Hvad er nyt?
(What's new?)
May in Colorado brought showers and snow. The first day of summer was cold, and in the mountains, over 1 1/2 feet of snow, with skiing until the fourth of July. Then comes June 27 and the temperatures are in the 90s. Welcome to Colorado where the weather keeps you guessing.
Since our President, Birgitte Jappe Ross has moved to Louisiana, the Board members have graciously accepted the role of acting President at the meetings until elections in November. In April, Past President, Chris Hix presided over the meeting and in May, Theresa Sorenson. We had two presentations: Ethel Jergensen Evans gave a very informative talk about the migration of Danes to the U.S. starting in the 1800s. She spoke of the difficulty, time and expense of immigrants packed in steerage compartments for 4-8 weeks. She personalized her story by telling of her own families start as immigrants. Melinda (Mindy) Brown told of her great-grandfather (Rev. Mathias Nissen Andreasen (1871-1943) being presented the King Christian X’s Liberty Medal. The medal is awarded for special services to Denmark during World War II during the German occupation. The medal was awarded to those having contributed to Denmark’s survival from abroad. Congratulations to Sister Bergen Evans who is a 2019 high school graduate and a recipient of the Betty Hansen Scholarship for $2500. We are so excited for Sister Lynne McEarchen who is doing well after surgery and the completion of her cancer treatment. She’s back to work and coming to Sisterhood meetings. In the early years of Ellen Lodge 21, meetings were held in a variety of “Halls” near downtown Denver. One in particular has become significant. From 1905 to 1920 the Brotherhood and Sisterhood meetings were held at 2700 Arapahoe St. (Dania Hall). The new owner of the building, Meghan Frank, contacted Pia Edgar a couple months ago requesting information about the years Ellen Lodge resided at this address. Since the annual picnic on June 15 was approaching, Pia invited Meghan to join us. There were 32 in attendance (including Meghan and her mother, Molly Frank), so she was able to pick our brains about the history of the Sisterhood and traditions from the past (passwords, being blackballed). Ellen Lodge artifacts, including our Heritage Book with snippets of past meetings, were on display for her research. The reason for her interest in the Sisterhood: Meghan is the artistic Director of the Artibus Theatre which will be housed on the 2nd floor of the building. She is developing a play about the different clientele that occupied space at 2700 Arapahoe since it was built in 1899. Meghan has invited us to take a tour of the building which is known as Savoy at Curtis Park. In its heyday, Five Points, where the Savoy is located, was well known for its music scene and social clubs with large wooden ballroom floors just like the Savoy’s. In the 21st century the area is becoming an integral part of Denver’s revitalization. We are so excited to visit the building, to be part of the play and of course, go see the play at its completion. It was great meeting Meghan and Molly, and we wish them a prosperous future with her historical building and the Artibus Theatre. This was our 3rd year to spend a day in the mountains at the “Edgar Resort for our June picnic. Pia, Sam Edgar and family, along with Pia and Renee Hansen were perfect hostesses. As always, the picnic had a theme and this year: Pølse Traditions, Pølser and Pølsevogne – Sausages and Sausage Carts – Hotdogs and hotdog stands. They even had aprons that said “Pia’s Pølse Vogn and Sam’s Sausage Cart“. I knew the Danes love their hotdogs, but I did not know one could actually make a very difficult quiz about the history of hotdogs, but leave it to Pia. There were 15 questions and most of us failed it miserably. And who got more right than anyone? The youngsters. I’m not sure, but I don’t “think” you’d know the answers without Google. Just sayin!!! :-) As mentioned before, Colorado had a very wet Spring and Mother Nature did not disappoint on the day of the picnic. By the time most of us arrived and said our hellos, the rain came down. But as Pia found out last year, their property can accommodate 32 of us inside as well as out. No matter the location, everyone always has a great time visiting and enjoying the yummy food (including boiled and grilled beef and pork hotdogs) supplied by the Sisters and friends attending the picnic. We all went home with a bag of “Sasquatch (Bigfoot) Turds” – Wildflower clay seed bombs. All you have to do is chuck em anywhere. Can’t wait to see what they grow up to be. Ellen Lodge will have a caravan travelling to Omaha for the National Convention. We hope to see you there. Chris Jensen Hix – Past President
