Greetings!
Just over a year ago, Holden Village made the difficult decision to close as the world came to a standstill during the pandemic. We have missed having a Village full of guests and long to reopen Holden as a place of renewal and healing after the devastating toll that the pandemic has taken on people's lives and communities.
While we hope to have more concrete details soon about the possibility of reopening this summer, we continue to practice patience.
Holden Village’s status as a retreat center and employer means that we must be explicitly allowed to open under Washington State’s “Roadmap to Recovery.” That information has not yet been issued by the state so we continue to wait. Holden Village will follow local, state, and federal protocols for remaining safe and healthy, so please know that all plans are subject to change.
In the meantime, the Village is a flurry of activity as volunteers and staff prepare in hopeful anticipation of extending Holden hospitality this summer. In addition to weekly team meetings about reopening, the community is consulting with Holden’s medical team, creating checklists, mapping out possible table and seating configurations, reaching out to teaching faculty, and so much more!
If you are hoping to visit Holden Village this summer, here are some things that we do know that might help you and your loved ones start thinking about your potential plans:
- We anticipate opening in mid July for a modified summer session.
-
Registration is NOT yet open at this time. Registration for the summer session will open approximately 2 weeks after we make an official announcement (we hope to make this announcement soon and anticipate that registration will go live by late April) Watch for future communications about this!
-
We are busy planning many new and special aspects about this summer in order to make reopening possible and safe, including:
- Cohort model with 5 night visits
- All guest arrivals on Mondays and departures on Saturdays
- All-inclusive package with boat tickets and parking fees included
- Vaccination required for all guests (ages 16 and above)
- Smaller guest and staff population in the Village - exact capacity TBD
- Information about fall registration for September and beyond will likely be available in May.
We are excited about the unique opportunity for a cohort model this summer, which will deepen engagement in community and grow connections with fellow Villagers! It also promotes wellness by making deep cleaning easier and allowing an opportunity each week to get into a wellness rhythm and share healthy practices as a community.
Though we wish we could return immediately to a “normal” Village brimming with 400 people sitting close together in Dining Hall and Village Center, please expect that this summer will be different. We are grateful for the opportunity to slowly ramp up the number of people in the Village with hopes to continue expanding capacity as it becomes safe to do so!
We expect that you may have MANY questions about this summer and ask you to journey with us in patience as we hold the tensions between ambiguity and certainty. Please rest assured that we are diligently seeking answers and working on preparing further information to share with you soon.
Thank you for your understanding and grace as we navigate together this unique and hopeful time for reopening!
Faithfully,
Stacy Kitahata, Mark Bach, and Kathie Caemmerer-Bach
Holden Village Executive Directors
