If you are not going to eat the meal for several hours, the food should be refrigerated. Tailgate parties and potlucks demand the same kind of attention. Food should remain out no longer than two hours. As long as it is not within those temperatures for more than two hours, you are okay. Periodic outbreaks of food borne illnesses the past several years have heightened the public's awareness of food safety.
Education can play a key role in protecting consumers from such illnesses.