LOLA Arts Hosts Mom Prom Night for Ladies in Watersmeet This May

LOLA Arts is bringing a new kind of spring social to Watersmeet this May: Mom Prom, a three-hour evening of live music, dancing, and socializing billed as "A Night by the Ladies, for the Ladies." The event runs Saturday, May 30 from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. at Northern Navetta, a newly built venue on a 30-acre property bordering Ottawa National Forest.

The venue is part of the draw. Northern Navetta is a two-story wedding barn with three ponds, nature trails, a skywalk, and a covered bridge; its name itself carries cultural weight. "Navetta" is the Finnish word for barn, a nod to the deep Finnish heritage woven into Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The property primarily hosts weddings and private events, making Mom Prom one of its first publicly accessible community gatherings.

Land O' Lakes Area Arts, which operates under the name LOLA, is framing the night as deliberately low-key. The event is open to women of all ages, mothers and non-mothers alike, with organizers encouraging attendees to dress however feels comfortable and to bring friends. The Boulder Junction Chamber of Commerce, which promoted the event on its own calendar, described LOLA as "turning up the music and bringing the sparkle with a brand-new event."

The organization behind Mom Prom operates with a notably small footprint. Founded in 2008 after what its organizers describe as an overwhelming community response calling for more arts access, LOLA runs on just two staff members and a volunteer board. Its service area spans Langlade, Vilas, Oneida, Iron, and Lincoln Counties in Wisconsin, as well as the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, making community partnerships central to its sustainability.

LOLA's connection to Watersmeet runs deeper than a single Saturday night. The organization has maintained an active partnership with the Watersmeet Township School District since a November 2016 school board vote, and its annual programming includes Youth Art Month exhibitions showcasing student work from Watersmeet K-12. At its home base at 4262 County Highway B in Land O' Lakes, LOLA shares its building with the Artistree Gallery Cooperative, which displays work from more than 30 artists living within 100 miles of town. Its Car Park Music Series, a free 10-week summer concert series held at the Snowflake building in Land O' Lakes, is among its most visible recurring programs.

For Northern Navetta, Mom Prom offers an early opportunity to introduce the western U.P. community to what the space can hold beyond weddings. For LOLA, it is the kind of event the organization has built its identity on: accessible, community-rooted, and designed to bring people together across a region where arts programming can be hard to come by. Capacity and ticketing details are available through LOLA Arts at 715-547-3950.