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2019 for Ellen Lodge #21 started off at the annual Board Meeting with all members present. President Gitte began the meeting with the announcement that she is moving. She will join her husband, Jeff, who moved one year ago for a new job. She has graciously continued her duties as President and Craft Chairperson for the last year as well as all the duties of home owner and head of family. We appreciate her dedication to the Sisterhood! A review of 2018 accomplishments followed. The Trollheim Lodge Christmas Fair yielded the largest profit ever made from our craft fairs. Memberships – We were excited to welcome two new members but will miss three members due to moves and saddened by the loss of three long-time members, one member of 62 years, who passed away. Attendance has been good averaging 12-18 members per meeting. The website has been very successful due to a major face-lift by Sister volunteers. Charity donations totaling almost 4-figures in addition to donations-in-kind were given to the Windmill and several local organizations. Areas designated for improvement are financial processes, increased social activities, and more Heritage presentations. To minimize financial and physical expenditures for meeting hosts, the Board will recommend to membership that members bring a sack lunch with the hostess(es) providing beverages and dessert. Goals for January to July 2019 were discussed. Actively seek new members. Consider selling crafts at the National Convention in Omaha in October. Continue charity donations. Complete the repair and addition of pages to the Membership Book. Find replacement(s) for Gitte as Craft Chairperson. Find additional volunteers for the DSN and Danish Pioneer articles. At the February meeting find and appoint delegates to the District Convention to be held in Omaha just prior to the National Convention. Also needed is an alternate delegate to the National Convention. Encourage non-compliant members to submit their biographies for the Heritage Book so it can be completed quickly. An audit of financial records is scheduled for the February membership meeting. Past President Chris brought the February meeting to order in the absence of the President with 18 members present. A thank-you letter from one of our members who had undergone major brain surgery was read. She is doing remarkably well and thanked everyone for their cards, flowers and prayers. The Trustees reports showed that Sisters ill or in need were making progress. Sisters continue to visit them. Two new members were welcomed and initiated – Joyce and Merrily. Two of our newer members, Pia H. and Mindy, have volunteered to take over the Craft Chairperson duties. The sessions will be held at Mindy’s home with the first session March 12 and proposed every two weeks. The members extended our gratitude for stepping up and contributing with crafts, heritage, hosting and Sunshine Committee. Members were reminded to complete bios for the Heritage book and volunteer to present Heritage or show-and-tell. Thank-yous for the 2018 charity contributions were shared with the Lodge. Linda, delegate to the 2019 National Convention, Pia E., Chris, and Gitte prepared proposals for changes to the National By-Laws including several housekeeping items. These were presented and approved by the Lodge. District and National Convention delegates were discussed and proposed. Past President Chris also reported that the National Board may be contacting the NE/CO District Lodges to help with convention duties. The 2019 Directory was distributed. We thanked Kathy for doing such a great job with publishing. It looks great! The Past President presented a 10-year pin to Violet. Scholarship applications were approved for David and Bergen. The camp scholarship for Brenna was also approved. The Museum of Danish America’s traveling exhibition on Scandinavian Spirits will be at the Greeley Historical Museum through July 20. Members agreed on future discussion for a road trip. The meeting was closed as usual and our first brown bag lunch followed. Our hosts, Kathy and Glenda, as well as members thought it worked out very well and members look forward to more. After lunch Theresa gave an interesting Heritage presentation on the family history including interesting frescos at the local church where many of her family are buried. Our first craft session was held March 12. Pia H. and Mindy not only had several new types of crafts to show us but had organized a new process to allow members to work on multiple types of craft projects and even take some crafts home to work on. They are certainly following in President Gitte’s footsteps but also forging ahead with a lot of new ideas. Go, Ladies! The March meeting was called to order by President Gitte followed by the usual traditions and housekeeping processes. Old