Douglas Oktoberfest Committee Awards 2026 Scholarship, Confirms October 5 Festival Date

DOUGLAS -- May 11, 2026, Douglas Oktoberfest Committee unanimously awards 2026 scholarship at May planning session. The committee, meeting May 11, selected the applicant identified as Letter F from four qualifying submissions out of nine total applications received for its annual scholarship; five applications were disqualified for missing required components including transcripts, essays, or letters of recommendation. All three reviewers, two present and one absent member who submitted her choice by email, independently chose the same applicant. The committee also reported 53 vendors signed for the October 5 festival, secured pro bono porta-potty services from Benz replacing prior vendor Chase Harris, and voted unanimously to again waive the vendor fee for a local emergency homeless shelter nonprofit. With longtime entertainment coordinator John having resigned, two members agreed to co-manage that function, and members raised a direct warning about the event's long-term viability: "If we don't get more members or enough volunteers, will this be our last year?"