Nordic Spirit 2019: Are We There Yet?
Date: Saturday April 13, 2019
Time: 11am to 6pm
On Exhibit: Historic images, travel stories and videos of our Immigrant Travel Stories.
Please come and share your stories!
Program:
11:30 Opening reception, music by Silver Winds
1:00 Scott Larsen: “The Titanic”
1:30 Our Travel Tales
3:30 Music by Sammenspil
4:00 James A.V. Bligh, Architect: “Scandinavian Design: Lessons for the Pacific Northwest from Copenhagen to Kirkenes”
Info: Carolyn Thauberger at cthauber12@gmail.com or 778 228-2334
How did your family get to Canada? What dangers and adventures did you encounter along the way? From the time of Leif Erikson until recently, travel from Nordic countries to Canada has been arduous and required people of imagination and resourcefulness, stamina, and courage. Somehow we all managed to get here. The Scandinavian Cultural Society wants to find out how you traveled for our Nordic Spirit 2019: How We Got Here April 13th and 14th at the Scandinavian Community Centre, 6540 Thomas Street in Burnaby.
The Scandinavian Cultural Society again invites members of our local community to contribute their photos, recollections and family stories of immigrant travel for this spring heritage photo show. Did you come from Norway with your family in a small fishing boat escaping from the German army like some members of our Norwegian community? One 14-year-old Swedish girl made her way alone from Ellis Island in New York to Silver Hill BC when her family left her behind until she could pass the immigrant health examination. These are fascinating stories. You may have similar tales in your family’s experience.
The 2019 Nordic Spirit show continues the Cultural Society’s program of heritage collection and preservation. The past eleven shows displayed primarily unpublished photos and stories from our members’ private collections together with text documenting our immigrant or later experience. Our new show continues this collection.
We are focusing on the period up to 1960 but some later information may also be useful.
As usual, we hope to work with our various Centre communities and other experts to gather and arrange photos and stories. Rolf Buschardt Christensen, President of the Federation of Danish Associations in Canada has already offered support in terms of material and photos he has gathered about early immigrant ships. Please offer your help too, both with donations of your heritage photos and information but also with your support on our organizing committees. We need help to collect material from each of our member countries. We also need technicians (paid) to scan and improve older photos and to help us set them into pages together with text for printing and framing. We also want people to prepare and present short talks of their experiences in traveling to Canada. Helping put together this show is rewarding work; you are helping to preserve our history as well as making a fine event for our Centre community.
To help or donate photos or information please contact Carolyn Thauberger at cthauber12@gmail.com or 778 228-2334
Supported by the Province of British Columbia and the Danish Canadian Community Centre.