Business included an update on the Heritage book including reminders to turn in delinquent biographies, Birthe volunteering to co-host the August meeting with Anna, and Glenda, Linda, and Lynne volunteering to host the Christmas luncheon. New Business included discussion on the National Convention alternate with Chris stepping up to that position. Pia E. gave an update on the Artifact inventory project. Sisters Tita and Gitte were presented 10-year pins. Paula will receive her 25-year pin at a future meeting. Out-going President Gitte gave a quick review of her memorable times as an officer of the Lodge and her time with the members. The Lodge thanked Gitte for her service and friendship and presented her with a silver necklace in the shape of a heart enclosing a silhouette of the mountains and an antique Lodge membership ribbon. Gitte reciprocated by presenting the Lodge with a beautiful vase and candle holder. It was a tearful goodbye. The meeting closed with the usual activities and another brown bag lunch hosted by Tita and Ethel who provided drinks, crab and Caesar salads, cookies and brownies! Ellen Lodge #21 is off to a good start in 2019! Respectfully submitted, Joanna Christensen, 3rd Trustee Oh my, our first crafting day of 2019 took place yesterday - talk about going "Above and Beyond". Mindy and Pia H. hosted our first crafting day of 2019 and it was a huge success with 12 Ellen Lodge members attending. Beautiful, unique and very organized projects were ready to go and all dived in with enthusiasm. In addition to getting things done, there was of course social time and lunch to which Dorthe contributed a delicious apple cake, yum! There was a surprise in store for all as well, Arlene and Glenda had made very cute needle-keeper ladies for all the crafters - thank you to both for taking the time and effort, we are all very grateful! Please see the pictures from craft day on this blog!
Pia E. When this reaches publication, 2019 will be in full swing and so “Godt Nytår” to each and everyone of our DSS sisters, brothers and your loved ones.
As I sit here, wondering where to begin this chapter of Ellen Lodge #21 updates, I have in front of me three pictures of Sisters our Lodge lost in 2018. Winnie J. passed away on August 21, Cheryl S. on August 26 and Grethe J. in November. All longtime members of Ellen Lodge, with beautiful smiles, a “glimt i øjet” (glint in the eye) and an ability to instill life into whatever they had their hands in. We have celebrated them and given tribute to all they have given to us. They contributed so much to our Lodge through the years. Their spirits will linger for a long, long time. In July, our Board held their semi-annual meeting and based on the two pages of resulting minutes with review of 2018 accomplishments, 2019 Lodge goals, current and future projects, plans and committee activities, I would say they are serving us well! There is always something happening for everyone. In August, Dorthe B. and Theresa S. hosted our general meeting and there was a lot on the agenda, but if you want to have fun, sometimes you must buckle down and take care of business first – framework and cornerstones – we keep that sturdy and we can do whatever we put our minds to. Some of the major agenda items were the upcoming Nebraska/Colorado District meeting in Lincoln, Nebraska and items we wanted our delegates to focus on; a planned review of the DSS National Constitution in preparation for the 2019 National Convention; updated Ellen Lodge membership books and multiple suggestions from Christine H. for “field trips” throughout the year. Sisters were rewarded with a beautiful lunch of ham and cheese croissants and cake with fresh fruit for dessert. Of course, social time and catching up with everyone is always an integral part of getting together. August 24-25, Delegate Theresa S. and Alternate Christine H. took the eight-hour road trip to Lincoln, Nebraska to represent us at the Nebraska-Colorado District meeting. Theresa wrote up the best and most thorough District report I have ever seen – so well done! Wow, we are so lucky, to be very well represented by both our delegates who are not afraid to dive in and get the jobs done. Sounds like it was a very well organized and interesting convention with a productive business meeting, multiple thought-provoking and pertinent speakers, great social time, fun raffles, a silent auction and did I hear whisperings of Ellen Lodge hosting the next District Convention? The news in September was that our Sister Alicia S. was moving to Iowa! The only consolation is knowing that our Sisters in Davenport will be lucky to have her around. We will miss her so much and we hope she will be happy where she is now growing new roots. The other big news was that Linda B. was elected as our Delegate to the 2019 