Sons of Norway Elvesvingen Lodge 1-582 December 12th: Julebord and Nordic Dancers December Servers: John Bungum Doug Johnson Please bring your favorite Co-Chairs: dish to pass for our Julebord! Karen Abbot and Curt Eidhammer Please mark your dishes and utensils with your name. Remember to wear your Table Decorations: bunad or Norwegian sweater! Pam Borchert Sons of Norway Elvesvingen Attention Minnesota Sweater Lovers! Lodge Board Members: Your chance has come to compete in our lodge’s Ugly Sweater Contest to be held at our annual President: Karen Abbott 381-3290 Julebord Holiday Party. Vice President: Vacant This does not include Norwegian wool sweaters, as Pam says she’s never seen one she doesn’t like. Secretary: Lois Kitzmann 344-1684 All are so beautiful, Uff-Da! Financial Secretary: Linda Stelter 388-7139 Come in your chosen attire and take along your Treasurer: Lynnell Pemble 245-3805 “ugly” sweater to change into after dinner. A fun game all can play and enjoy. T-shirts and sweat- Editor: Beth Barriga 202-1269 shirts will not qualify for a prize. For questions, call Pam Borchert 507-931-1511. Past President: Dean Kluge 317-0683 Counselor: John Bungum 327-1278 1 Sons of Norway Elvesvingen Lodge 1-582 Hilsen Fra Presidenten, Karen Abbott We all have plenty to be thankful for these days and I hope you had a great Thanksgiving celebration. Our first snow has fallen and we start to prepare for Christmas. The annual SON Julebord is on December 12th, in the basement of Bethlehem Lutheran Church at 5:30. For the potluck, please bring items either for the main meal, salad, or desert tables. Elvesvingen Lodge's Nordic Dancers will be providing the program. You can show your Norwegian pride by dressing in your bunads and sweaters, or you can wear or bring your ugly Christmas sweater for the ugly Christmas sweater contest hosted by Pam Borchert. We will be having a Nordic sale again. You are welcome to donate items for sale or a silent auction. I have a number of extra things due to our move to Madelia that I will be bringing. Last month we had a great banquet. The food, provided by Truffles, was delicious, and I would like to thank Lynnell Pemble and her family for helping with the serving. The program on Lappland and the Sami by Chris Falteisek was very informative and interesting. Chris also volunteered to play piano for the national anthems which was very nice. I found some interesting information from the Christmas in Norway page on the whychristmas.com site. Christmas wasn't celebrated in Norway until about 1000 or 1100, when Christianity first came to the area. Be- fore this people celebrated jul or jòl in the middle of winter. It was a celebration of the harvest gone and a way of looking forward to the spring. Lots of beer (juleol) was brewed and drunk in honour of the old pagan scandi- navian gods. Maybe the most famous custom about Christmas in Norway is the big Christmas Tree that Nor- way gives to the UK every year. The tree is given as a present to say 'thank you' for the help that the people of the UK gave to Norway during World War II. The tree stands in Trafalgar Square in the middle of London and often hundreds of people come to watch when the lights are turned on. A traditional Norwegian Christmas Tree decoration are small paper baskets called 'Julekurver' which (are) made in the shape of a heart. It's said that the writer Hans Christian Andersen might have invented them in the 1860s! Another tradition in parts of Norway is that families light a candle every night from Christmas Eve to New Year's Day. However you celebrate the Christmas season this year, whether at home or away, I hope you have some special traditions that you get to enjoy. And, if you feel like taking a little ride for your lutefisk, December 2nd is the lutefisk dinner at Chatfield Lutheran Church and December 6th at First Evangelical Lutheran Church in Worthington. You can check out further info on each church's website. God jul og godt nyttår!! December Birthdays Paul Olson 4 Marilyn Linnett 5 Stan Bruss 7 Johanna Hocker 8 Shirley Moody 16 Gratulerer med dagen! Pat Jensen 16 Peter Olson 16 John Bungum 17 Elizabeth Mueller 18 Lois Otto 19 Phyllis Olson 27 2 Sons of Norway Elvesvingen Lodge 1-582 November Member- ship dinner was a huge success! Thank you all for attending! Chris Falteisek, our speaker informed us of the lives and culture of the Sami people in Lapland. Karen handing Lois Kitzmann and Janice Ahlness for their literature pins. 3 Sons of Norway Elvesvingen Lodge 1-582 Karen and Oren Quist rolling and baking the lefse Phyllis Olson and Kathy Bruss - our leaders for the "Lefse Bake" Ladies putting the lefse in packages - Bonnie Sellner, - Janice Ahlness, - Jodie Wallschlaeger A total of 26 members of Sons of Norway rolled out the lefse and baked the lefse - a good job well done!!! Thank you everyone for your help! 4 Sons of Norway Elvesvingen Lodge 1-582 Nordic Sale! At the December julebord, we will Calling members! for the District be having our annual auction. If Convention in Cedar Rapids, IA on you would like to donate a gently used or homemade Norwegian June 9-11. Contact Karen Abbott by item, please bring it priced to sell February 13, if you are interested in or give a starting price to have as a attending. silent auction item. A huge thank you to all who helped with the lefse bake and Holiday Expo, especially Kathy Bruss, Phyllis Olson, and Cheryl Baumgard. The Holiday Expo was a huge success. Thank you to all the volunteers who January’s meeting theme will be “Show contributed in any way. and Tell.” Please bring an item/book/ bunad/stories regarding your Norwegian heritage. This has been a fun event in the past, and we look forward to learning about your past! If you don’t have an item, share an interesting fact or the rea- son you love Norway. Otherwise, simply come for an enjoyable meeting! Scholarships! We would like to continue to en- courage scholarship applications for Norwegian language camps in Skogfjorden, near Bemidji (ages 7 -18), or Masse Moro, near Eau Claire, WI (ages 9-15). The camps are in June and July each year, with one, two, or four week sessions. If your children, grand- children, or friends are interested, they can call Lois Kitzmann (507- Holiday Expo Helpers: Cheryl Baumgard, Lois Otto, 344-1684) for more information. Wayne Baumgard, Lois Kitzmann, Marlys Heller The youth do not need to be Leiding members of Sons of Norway to attend. 5 Sons of Norway Elvesvingen Lodge 1-582 P.O. Box 1091 Mankato, MN 56002 Calendar of Events Check out the Information Table: Julebord—Nordic Dancers ● Pick up information on area events, travel, Bethlehem Lutheran Church or SON financial products ***Basement*** 5:30pm ~ December 12, 2015 ● Sign up for Lodge events/volunteer oppor- tunities Show and Tell Bethlehem Lutheran Church ● View a copy of recent Lodge Minutes/ Heritage Room Treasurer’s Report 11:00am ~ January 9, 2016 ● Check out the SON newsletter for children under 15 ● Stop by to ask a question Visit us on the web! www.sonsofnorwaymankato.org - www.sofn.com Like us on Facebook! www.facebook.com/mankatosonsofnorway 6 .