Dear Friends

These past few months have seen us traveling all over the country, visiting congregations and groups of Holdenites from the Pacific Northwest to the land of ten thousand lakes and beyond! It has been a joy to meet in person and connect over our shared love of the Village and hopes for its future. Thank you for welcoming us, as well as Holden staff and volunteers, so warmly into your communities. The Holden spirit is alive and well!

We know that many of you also joined us these past couple of weeks for our virtual Word from Holden with the Holden Board. For those of you who weren’t able to attend or would like a reminder of what we shared, you can view the recording here.

During these meetings, we shared updates about the work that is being done to assess the damage to FSR 8301 and the plan for repair and reconstruction. We also shared more about our plans for navigating what is predicted to be an especially hot and dry fire season, particularly with the added risk of no road access this summer. We’re working with our partners at the United States Forest Service and Chelan County Emergency Management to make the Village as safe as possible and prepare for swift evacuations if the need arises. 

We also spoke about the work we’re doing to prepare for our eventual reopening and recovery from this closure. We have great hope and excitement for reimagining Holden to be even more resilient and prepared to navigate unknown perils while honoring our beloved traditions and practices that make Holden Holden.

Thank you to everyone who has hosted, planned, attended, or supported these events this year. There’s much work being done, and much more still to do, but we move forward with hope and faith in the ventures to which Holden is called. 

With good courage,

Bjørn and Elise Peterson

Reference herein to any specific commercial products or services does not necessarily constitute or imply its

endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by Holden Village.

PHOTOS: Nathan McClure

Newsletter edited by Carl Norquist