DSS National Convention in Omaha and Theresa S. our Alternate. Thanks to both for stepping up. It is a very important, time consuming and involved undertaking to keep that “framework and cornerstone” in place for all of us. Sisters Chris H. and Malinda R. have taken on updating our Heritage Book which contains individual biographies of Ellen Lodge Sisters, Ellen Lodge history and member records as well as Colorado and Danish history – no minor undertaking and we are thankful and looking forward to it! Kathy H. and Glenda H. hosted a wonderful September lunch. October Luncheon – our annual birthday celebration for Ellen Lodge 2018 was the 126th. This year it was hosted by Joanna C. and Inge N. at a small bistro at the bottom of the Rocky Mountain foothills. Great company, good conversation – lots of opportunity to catch up - great food and a beautiful table with Danish flags, heart vases with flowers and berries – enough for everyone to take one home – what more could we ask for? It was a terrific gathering. Afterwards, a couple of us stopped by to visit with Judy M. who is in a care center close by. She enjoyed table favors we brought her, hearing about the luncheon and getting updates on her Sisters. We surely enjoyed spending time with her as well. The first weekend in November was the annual Norwegian Trollheim Craft Fair – a three-day long affair of pricing and packing the crafts we have made; hauling them from here to there and back again; setting them up on display; sales; repairs; more sales. In her August 2018 DSN article, Chris H. mentioned our yearlong craft project. It started as an annual Christmas crafts get together years ago and has since bloomed into a major production of Christmas crafts we sell. It has become our biggest source of income for the Lodge and 2018 saw the biggest profit ever! The entire project is however so much more than a money maker. The monthly, and as the year moves on bi-weekly, craft sessions provide us an opportunity to be together and really “connect” AND we learn something. We usually are about eight sisters but this year, as it became crunch time and things needed to be done, 13 showed up. Talk about buckling down. Not only that, many sisters have taken “work” home throughout the year and we are grateful for the dedication. Our creative “motor” and hostess for those sessions is our President, Birgitte R., who has the talent, the energy and not to mention the patience to keep us all moving and stitches on point! For that reason, we recognized her with a tribute during our November meeting. Thank you, Gitte. Speaking of the November meeting – well it was pretty much a “slip and slide” trek to get there but several of us made it both there and back home safely. It was worth it, our hostesses Chris H. and Malinda R. had fixed a wonderful lunch and we had a great business meeting with election of officers – the entire 2018 Board was unchallenged and agreed to stay on for 2019, there was a bit of reshuffling of positions and Joanna C. stepped up to become 3rd Trustee. Thanks to everyone! We also decided which charities to support, we usually decide this on an annual basis: Season to Share, the Danish Windmill in Elk Horn, Iowa, and the DSS National Disaster Relief Fund. Two to three times a year we also collect $ and much needed items for the Mountain Peace Shelter – it was decided to collect again in December. On November 28th President Birgitte invited us all to “Julestue” (Christmas hygge) to finally nail down the art of making that elusive three-dimensional Christmas star as well as paper hearts. Ten brave sisters showed up. Birgitte, with the patience of a saint, guided us through the process. After much mumbling, grumbling and one “flying” star, most produced a star, a few like myself let Gitte apply the final touches to the worn-out paper strips which had been folded without success again and again and again. Despite the frustration and with a little help from some æbleskiver, homemade cookies and gløg, we had a wonderful time. So, then it was time for our Christmas party, this year hosted by Birgitte R. and yours truly. We had quite the crowd of Sisters young, old and in between. We had a beautiful table with a table “runner” of greens intermixed with the largest paper stars ever seen I believe and candle table decorations which were later offered up as door prizes. Our hostess cooked a pork roast and gravy and everyone else brought the trimmings including ris-a-la-mande with TWO almond prizes to be had. Christmas hymns were sung, in Danish as well as English. Gifts were handed out by a couple of our younger “nisser”. Then, Sister Jeralyn W. had offered to read us a funny Christmas story – little did I know I should have pre-screened this salacious tale of the life size blow-up doll – do I need to say any