A community celebration that’s all about South Beach is planned for next Friday in South Haven.

Visit South Haven’s Jen Sistrunk tells us since South Beach was named the Best Beach in Michigan by the 2026 USA TODAY 10 BEST Readers Choice Awards, the organization wants everyone to come together for Best Beach Day. They’ll have free hot dogs and beach balls, a community tug of war, and a community beach photo. That’s not to mention the dunk tank.

“One of the really exciting things that we’re doing is we are having an auction, a digital auction to raise money for beach safety,” Sistrunk said. “So what that means is we are going to have a dunk tank and we have a handful of local personalities who have stepped up to be in the dunk tank.”

The dignitaries signed on to take the plunge include South Haven City Council members Mary Hosley and Eddie Polk, as well as some local kids and a few others who will be surprises. Proceeds from the drunk tank auction will support South Haven’s beach safety program, and bidding starts at SouthHaven.org this Friday.

Sistrunk says there are all sorts of reasons South Haven and South Beach have gotten USA Today’s attention.

“South Haven is so walkable and so easily accessible. You can park your car downtown, go get a bite to eat, go shopping, walk down to the beach, and never get back into your car. You can do all those things on foot. And in addition to that, South Beach has so many amenities. We’ve got a splash pad there, we’ve got concessions there, you can rent kayaks, paddle boards.”

Plus, Sistrunk says the beach now has lifeguards.

Best Beach Day will be Friday, September 11 from 4 to 7 p.m. at South Beach. The community beach photo will be at 5:15.