Government reopens: hot coffee brewing at Sleeping Bear Dunes visitor center

From staff reports

The federal government has reopened after the longest government shutdown in U.S. history—nearly one and a half months.

At the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore headquarters in Empire, Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes executive director Laura Ann Johnson discovered a full parking lot this morning and hot coffee brewing inside the visitor center.

“It felt so good to walk into a bustling office full of park employees again,” Johnson wrote in an email. “We are deeply grateful that the government has reopened, and we know there is much work ahead.”

According to Johnson, Park staff are currently “working on finishing winterization, connecting with school groups about winter park programming, assessing resources, and taking care of their employees.

“Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes will be working with the park to address larger projects and areas that need funding support due to the loss of fee revenue. … All volunteer activities can now resume as usual.”

Stay tuned for more updates on Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore reopening.