on all of the great things [Fr. Hinds] did."

As of Thursday, nearly 150 people had signed up for the Oktoberfest.

The first event in the "Many Hands, Many Hearts, One Community" series was the parish picnic on Sept. 19. The next event will be a parish outreach project on Oct. 16-17. For the project, the parish will collect new unwrapped baby items to benefit Eva's Village and The Father English Center in Paterson, Birth Haven in Sparta and the Interfaith Council for the Homeless in Morristown.

The Oktoberfest will take place Saturday from 7 to 10 p.m. at the St. Patrick Parish Center. Admission is $30 and for adults only.

There will also be another Oktoberfest the same night in Summit from 5 to 9 p.m. The annual event is sponsored by the Red Cross Colonial Crossroads Chapter, which serves many local towns, including Chatham Borough and Chatham Township.