more except for the fact that it had us all in stitches! It was a wonderful Christmas party. We capped the events for the year with an outing arranged by Chris H. to see “A Christmas Carol” at the Miners Alley Playhouse in Golden, Colorado. We started with lunch at Jolynn’s and then on to the play. Once again, another good laugh was had by all as this was not a traditional production of the play but had a comedic twist while still honoring the original version. Excellent play and we thank Chris for taking the initiative. While busy with meetings, crafting and outings, we try to keep our shut-ins and out-of-state Sisters in mind. We miss having them around on a regular basis. On that note, Ellen Lodge has a new and much improved website/blog, thanks to Sister Emily E.: https://danishsisterhoodcolorado.weebly.com. Please check it out – there are photo montages of both Winnie, Cheryl and Grethe and you will see for yourself what I have attempted to put into words. You can also check out pictures from most of our meetings as well as the craft production and sale. This website, by the way, is an excellent tool for keeping in touch with our shut-ins who have told us that they particularly appreciate the pictures. Going above and beyond – we have so many Lodge Sisters who do just that - thank you! We are looking forward to seeing you all at National Convention in Omaha! In Sisterhood Spirit, Pia Edgar Past President, Ellen Lodge #21, Denver, Colorado This has been quite a productive year so far. For years, a small group of members, led by Pia E. and Birgitte R., have been working to organize and catalog all of Ellen Lodge 21 books, documents, photos and artifacts. It’s pretty amazing how many items an organization can accumulate in 100+ years. Thanks to the Museum of Danish America, Ellen Lodge was able to donate archival material (minutes, record books, songbooks etc.) unique to our lodge to their genealogy center. These items will be added to the DSS National Board collection. Other items such as the National constitution and duplicate items that they already have may be sent to the Danish American Archive and Library, another appropriate home or returned to Ellen Lodge. At the April meeting the members voted on which items should stay with our lodge and what items should be shipped to Iowa. Once that decision was made, the ladies separated what was staying and what was being donated. The items to be donated, were packed up and sent with Theresa S., who personally drove to Elk Horn, and delivered the items to the Museum. It’s a great feeling to know that our lodge history will be in safe keeping for years to come. We also initiated two new members into our lodge: Pia H. and Mindy B. Pia became an official member at the April meeting and Mindy was initiated at the June picnic. They are both a great addition to our Ellen Lodge family. Our second annual Mountain picnic was on June 16, held at the home of Sam and Pia E., co-hosted by Birgitte R. As always, they were the perfect host filling our day with a welcoming atmosphere, games, contests, food supplied by attendees, and great conversations. There were 35 in attendance which included members, family and friends. The youngest members and guests were challenged to a lego contest. They were given until 1 pm to build a winning lego display. Alas, all teams won. The adults were also challenged in the “Whatchamacallit Thingamabob” contest. It was our job to figure out the proper use of a variety of items. There were some interesting guesses and at least one person would actually know the name and use of each item. The only drawback being in the mountains is that the weather is so unpredictable. Between the wind and the “sprinkling”, we all were in, then out, then in…..But again our hosts adapted and everything went on as planned. Pia found out she could accommodate a lot more people in her house than first thought. Being indoors made it easier for everyone to keep tabs on the World Cup soccer game since Denmark was playing. The good news at the time was that they won that game even though they lost later in the week. A big thank you to Pia and her family for a fun day away from the hustle and bustle of the city. We also use the picnic as a great time to collect gift cards and much needed items such as shampoo, conditioner, laundry detergent, etc. for the Mountain Peace Shelter. The shelter assists families of domestic violence. We also collect clothes and other household items for the Platte Canyon Community Partnership resale boutique. Money from the boutique goes back into the community to provide financial assistance for the backpack project which supplies weekend meals for children throughout the school year, high school scholarships to graduate students from area high schools, Boys and Girls Club and to the