Holden Village

10/08/2026

Maybe the real dish team was the friends we made along the way…

At Holden, relationships are planted, watered, and growing in all sorts of places.
We’re so grateful for our broader Holden community that reminds us of these beautiful connections every day!

Tag your dream dish team in the comments!

☕️🍽️🥣🧼🫧

10/06/2026

Holden crews have put over 200 hours into trail work this year!

From clearing trees on Monkey Bear Falls Trail to a complete clearing of the 10 Mile Falls Creek Trail to the wilderness boundary, these folks have been hard at work.

To pay for its special use permit, the USFS allows Holden to “work-in-lieu of fee”. We appreciate the grace that the USFS has shown us this season, especially relating to the ongoing Village closure and wildfires. Holden continues to strive to be a good neighbor and faithful steward of Railroad Creek Valley.

Although FSR 8301 and Holden Village remain closed to hikers, we hope you can still find time to enjoy other trails near you this fall!

10/03/2026

We are excited to report that 96% of evacuated staff belongings are out of the Village and are now in the process of being returned to their owners!

The monumental effort is thanks to months of labor by the community services and Holden store teams, and countless other volunteers.

One of the biggest hurdles–transporting the items from the Village to Lucerne–was overcome last month. Holden Village was granted a brief temporary window to use the damaged Forest Service Road 8301. While it is still impossible to drive all the way down the road, staff were allowed to travel to Mile 4 (the location of the largest washout) and carry luggage across the gulch to another vehicle waiting on the other side.

Using this system, Holden staff were able to transfer 197 individual items on pallets and stage them in Lucerne for pickup by barge. Some of these pallets were loaded onto a 26 ft, U-Haul truck and driven to Seattle and Tacoma while others will later be driven to Minneapolis.

Including items which had previously been transported out of the Village by helicopter, approximately 270 items have been (or are on their way to be) returned. This work would not have been possible were it not for the financial support and volunteers of the Holden community across the country.

This includes those who helped pack and organize boxes, community members who drove and unloaded the U-Haul truck at Phinney Ridge Lutheran Church in Seattle and St. Mark's Lutheran in Tacoma, and donors who helped fund transportation costs.

Roughly 50 staff evacuated from Holden Village in December 2025. Many of these staff spent the following ten months unsure when they would be reunited with their possessions. To have these treasured belongings returned represents meaningful closure for these staff. Thank you for helping make this “mega-move” possible.

[📷: Ian Fisher, Kristin Storey]

10/01/2026

In case you missed it, Holden Village held a virtual town hall meet on September 20. During the meeting, Holden's co-executive directors, board, and long-term staff provided updates on road construction, reopening plans, and how the Village hopes to endure during its long closure.

Staff and board members also provided updates on what projects are taking place in the Village now, how the Village's mission is moving beyond the mountains, and how you can support the village philanthropically. During the village closure, financial support and volunteer service is more important than ever.

You can view the full recorded town hall (with chapter markers) on the Holden Village YouTube channel.

Holden Village is hoping to reopen to guests in 2028 but planning t...

09/30/2026

If there’s one food item most frequently associated with Holden Village, it’s probably… BREAD!! The tradition of baking Holden Bread lives on among villagers, who work together each day to learn how to nourish the community.

Holden’s Food Philosophy remains central to our kitchen practices: “We recognize that our food choices have significant consequences for those who gather the food, those who eat the food, and for the lands and seas that bring it forth… We are committed to serving food that is care-full, food that is both celebratory and responsible. We strive to cook in ways that are healthy, delicious, expressive, and that minimize harm to individuals and communities both near and far.”

Have YOU tried to make Holden Bread at home? You can find the recipe in our cookbook! Give it a go!

09/28/2026

HOLDEN HILARITY INCOMING! 🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️

Fueled by Community, Hospitality and BEANS AND RICE! These Villagers are faster than ever.

Comment down below who you think is the fastest!!

09/25/2026

Autumn ambles through Railroad Creek Valley, and our community relishes the lingering light.
As we transition into the fall season, we recall the wisdom of Lynette Rose, HV fall 2025 interim pastor, in last week’s Spiritual Life Letter.

“My prayer for us all is that we hold one another with grace and compassion these next few months as we go out in good courage. May our busy-ness be interrupted by the transitional, fleeting beauty around us.”

[📸 John Hottinger, Nathan McClure, Danica Nolton, Ingrid Lindgren]

09/22/2026

🚨‼️ NO VILLAGERS WERE SHAKEN OR SCRAMBLED IN THE MAKING OF THIS REEL 🚨‼️

You never know where your adventures may take you, but you can trust your Holden Village Nalgene to keep you hydrated along the way!
Find Nalgenes and so much more on our Holden Store site.

09/16/2026

Want to know what's going on with Holden these days? Well, we want to tell you! We'll see YOU (virtually) on Sunday 09/20 at 2 pm PST at the Holden Village TOWN HALL! Send in your questions through the link in our bio and on our website so that we can address your curiosities and concerns, and be sure to register to gain access to the Zoom link! Good courage!🐻🌲🐿️💁‍♀️🏞️ https://www.holdenvillage.org/calendar/holden-village-virtual-town-hall-2/

09/14/2026

Sweet smiles from Saturday night in Bellevue, WA! (emojis) With learning, music, and ice cream, we celebrate how Holden’s traditions of creativity and aliveness continue to meet our present moment. No matter where we go, there is good courage and even better company.

Thank you to the creators of Bless This Night, for your unwavering dedication to practices of prayer and music that create space for ALL to belong.