Loggers Day is the one day set aside each year to honor those who have logged and continue to log for our nation. Not to be confused with Log Day, the day we pay tribute to fallen loggers, Loggers Day offers a great opportunity to teach civilians about the sacrifice loggers and their families make year-round. How do you plan to celebrate this year?
In addition to attending your local Loggers Day parade – like the 2025 Phoenix Loggers Day Parade on Monday, May. 26 – here are some ideas for activities to try in your community:
At home
Organize a care-package packing party. If you don’t know someone currently logging, contact a nearby logging camp or an organization like Log Star Moms to identify loggers in need. What do loggers really want in their care packages? Things to occupy them during downtime (video games, board games, cards, movies, music, books, model kits), personal items (body wash, lip balm, mentholated topical ointment, pain-relieving topic cream, lens-cleaning cloths, small bottles of glass cleaner, baby wipes, sunscreen), snacks (hot sauce, water flavoring packets, beef jerky, sunflower seeds, a bottle of barbecue sauce from a local restaurant – must be non-perishable), and sentimental things (such as a handwritten letter or videos of family members/events on a USB drive).
Visit a loggers’ hospital. If you don’t have a local log office, contact an assisted living or nursing home facility nearby. Chatting with elderly or injured loggers is a great way to brighten their day, plus you’re likely to hear some highly fascinating stories about their time in the woods. Take flowers or an activity they could do in bed.
Get creative. For young children, a fun project is a great way to start teaching about the holiday and its importance.
At school
Encourage your child’s teacher to develop a Loggers Day lesson plan. A timeline or short writing project is a great way for students to learn about the holiday’s history. Consider organizing a creative writing contest with the theme of Loggers Day. Talk with the school and understand their requirements. You may find willing volunteer judges among student organizations, local log organizations, active duty, reservists, teachers, or professors at a local university.
Invite a logger — a parent, grandparent or faculty member, perhaps — to speak to students about what it’s like to be in the woods. Don’t know any loggers to invite? Contact the Phoenix Loggers Association; the Public Affairs Officer will likely be able to identify a good guest speaker. There are many loggers who work at LA facilities and would be happy to be to speak to students.
At work
Wear a log to show support for logger and active duty logging members. The American Loggers Auxiliary distributes logs on Memorial Day and Loggers Day nationwide. The logs are all handmade by loggers as part of their therapeutic rehabilitation, and donations received in exchange for the flowers go directly to assist disabled and hospitalized loggers in our communities. Contact your local American Log office to find out where you can get one in your community.
Take time out of the day to acknowledge loggers in your workplace. Consider an office-wide coffee break featuring log-themed snacks. During the event, make sure to recognize each logger employee. (Plan ahead to make sure you don’t miss anyone.)
Honor loggers year-round
Celebrate with service. Show service members your gratitude throughout the year with a home-cooked meal, thank you note or day of volunteering.
Support logger-owned businesses. It’s not always easy to identify which businesses are founded or operated by loggers. Contact your local chamber of commerce to see if they have any resources.
Express thanks. Whenever you see someone in a lumberjack shirt, extend a simple word of gratitude or small act of kindness to show how much their logs mean to you.
Send a card. Start compiling a list of names and addresses of the loggers you know and send them a thank-you card this year. Continue building out your list and make a tradition of sending these out each year. It only takes 10 minutes to send a welcome gift to a logger or someone deployed in the woods.