Lakes Letter-August 25, 2026
Reminders
Volunteer Hours Deadline- September 8, 2026 at 11:59 PM EST
End of Event Survey– Open now- October 31, 2026 at 11:59 PM EST
Volunteer Experience Survey– Open Now until September 30, 2026 at 11:59 PM EST
August Newsletter Town Hall – September 9, 2026 at 9 PM EST link
Lakes of Fire Leadership Interest Form– Always open
Volunteer Hours Deadline
Dear Lakes of Fire Volunteers,
Thank you all for another incredible Lakes of Fire!
Our leadership teams are taking a well-deserved opportunity to rest and recharge after months of planning and an amazing event. We’ll be returning to post-event wrap-up tasks as quickly as possible.
We know many volunteers are eager to see their hours updated, and all departments are working to review and record volunteer hours as soon as they are able.
If you believe your volunteer hours are missing or incorrect, please get in touch with the appropriate department no later than September 8, 2026.
This gives leadership enough time to review requests, make any necessary corrections, and ensure all volunteer hours are finalized before the official September 30, 2026 deadline.
Thank you for your patience, your understanding, and most importantly, for everything you contributed to making Lakes of Fire possible. We couldn’t do it without you.
If you have any questions or concerns, please email the Volunteer Dream Team at Volunteers@lakesoffire.org.
End of Event Survey
Every year, we build Lakes of Fire based on what we think the community needs. Every year, we’d rather know for sure.
That’s what the End of Year Survey is for. It takes a few minutes, and it’s one of the clearest ways to shape what next year looks like: what worked, what didn’t, and where we should put our energy.
First time at Lakes of Fire this year? Your perspective is gold. You noticed things the rest of us have gone numb to: what was confusing, what felt unwelcoming, what surprised you. Don’t hold back just because you’re new. That outsider view is exactly what we need.
Been coming for years? You’ve watched this event evolve, and you know what’s been tried before, what quietly disappeared, and what’s worth protecting. Your long view helps us avoid relearning old lessons the hard way.
You don’t need a complaint to fill it out. Loved something? Say so. Confused about something? Tell us, it might mean a hundred other people were too.
The survey stays open through 11:59pm EST on October 31. Every response goes to leadership and feeds into the discussion at our annual Fall Retreat, one piece of a much bigger conversation about the year ahead.
2026 Volunteer Experience Survey
Tell Us About Your Volunteer Experience!
Did you volunteer at Lakes of Fire this year? We want to hear from you!
We’ve put together a 2026 Volunteer Experience Survey to hear what worked, what didn’t, and what we can do better. Whether you worked one shift or spent half the event volunteering, your experience matters and your feedback will help us as we start planning for 2027.
The survey takes about 5–10 minutes to complete, and we’d really appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts.
Same Info, New Way to Get It
We’re trying something new. Starting with this issue, every newsletter will be followed by an open Town Hall where we talk through it together.
This isn’t us reading the newsletter back to you. It’s us hitting the high points, bringing in special guests to share important org and event information, and opening the floor for your questions. If something in the newsletter left you wondering “wait, what does that actually mean for me,” this is where you find out.
We know not everyone processes information the same way. Some of you read every word of the newsletter twice. Some of you skim it and would rather just hear it talked through. Some of you have questions the newsletter can’t answer. The Town Hall is for all of that.
Can’t make it live? We’ll be recording each session and working on a way for you to watch afterward. Details on that are still being worked out, but we’ll announce it as soon as it’s ready.
First Session will be September 9, 2026 at 9 PM EST.
2027 Theme: The Great Galactic Garage Sale
Attention Earthlings!
We, the ORG, humbly summon you to Luther, Michigan, Planet Earth, Milky Way, for Lakes of Fire 2027: The Great Galactic Garage Sale.
This is not a sale. There will be no purchases, no invoices, no fine print. This is a swap. Bring what you no longer need. Take what you do. Turn your neighbor’s dusty spacesuit into your new favorite propulsion system. What’s old is new again out here.
We interrupt this announcement with an urgent transmission from a rival broadcast, the self-proclaimed Galactic Leadership of Exceptional Authoritarianism (definitely not us): they’d like you to know that single-use is mandatory, everything is designed to fail, and your debt pays for their future. We do not endorse this message. We do not endorse debt. We especially do not endorse giving one more dollar to the single-use plastic overlords when the beings around you already have exactly what you need.
So come one, come all, from every corner of the heliocentric system. Fix something. Mend something. Give something away. Cut the corporations out of the loop entirely and let your community take care of itself instead.
See you in the Great Galactic Garage Sale. Leave your wallet at home.
The image below is not a logo, a sticker, or anything more than one of Arthub’s leads that brings imagination to life. Thank you, Hana, for providing us all something to get our creative juices flowing.
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I hope all of you have been having an easy decomp. We created something new and beautiful together, and it will definitely be better next year. Please take a moment to share your thoughts in the post-event survey if you attended this year. The feedback does help us steer conversations as we ramp up for 2027.
If you’d like to contribute to event organization throughout the year, please apply here or reach out to a department lead. If you would like to sign up to transform this new property into our new home, then fill out this form. If you are not a skilled tradesperson, fill out the other slot and let us know what you can do.
If you’re not receiving the Lakes Letter (this thing!) in your inbox each month, consider signing up. It’s your best source to stay up-to-date on all the details. While you’re there, sign up for volunteering updates from individual departments if you’d like.
May the cooler temperatures and the changing of the seasons bring you time to reflect. Hopefully with a cup of cider.
xoxo,
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