The Friends of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is collecting submissions for a ‘time capsule’ to be opened on the 100th anniversary of the Apostle Island National Lakeshore. Read the full story on the Friends’ website.
What would you say to the future? What do you hope these islands will be like in 2070?
Your neighbor on Isabel, Zina Harrington, was inspired by the amazing environmental opportunities her two girls have experienced through the Brickyard — planting a butterfly garden with Jeff, planting trees with both Dale and Nancy, learning about the importance of our waterways at events. These young Boreal Forest Citizens will be nearly 70 years old when this time capsule is open. What do you hope for some of our youngest Boreal Forest Citizens?
What do you hope for the people you love?
What do you hope for your grandkids?
What do you hope for future generations?
Leaving a Legacy
What a great opportunity for us to practice the ‘legacy’ portion of our Brickyard Creek Community Identity Statement!
Brickyard Creek (BYC) is an environmental residential community on the shores of Lake Superior dedicated to active stewardship and tranquility. BYC is focused on:
Lake | Land | Learning | Legacy | Lifestyle | Leadership
Would you like to participate?
Time capsule submissions are due by Saturday, February 26th. You can submit your letter directly to jeff@friendsoftheapostleislands.org
If you’d like to, we’d also love it if you’d provide your submission to our Community Director, Jeffery Garrett. We’ll be sharing our community letters on our website. You can ask for your submission to be anonymous if it makes you more comfortable.
Zina Harrington’s inspirational letter to the future is shown below.
Zina Harrington’s “Open Letter to the Future”
There’s a power to some places. The Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is such a place — it leaves an undeniable mark in people’s hearts and minds.
We live in a world where busyness is a badge of honor. We are more connected than ever through technology, yet there is a deep underlying sense of division and disconnect.
We “like” digital photos of the beautiful, ever-changing, seasonal moods of Lake Superior, from a distance — scrolling through social media feeds and longing for an escape from the increasing pace of everyday life.
The lake calls our hearts to return.
We leave our chaotic lives behind and drive hours upon hours to arrive at her shores, to embrace the calming, consistent, grounding pace of nature.
The energy of the lake, the sounds of the forest, and the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore bring you into the moment. You become present, aware, alive — you reconnect.
Environmental advocate Sigurd Olson explains, “Wildnerness is a spiritual necessity, an antidote to the high pressure of modern life, a means of regaining serenity and equilibrium.”
In 2022, some idolize politicians who declare concerns about the future of our environment “an elaborate hoax.” Others celebrate teen advocate Greta Thunberg, who demands the world pay attention and change.
Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, National Parks experienced a surge of unprecedented visitors. Across the nation, nature provided the space, the quiet, and the connection that we needed to begin to heal.
Author Lailah Gifty Akita explains, “If we connect with nature, we can reconstruct our soul, spirit, and strength.”
Kayaking through sea caves with friends, enjoying a picnic on the shoreline with a partner, watching how the sunset changes the color of the island sandstone — there is no doubt in my mind, experiences with the natural world change us. When people connect with and through nature, advocates are born.
Our collective and individual responsibility is to invite people in to experience the power of nature, to work together to protect our parks, and preserve the opportunity to reconnect for the next generation.
This is my mission at this moment in time.
And it is my hope that you are gathered 50 years later to do the same…
That the energy of the lake, the sounds of the forest, and the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore will bring us together, past and present, to find ways to encourage future generations to reconnect. So they, too, will carry on protecting this sacred gift we’ve inherited.