Mountain Peace Shelter. On the first weekend in November Ellen Lodge is invited to participate in the annual Trollheim Christmas Craft Fair. It is our one constant money maker for the year. So, every month a note is put in our lodge minutes stating when the next craft session will take place. Birgitte R. is the creative mind behind 99% of our projects. Six to eight of us meet at her house and attempt to duplicate the different craft ideas she puts before us. By November, we have enough items to display and sell at the fair. Every year we discuss whether we want to continue the crafts and so far the answer has always been “yes”. It’s such a great way to spend time with our Sisters. So, as long as our creative leader is willing, we’ll keep making our crafts. 2018 has also been a year for severe weather: Snow, drought, hurricanes, floods and now fires. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all of you and your family to keep you safe and out of harms way. Christine Jensen Hix Past President Ellen Lodge #21 Annual Picnic Saturday June 16, 2018 11 A.M. Picture: Pia’s Grandmother Arla’s favorite pastime was a “skovtur” (trip to the woods/picnic) with family and friends Bedstefar (Grandpa) Alfred, Farmor (Grandma) Arla and Mor (mom) Anna Lis ca. 1961 Wikipedia states: “A picnic is a meal taken outdoors as part of an excursion – ideally in scenic surroundings, such as a park, lakeside, or other place affording an interesting view …. an isolated spot (a nest) where family or friends can enjoy a meal together away from the distractions, demands, and public nature of a communal life.... and usually in the summer.” Also, let’s not forget the fun and games. How about a Lego challenge for the kids and any adult who still feels like a kid? And, remember our 2010 “What is it?” challenge? Let’s do it again – bring a “whatchamacallit thingamabob” so we can all give our take on what it may be. So bring your family – once again, don’t forget the kids, grandkids, great grandkids - to 1343 Tapadero Road in Bailey on June 16th at 11 a.m. Details What: Ellen Lodge #21 Annual Picnic Who: Everyone and their families Where: “Westfork” – 1343 Tapadero Rd. Bailey Colorado 80421 Contact: Pia 303-883-0200 Bring: 1. Food item to share – please sign up on separate sign-up sheet or contact Pia 2. Picnic/lawn chair if you have one We provide: meat (BBQ provided by the lodge), condiments, drinks, fun and games Suggestions/information: We recommend leaving the high heels at home but bring sunscreen, a hat and light jacket. We are at almost 9000 feet. We ask everyone to please refrain from smoking. Directions: Google maps will work but just in case:
Let us know who will be joining us, including the ages of kids if any and what food item you will bring to share. We hope to see you for a day in the Rockies on June 16th Hosting: Pia and Sam Co-hosting: Gitte and Jeff Ellen Lodge 21, Colorado
Our first meeting was held on February 17, 2018 at Sister Tita Jergensen’s house. Since it was the first meeting of the year we had several things to discuss and go through for 2018. We started the meeting by welcoming our guest, Pia H. who will be our newest member of our lodge at our April meeting. Also Shaun, who is the father of our young members Brenna and Keelin, he was there to see his daughters receive their Sisterhood pin. Brenna and Keelin are the granddaughters of Sister Theresa. We also have another young member Bergen, who is the granddaughter of our Sister Ethel, Bergen also received her Sisterhood pin at this meeting. Our lodge is so happy to have so many young members to be interested in our heritage and enjoying the Danish traditions. We started supporting the Mountain Peace Shelter last year and will continue in 2018. The shelter provides emergency shelter, advocacy and support services, and a 24/7 crisis hotline. We donate the most needed items as well a gift cards, that the residents can use for gas, diapers and other necessities. We collect donations at our Summer Picnic, October Luncheon and at our Christmas Luncheon. Our lodge has also set up a Sunshine committee that will visit Sisters in need. Sister Tita has taken the lead with this committee. We have several elderly Sister that need our attention, and they will get visits and cards to brighten their day. We have a new website, thanks to Sister Pia E. and Sister Emily. It is beautiful and we are very grateful for all the work they put in it. Please have a look at it on danishsisterhoodcolorado.weebly.com After our meeting we were served a delicious lunch of “make your own Danish open sandwiches”. It was served in the perfect Danish style. Thank you to Sister Tita and Sister Ethel, and with a lot of help from Sister Bergen. Our March meeting was held at Sister Lynne's clubhouse in Centennial, CO. We welcomed three guests