Waldorf is rich in tradition and celebrates a variety of festivals and annual traditions with many tied to the seasons and focused on themes like light, courage, and community.
Festivals and Events
Many of our events and festivals are open to the broader community and are a wonderful way to get to know more about Waldorf education, our school, and our community of faculty, staff, students, and parents.
Michaelmas
SEPTEMBER
Michaelmas in Waldorf education is a festival of courage celebrated around the autumn equinox that focuses on overcoming fear and developing inner strength, symbolized by the legend of St. Michael taming the dragon. Students participate in activities like plays, games of strength, and lantern walks, while also making or eating "dragon bread" to honor the harvest and prepare for winter.
This celebration connects the natural rhythm of the season with inner development, encouraging qualities like bravery, truth, and fortitude.
Lantern Walk
NOVEMBER
Each year in the first week of November, Waldorf schools around the world hold a Lantern Walk. This special, simple festival is all about service. The walk we take together marks a time of bringing our individual light through the darkness and into the world. This is a peaceful quite walk with sweet singing that we do as a community. The children carry their homemade lanterns on a candle lit path in quiet reverence. This is a celebration of hope, kindness, and being called to help others in the world.
Spiral of Lights
DECEMBER
The Waldorf Spiral of Lights, often held during Advent or the winter season, is a contemplative festival that symbolizes bringing light into the darkness. In a darkened room, a spiral of evergreen boughs is laid on the floor with a single central candle; one by one, children walk the path carrying an apple candle, lighting it from the center flame and placing it along the spiral’s edge. As each child adds their light, the room gradually glows brighter, creating a powerful, peaceful experience of quiet reverence, inner reflection, and the shared warmth of community.
May Day and May Faire
MAY
Every year, the Waldorf School of Bend welcomes the apex of Spring with a traditional May Faire. This lovely festival usually features beautiful wreaths bedecked with fresh flowers, cheerful music,, dancing around a maypole with brightly colored ribbons, and the sharing of food and friendship during a school-wide community picnic.
The history of celebrating May Faire dates back to ancient times and spans a variety of different cultures, who share similar themes of fertility and fecundity. Originally known as Beltaine in Celctic and Gaelic lands after the sun god, Belenus, this seasonal festival took place about halfway between the spring equinox, Ostara (modern-day Easter), and the coming summer solstice, Litha (Midsummer).
Heartbomb
FEBRUARY
For over a decade, the Waldorf School of Bend has celebrated our love for this beautiful town through our cherished Heartbomb tradition.
Each year, our students, teachers, and families come together to craft vibrant, hand-made hearts, which we place throughout Downtown Bend as a joyful surprise for the community. These colorful expressions of love serve as a reminder of the warmth, creativity, and connection that make Bend such a special place to call home.
As we continue this tradition, we invite everyone to pause, smile, and feel the love that fills our town. Thank you for being part of this community, and for sharing in the spirit of kindness and beauty that the Heartbomb represents.
