Dear Dragonfest Community:
We hope you had a blessed Ostara! Here’s the news we have to share:
Retreat Scholarships Available
Application Deadline April 30th @ 11:59 pm MDT
We have a limited number of scholarships for community members who would like to attend the retreat but are experiencing financial hardship. Scholarships are available to staff and attendees at the associate level. Send email to scolarships@dragonfest.org with the following information:
-Name
-Age Group – Young adult, adult, elder (not exact age)
-Staff or Attendee
-Reason for your need (do not send financial information such as income)
T-Shirt Art Contest is Open for Submissions
Deadline for Submissions is Wednesday, April 15th at 11:59 pm MDT
The theme for this year’s retreat is “Our Fifth Element”
Your design should be inspired by the theme of this year’s retreat.
Designs should be limited to one-color line art. Thin lines, shading, hatching, crosshatching, and greyscale do not translate well for t-shirt printing.
Designs should not include text or logos for Dragonfest, the theme, or the year. These elements, if used, will be added to your design at the time of printing.
Designs should be no wider than 12 inches and no taller than 14 inches.
For more information about the rules and regulations please see the Dragonfest T-shirt Art Contest Rules . Please send submissions to ops@dragonfest.org.
Submissions will be reviewed at the April staff meeting and the winner will be announced shortly thereafter. Winner will receive a free registration for Dragonfest 2026!
Dragonfest Outreach – Info Booth
10th Annual Colorado Holistic Fair
Dragonfest will have an information booth at the 10th annual Colorado Holistic Fair this year! We are so excited to spread the word about Dragonfest at this well attended Metaphysical fair. The fair is at Adams County Fair Grounds in Brighton on Saturday & Sunday, April 18th & 19th from 10 am to 5 pm on both days. If you plan on attending, please be sure to stop by our booth and say hi! If you want to buy tickets to the fair at the door, you will need cash or a check and the fee is $10 for one day or $15 for the whole weekend. Children 12 and under are free with a paying adult. Tickets will also be available for purchase online, beginning April 2nd. Find out more here.
Board Member Spotlight
Katrina Bishop, Board Member
My first year at Dragonfest was 2023 and from that moment I knew it was going to be a big part of my life. I had found a beautiful, inclusive community and met so many amazing people that have become wonderful friends. I’ve considered myself pagan for about 8 years now and I’m still learning and finding my path within Norse Paganism. I was asked if I’d consider running for the board by multiple people in the community and with that support behind me I decided I would. I’m so happy that I did. Dragonfest has a special place in my life and I’m incredibly thankful to be able to serve the community this way. I enjoy being creative and have multiple hobbies from reading to crochet to modeling clay. I have two beautiful daughters and a husband who enjoy attending Dragonfest as much as I do.
Have you registered yet?
Registration for the 2026 retreat is open. Beginning this year, registration will be open nearly year-round. It will close about a week before the retreat and re-open a few weeks after the retreat. Dragonfest 2026 will be Wednesday, July 29th to Sunday, August 2nd.
Register Now!
Staff Opportunity: Set Up & Take Down Staff
The setup/takedown team is an integral part of making our annual retreat happen. Staff on this team are responsible for putting up and taking down the structures needed for the retreat. These are stored on site but need to be distributed around the site. Setup and takedown staff need to be on-site Tuesday morning and be able to work through Sunday afternoon/evening until the work is completed. Ideally, we need 10 more people to sign up for this team. The more robust a team there is, the lighter the workload will be. If you are interested in volunteering for this team, please complete the volunteer sign up form and say that you would like to be on setup/takedown crew. The link to the volunteer sign up form is below in the section “Staff Information for 2026”
Lavender Pavillion Seeks Community Contributions
Rituals, Workshops, Events
The Lavender Pavilion is a safe space for the Dragonfest LGBTQ+ community. It is intended to enable our community to interact via workshops and rituals, to express ourselves, and share knowledge, experience, and spirituality within our community and the Dragonfest community at large. If you are interested in hosting a ritual or workshop associated with the Lavender Pavilion, please email coordinator Jason at jason_a@dragonfest.org.
Save the Date Postcards are still coming
2026 “The Dragons are Coming” Postcards will go out in late March or early April
Each year we mail out around 1,000 postcards to past retreat registrants to remind folks that the retreat is coming up. If you would like to Opt out of receiving a printed postcard and receive it via email instead, please click here to fill out paper postcard opt out form. Please complete the opt out form by Friday, March 13th to opt out of this year’s postcard.
Looking Ahead: Rituals and Workshops
If you are interested in putting on a workshop or ritual for Dragonfest 2026, please complete the sign up form here.
Staff Information for 2026
If you would like to be part of the team of volunteers that makes our retreat possible, start thinking about what you would like to do. Here is a list is a list of volunteer opportunities. To sign up for a staff position, please click here to complete the sign up form. Please complete this form only once to make things easier for Ops.
Staff Meetings for 2026:
The 2026 meeting are third Saturdays at 10:00 AM. January through May meetings will be virtual ONLY via Google Meet. The June & July meetings will be in person at the Jefferson Unitarian Church (14350 W. 32nd Avenue, Golden, Colorado 80401) The in person are hybrid we will be using Google Meet.
April 18th 2026 – Virtual
May 16th 2026 – Virtual
June 20th 2026 – Hybrid
Work Weekend – TBD (optional)
July 19th 2026 – Hybrid
July 28th (Tuesday ON THE LAND – this is a mandatory meeting discussing safety, radio communications, etc)
Please email ops@dragonfest.org for the Google Meet link – the link will be the same for all staff meetings.
Handy Links for Members
Dragonfest has multiple ways to keep you informed on what’s happening with the upcoming retreat and our organization, including a new Bluesky account. Click here to see them all.