this time, Sister Dorthe's daughter-in-law Paulina and granddaughter Ella. Also Sister Theresa brought her granddaughter Alicia. Our Sister Alicia is currently working on updating our membership directory and it should be ready in April. Our meeting was short and swift and we handed the over the word to Sister Pia E. who gave us an amazing presentation of Haandarbejdets Fremme (Handcrafters Guild). The Guild is celebrating their 90th anniversary on March 20th with an exhibition in Greve Museum, DK where our Queen Margrethe II and Crown Princess Mary will attend the opening. Sister Pia E. brought us on a journey of the cross stitch. It was very interesting and in ways surprising where this craft started and has move to and onward. Being a lodge that enjoys crafting, Sisters brought cross stitch that they had and it was presented on 6 long tables and stories were told about what each Sister brought. It was a wonderful afternoon. Sister Birgitte had set up a table with cross stitch lesson for those who wanted to learn how to cross stitch. Little heart pattern had been made before hand and our young members and guests had a go at stitching. They all did a great job! Sister Lynne and Sister Glenda servered us a lovely lunch, with quiche and salad and a delicious homemade cake. It was a great day of hand craft and socializing. Ellen Lodge 21 will meet again in April with business, more heritage and socializing. Submitted by Birgitte Jappe Ross Ellen Lodge 21 President The kids are back to school and the nights are cooler which means Summer is coming to an end. As much as I hate to say goodbye, I always look forward to Fall and watching the colors change. It’s such a beautiful time of the year.
Even though Ellen Lodge 21 takes a break from our monthly meetings, we still have plenty of hi-lites to mention. First of all, did you know that Mount Rushmore was created by a Danish Sculptor? At the April meeting, Judy gave a report on Gutzon Borlum (1867-1941). His father was a Danish Mormon. He is best known for Mount Rushmore. He not only created the model, but he also picked the site for the sculptor. In his spare time he also sculpted 100 apostles and saints for the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York and designed the Stone Mountain sculpture in Atlanta, Georgia, plus a sculpture of Abraham Lincoln that was exhibited in the White House by Theodore Roosevelt. Theresa's granddaughters, Brenna and Keelin, were initiated into our lodge. Not only did they join the Sisterhood, but they also got to celebrate their 10th birthday with all their new Danish Sisters on April 15. The Museum of Nature and Science in Denver hosted the “Vikings Beyond the Legion” exhibit April through August. Ellen Lodge 21 was invited to be part of the Scandinavian Festival held at the museum on May 7. Our lodge, along with the Denver Danes, represented the Danish community in Denver. It was a one day event that featured dancing, singing, knitting, food, rosemaling patterns for children to color and much much more. The museum welcomed 5200 guests that day and many of them attended this wonderful event. June means it’s time for our Annual Lodge Picnic. This year it was very special because it was held in the mountains at Pia’s new home. Moving to the mountains was a dream come true for Pia's family and thank goodness, she wanted to share it with her Ellen Lodge family. Birgitte, her husband Jeff, Pia and her husband Sam hosted the picnic with the assistance of Sam and Pia's daughter Emily and her boyfriend Joel. After a long drive we were pleasantly surprised to find our host family waiting for us to arrive with “valet parking”. They were all so organized from beginning to end. There were 35 in attendance with many of them first time guests. We had a family of four, the Hansen’s, who had just moved to Colorado, join us, the family of Ronnie Tronoe, owner of the Taste of Denmark Bakery in attendance, husbands, sons and daughters…….It was great to see such family participation. The porch was lined up with a main course of pulled pork, baked beans, vegetables, salads and of course, desserts. The food was delicious and no one went home hungry. Our honored guest was Bergen (15), granddaughter of Sister Ethel. Bergen’s entire family was present to see her initiated as our newest member of Ellen Lodge. Our hostess Pia, always wanting to test our knowledge of Denmark, gave us a fun quiz. A few of the attendees (Inge and Judy) did quite well earning them a prize. Some of us didn’t do as well. If they’d had a prize for the lowest score, I think I would have won. There was plenty of room to hike the property or play games that had been set up, but most of us just enjoyed visiting with each other. Thank you to the host families for making this day so special. It was a perfect setting