3D Third District Today December 2014 Merry Christmas Published by Ron Martinsen, 3D Pub. Rel. Dir. 3D SofN Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/TheThirdDistrictoftheSonsofNorway The mission of Sons of Norway is to promote and to preserve the heritage and culture of Norway, to celebrate our relationship with other Nordic countries, and to provide quality insurance and financial products to its members. 1 Fra Presidenten, Mary B. Andersen Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas. (Calvin Coolidge) I love the holiday season. I love the smells, the food, the music and the good cheer that generally abounds. Yes, there is a lot of work and hustle and bustle, but, over all, it is good. So is our beloved Sons of Norway, it is good. Yes, it is a lot of work but the rewards are many. We had our first 3D Board meeting at Loyal Lodge in October and it was great! Many Board members were able to attend Loyal Lodge’s 90th Anniversary celebration; wow, 90 years! What a great celebration! I often wonder why some lodges make it and some don’t; why some lodges struggle so and others continue to stay afloat. Success leaves clues, let’s look at some of the clues left by Loyal Lodge: Ability to reach multiple generations – Loyal has varied programs and activities for all generations and interests. Fraternalism abounds – I will never forget my first District Convention. I was standing by myself at the entrance to a very crowded restaurant and there at a table, three hands starting waving at me and began to move over to make room at an already crowded table. I knew one person (Kris Rasmussen) and made two new friends (Torun Reduto and Karin Ryan-Reduto); I will never forget it. That is the first thing that comes to mind when I think of Loyal Lodge. That is fraternalism in action. Reminds me of the Maya Angelou quote “I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but, people will never forget how you made them feel.” Loyal made me feel great! Many helping hands – many people were hustling and bustling about; too many to name and I am afraid I would leave someone out. Fun – everyone had fun! There was a lot of laughter; a break from the everyday. The 3D Board meeting was followed shortly thereafter by the District President’s Council meeting in Minneapolis. District Presidents from across the Order met for two days to discuss issues and update each other on happenings in their respective Districts. There is a lot going on and much to be shared. You will hear more about the 3D Board meeting and the DPC meeting next year. For now, let’s just try to relax and enjoy the holiday season; enjoy each other’s company, laugh, eat great Norwegian delicacies and enjoy the moment. Let’s remember our Veterans and those who currently serve! God Jul og Godt nyttår, Mary Touch Hands 2 by William Henry Harrison Murray Ah friends, dear friends, As years go on and heads get gray, How fast the guests do go! Touch hands, touch hands, With those that stay. Strong hands to weak, Old hands to young, around the Christmas board touch hands. The false forget, the foe forgive, For every guest will go And every fire burn low And cabin empty stand. Forget, forgive, For who may say that Christmas day May ever come to host or guest again. Touch hands! Charitable Trust - Kathy Dollymore - Counselor Dear Brothers and Sisters, Thank you to all who supported the Third District Charitable Trust Raffle, the raffle committee who worked tirelessly getting tickets sold and all the members and nonmembers who bought those tickets. The event was a great success and raised over $1000. This will help to allow us continuing to provide modest support to District 3 members with subsistence and services critical to their physical, social and psychological well-being. We are truly a Tremendous Third District with Tremendous members. The drawing was held at the 2014 October 3D Board meeting and drawn by Fraternal Director Linda Pederson, our guest from Minnesota. The 3rd prize winner is Ruth and Paul Kornbrekke from Nansen #3-410. 2nd prize winner is Shirley Vincent from Gulfstream #3-514 and 1st prize winner is Mike Tilder from North Carolina Vikings #3-675.The raffle was one of the highlights of the afternoon. Thank you again for your generous donations. Mange Tusen Takk 3 Kathy Dollymore 3D Counselor State of LOV Report - Roy Berntsen, LOV Chair We are progressing. The LOV Board was elected at the district board meeting in October and it is my pleasure to announce the LOV Board. I was elected as a permanent Chair (prior to this I was the temporary Chair), Pierre Laliberte (Hartford) as building and grounds, Nancy Thorsen (Hartford) the secretary, Bill Karpack (Nor-Bu) the marketing chair, and Debra Martin (Norsemenn) the treasurer. We are planning a weekend board meeting at LOV in December/January. We are willing and ready to get the job done. We did have a snag with changing the bank account signers but on October 10th I signed the paperwork and the past due bills were written and mailed on October 13th. The rumor I heard around town was that LOV had a reputation of not paying their bills on time or at all. We need to change that opinion of LOV. We need our good reputation back plus it is difficult to have to pay for goods upon delivery. I was informed there was a monthly withdrawal for the Nurit credit card machine. That automatic withdrawal of $40.85 was removed from our account each month. It had not been cancelled and this automatic withdraw had been taken out since the closure of the building, for the past 11 months, costing LOV Ltd. $449.35 through October. Barbara called on October 22nd (she was on hold for about 30 minutes) to cancel the automatic account. She spoke to Austin and to cancel the automatic payment plan, George Beck would need to call them because his name is on the account. She contacted George asking him to call. George spoke to the Nurit representative and cancelled the automatic withdrawal that afternoon, on October 22nd. Our thanks go to George and Barbara for jumping that hurdle. The generator had been tested on October 15th and found in good shape and the fire extinguishers were evaluated and in good shape. LOV Caretaker Bill is in contact with the Food Safety Inspector and when LOV is inspected I will let everyone know in the State of LOV Report. I intend to visit several lodge meetings spreading the news and the latest updates about LOV. The donations are still coming in. We have received a wide range of donation amounts but we can never thank you enough to those who have donated and for those who are thinking about it, your donations are greatly appreciated and will be wisely spent. Helen and Barbara took a drive to open new accounts at NBT Bank and then stopped at LOV. They found the paperwork they were looking for and spent time going through the lodge. The kitchen needed attention and they threw out the half used old jars of food that had been left. They could not leave all the dirty dishes that were left in the refrigerator after the place was closed. Barbara brought them home to run through the dishwasher and we brought them back to LOV the following week. Thanks Helen and Barbara checking the hall and for helping out. Well, things are happening at LOV. This past week Barbara and I stayed in the manager’s house for a night to check the heating system. Fuel was delivered to keep the house warm and not cause additional pipes to burst. The plumber turned on the heat last week to prepare for the hunters staying the end of the month. There were only two leaks in the pipes for the radiators, which I was glad about, but we will need to repair the kitchen ceiling in 2 sections and the floor in the small bedroom upstairs. Keeping the heat at a minimal temperature is a better idea then draining the system and less costly. I had a long conversation with the plumber and I hope to have a definite price to start the replacement of the pipes. The system will be done in several zones so we can shut down and start up when we choose. Of course, this depends on a lot of items, but I have such a good feeling that we will be able to get this done if we all work together. Barbara joined me as her plan was to clean the stoves and the remainder of the kitchen before the food safety inspector accesses our facility so he can approve our annual certificate. She organized some of the shelves and bought clear shower curtains covering the shelves and tables with cooking pots and pans keeping off the dust. So the kitchen is in better condition and the pictures of the before and after are startling. We had our first visitors at LOV. On October 11 & 12 we had bow hunters use our property to go into the woods. They did not catch anything, but were glad to have a few days in nature.