Lake Country School News

What do Ted Lasso, a gorilla, a fruit fly, a dragon, Frodo Baggins, Bjorn Borg, Willy Wonka, the Pink Tower, and Pickle Work all have in common? They all attended the 2024 Great Great Gathering at Lake

Country School!

This year’s annual fundraiser and community get-together, held on October 26, saw our gymnasium transform into a Harvest Halloween spectacular complete with Land School pumpkins, decorations and ambiance from floor to ceiling, build-your-own chili and caramel apple bars, and most notably, costumes. The event represented a return to form, with this being the first themed Great Great Gathering since April 2019’s Tour de France-themed party, with current parents Sarah Mason Mitchell (CH2) and Leah Monson (E2-H) creating and executing the decoration vision. The results (and the vibes) were tremendous.

This edition of the Great Great Gathering was the school’s most lucrative event of its kind since the aforementioned spring of 2019, raising more than $140,000 to support Lake Country School operations, including enhanced programming, tuition assistance, faculty & staff professional development, campus maintenance, and more. The evening featured old favorites, including 83 amazing Great Gatherings hosted by LCS community members, a dramatic game of Heads or Tails, and 116 wines and spirits in the Bottle Pull. It also added new and fun activities to the mix, from casino tables, a photo booth, and special t-shirts designed and printed by current junior high students Maddie and Rubin as part of a Junior High Apprenticeship program.

This year’s Paddle Raise, the main event of the evening, deviated from focusing on a specific project or need to support the LCS Fund, which provides the greatest source of unrestricted support to the

school. Altogether, 90 donors contributed $80,580, an incredible single-day act of generosity from our community. Thank you to all who contributed to this total. Following the Great Great Gathering, we sit just over ⅓ of the way towards our ultimate goal of $275,000 in outright donations to LCS by the end of our school year in June. If you would like to support this cause, we encourage you to visit our website for more information on how to donate.

Many Great Great Gathering traditions have remained the same for years, but Lake Country has made several changes to the structure of the night. The event, which was traditionally held in the spring, moved to the fall to be a more welcoming start to the school year, especially for new LCS families, and to create bonds in our community earlier in the calendar. The event is free to attend, eat, and drink at, with the hope that all guests will find ways to contribute to its success through signing up for Great Gatherings, participating in the Paddle Raise, or playing games throughout the evening. The silent auction typically associated with the event will now be held in the spring during LCS Gives Week, and the live auction portion of the evening was eliminated, ensuring that all members of the community could participate in the Great Great Gathering and not just the highest bidders. While fundraising for LCS remains a key objective of the evening, these changes were made with equity, inclusion, accessibility, and community-building at the forefront of our goals for the event.

It’s clear that this is once again an event that the Lake Country community does not want to miss. Whether that was your first Great Great Gathering or your 10th, or you haven’t been to one in a few years, as long as you’re over 21 consider this your invitation to the next one! Thank you to all of our sponsors, donors, Great Gathering hosts, volunteers, caterers, decorators, planners, photo booth and casino table operators, and everyone else who lent their time, talent, and treasure to making this event so special. We can’t wait to host you all at the next Great Great Gathering in October 2025!

Special Thanks to our Sponsors:

• Vital Fitness
• Market Street Dermatology 
• Studio Day Design 
• Red Cricket Healing Center
• Jessica Strobel Photography
• Bird, Stevens & Borgen
• Solcana Fitness
• Engstrom Lee
• Coalition
• Heather Peterson Design
• Somermeyer Sullivan
• Hanson Remodeling
• Fair State Brewing Cooperative
• Minuteman Press
• Gentleman's Gazette
• Kinoko Kids
• Quentin Nell
• The Reset

As the school year winds down, Lake Country School comes alive with the vibrant energy of summer. While our classrooms may quiet, the spirit of exploration, growth, and community that defines our Montessori approach flourishes in new and exciting ways. Our summer programs offer children of all ages the opportunity to connect with nature, nurture their curiosity, and build lifelong skills—all while having the time of their lives.

Farm Apprenticeship: A Transformative Experience for Adolescents

Imagine a week where your adolescent embarks on a journey of self-discovery and responsibility, set against the backdrop of our beautiful Wisconsin farm, which resides on ancestral and traditional Dakota and Anishinaabe land. The Farm Apprenticeship is designed specifically for adolescents. Here, students dive deep into the rhythms of farm life, diving deeper and refining their knowledge on how to care for animals, tend to crops, and engage in meaningful work that contributes to the community. Rooted in Montessori principles, this experience empowers young people to connect with the land, develop a strong work ethic, and gain a sense of accomplishment that comes from real, hands-on learning. It’s more than just a camp—it’s an opportunity to grow in confidence, independence, and self-awareness.