BHC is open every Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 10:00 until 3:00 through October.
The Belgian Heritage Center is a wonderful location for experiencing Belgian culture through one of our community events or to host an event of your own.
Community Events
July 2025 Newsletter
We hope you enjoy our newsletter. If you would like to be added to our mailing list, please send your email or mailing address to sandyorsted@belgianheritagecenter.org.
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Hunter's Raffle Tickets on sale now!
Raffle tickets are now available for this year's Hunters Raffle at BHC, Steel Wheel Saloon (Namur) and BHC volunteers. See the PDF for top prizes and sponsors - it is a huge prize list and we print a limited number of tickets. Tickets are $10 each, three for $20 and 20 for $100. Raffle will be on Facebook Live. You do not need to be present to win. Drawing will be Friday, October 10 via Facebook Live. Email contact@belgianheritagecenter.org for more information about ticket availability.
Grandparent's Day at BHC
Starts: September 6, 2025 at 10:00 am
Ends: September 6, 2025 at 2:00 pm
BHC is hosting a very special Grandparents Day Event. Our Belgian heritage needs to be passed on to next generations. This event will help Grandparents (and parents) expose children to our history in a variety of ways. Displays and resources will help you:
- Find Family Photos – learn how you can use BHC’s photo collection to see your ancestors of long ago and how they lived and worked.
- Build Your Family Tree – learn to use online resources to explore your family tree and learn when and where your ancestors were born, married, immigrated and buried. Chat with representatives of Bay Area Genealogical Society.
- Learn and Share Your Family Story – pick up a list of interview questions designed to help grandparents share what life was like generations ago.
- Make Your Own Family Book – see examples of how others compiled their stories and photos. It’s easier than you think!
- See How Your Ancestors Lived – see farm tools, household items, shoes, furnishings and more dating back to the 1850’s. Tour the restored 1894 school to see how children learned. Visit St Roch roadside chapel to see how people prayed.
- Watch Oral Histories – see our collection of stories told in English and Walloon about the early days of the Belgian settlements.
- Visit the Bookmobile – the restored Bookmobile will be on site from 10:00 to 1:00. See how rural communities used this library on wheels and the books they read decades ago.
A $100 cash prize to the best youth submissions in 7-12 and 13-17 age groups for photos, stories, videos, family trees or other creative work submitted to BHC by December 1.
Sharing Your Life Stories: An Intergenerational Program
Starts: September 27, 2025 at 10:00 am
Ends: September 27, 2025 at 12:00 pm
Have you thought about writing down some of the stories from your life to share with other family members, but don't know where to begin?
Are you curious about the stories of your grandparents' lives?
Would you like to share the stories passed down to you?
BHC is pleased to welcome Write On, Door County to lead this free and very informal session designed to help you get started recording those stories you want to pass on to future generations. All ages are welcome and family groups are encouraged! Facilitators will offer prompts and questions to help you remember events from the past or the present and put them to page.
The session will be led by Sharon Auberle and Shaun Melarvie, who facilitate Write On's Memoir Monday program at Hope Church, the fourth Monday of the month. A poet and photographer, Sharon served as Door County Poet Laureate 2017-2019. A semi-retired general surgeon, Shaun is using his new free time to write a novel.
Sharing Your Life Stories is presented in collaboration with Write On, Door County. The session is open to everyone. Admission is free. We especially encourage participation by young people who want to learn and share the stories of their ancestors.
Great Fire Remembrance & Tornado Memorial Park Walk
Starts: October 4, 2025 at 9:30 am
Ends: October 4, 2025 at 12:00 pm
Three presentations will tell the story of the early days of the Belgian settlement and how the Great Fire transformed the lives of the settlers. At 9:30 Sandy (Lampereur) Orsted will present “Belgian Life on the Door Peninsula” covering the history, challenges and successes of the Belgian settlements before and after the fire. At 10:00, Captain David Siegel of the Green Bay Metro Fire Department (retired) will explain the nature of the fire, why it was so deadly and dispel common misunderstandings about the Great Fire and recent major fires. A re-enactment of the experiences of Emmerence Gaspart Englebert, a Great Fire survivor, by her great-granddaughter, Barb Englebert Chisholm will begin at 10:45. Following the presentations, David Siegel will conduct a site visit to Tornado Park so you can see for yourself why the small settlement of Williamsonville was destroyed.
We strongly encourage students (pre-teen and up) to take this opportunity to understand the land we live on, the struggles faced by those who came before us and how our ancestors endured this unimaginable tragedy. If you can’t join us at BHC, we invite you to learn about the Great Fire at BHC YouTube Channel.
BHC at Champion Shrine for Great Fire Anniversary
Starts: October 8, 2025 at 12:00 pm
Ends: October 8, 2026 at 6:00 pm
BHC will be at the National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion on Tuesday, October 8 as part of their Solemnity Week events. BHC will feature exhibits, historic photo collections and a series of presentations in Mother of Mercy Hall. Presenter series start at 1:15 and 3:45:
Belgian Settlement History - Sandy Lampereur Orsted
Nature of the Great Fire - Captain David Siegel (retired)
Great Fire Survivor Re-enactment - Barb Englebert Chisholm
Booyah lunch will be available for purchase. See championshrine.org for more information.
Traditional Wooden Shoe Carving Demo
Starts: October 25, 2025 at 10:00 pm
Ends: October 25, 2025 at 12:00 pm
BHC will host Luke Traver from Luke’s Lost Arts who will present the art of wooden shoemaking, explaining the process as he manually carves a pair of wooden shoes. He uses only three primitive handmade tools and a wood vice. His programs are enhanced with history discussions followed by a question and answer session with those in attendance.
Come join us on October 25 from 10:00-noon to see Luke in action, see the wooden shoe artifacts, and share any stories, pictures, or artifacts you may have about wooden shoemakers in our collective Belgian heritage. A $5 per person donation is appreciated.
For more about Luke’s Lost Arts visit his website at https://lukeslostarts.com/wooden-shoes/
Veterans Day Special Exhibits and Speaker
Starts: November 8, 2025 at 10:00 am
Ends: November 8, 2025 at 3:00 pm
BHC will open for a special event in honor of Veterans Day on Saturday, November 8 from 10:00 until 3:00. Visitors will see war related artifacts and a special photo collection of the many Belgians who served in the United States Armed Services as far back as the Civil War.
At 1:00, Louise Endres Moore will discuss her award-winning book “Alfred” describing her nearly 20 year journey to discover the full story of her father’s World War II experiences. It is a remarkable story of wartime service and a touching tribute of a father by his daughter. Louise will be available after her talk for a book signing and to display her father’s wartime memorabilia.
The Belgian Heritage Center is a great location to host your event. BHC’s facilities accommodate family reunions, weddings, conferences and other gatherings. Options include indoor or outdoor gathering, catering kitchen, banquet tables/chairs, audio/visual equipment and food service equipment.
Traditional Belgian food and a Belgian Heritage presentation are available on request. For more information call Julie Rheingans at 920-619-6363 or email events@belgianheritagecenter.org.