for a perfect day. With no scheduled events in July, The lodge Board met on a Saturday to review the past year and make plans for 2018. We have continued to have craft sessions once a month for the Trollheim craft fair to be held November 3rd and 4th. The crafts are time consuming, but it is such a fun way to spend time with Sisters. Of course, Danes can’t do anything without food, so we always take some time off to have lunch prepared by one or two of the Sisters in attendance. Thanks goes out to Birgitte for sharing her home and for coming up with all the craft ideas. Now that summer is coming to an end, it’s time to get back to our monthly meetings, discuss plans for the October luncheon, the Christmas gathering, donations to make, organizations to sponsor. All this was discussed at our first official meeting of the summer in August. Joanna also gave a heritage report on her great grandmother with numerous photo albums. We were all envious of how many ancestral family photos she has acquired along with her organizational skills to put them in a semblance of order. Sister Dorthe’s son, Daniel was deployed to Afghanistan. His wife Paulina and their children moved from Hawaii and will be living with Dorthe until Daniel’s return. Our members have really enjoyed getting to know Paulina. She has already shown us her creative talent at our craft sessions. She also proved she knows her way around the kitchen by making her potato salad recipe from Equador for the August lodge meeting. We are so pleased that she will be able to share her time with us while in Colorado. Thoughts and prayers to our Danish Sisters and Brother’s and the men and women serving our country throughout the Nation. Submitted by Chris Ellen Lodge #21,Past President Ellen Lodge 21 held the first meeting of the New Year in February at Sister Tita’s home. We had a busy meeting with the budget for 2017, charity and our revised by-laws. Thanks to our very dedicated Sisters, Chris, Jeralyn and Pia for working on the update of our by-laws. Ellen Lodge 21 members discussed the changes at this meeting and some suggestions and additions were made.
We have added an additional charity, Totes for Hope which helps school children, who are on reduced or free lunches at one of our local elementary schools here in Colorado, get food for the weekends. We are doing a canned food drive at our monthly meetings to help feed these children and their families. The Food Bank of the Rockies is also helping us fill the Totes for Hope. We will also be helping once a month with packing the food for the children at a local church. This program will start in April and with the hope of making life better for these children and their families. Another charity that we will consider next year is The Blue Bench, a suggestion by Sister Tita. We are again this year doing our craft at Sister Birgitte’s house once a month and will be selling it in November at the Christmas craft sale at the Sons of Norway Lodge. It is a lovely social gathering with lots of crafts, lunch and a good deal of chatting and laughter. We have several members this year who have received their 10 and 25 year membership pins, Kathy, David and Keven 10 years and Magaret, Glenda and Judy 25 years. Congratulations to all of you and thank you for your dedication to our lodge. We also have 3 new members that will be initiated at our April meeting. Theresa’s 2 granddaughters, Keelin and Brenna and also Ethel's granddaughter, Bergen. We look forward to welcoming these 3 young ladies to our lodge. Our activity committee, is coordinating an outing for the lodge to go and see the The Viking exhibit at the Museum of Nature and Science in Denver. This wonderful exhibit started on March 10th and will run till August 13th, 2017. Looking forward to the trip. This February meeting was long, but we were rewarded with delicious smørrebrød (Danish open sandwiches) prepared by Sister Tita and Sister Ethel, followed by coffee, tea and beautiful Valentines cookies and raspberries. No one went home hungry! It was a great afternoon seeing everyone again after the Christmas vacation and catching up. The weather even behaved. You never know what the Colorado weather will present us with! Our March meeting was held at Sister Birgitte's house. We had a much shorter meeting than in February. On the agenda was the approval of our by-laws and they were approved. Sister Judy has spent many hours putting all the photos from the National Convention in albums and we will help put captions by the photos at our next meeting in April. Thank you to Sister Judy for all her hard work. Sister Judy is now handing over the Historian job to Sister Malinda and as a thank you to Sister Judy we gave her a scrapbook album. We adjourned our meeting and Sister Birgitte gave a presentation about the Danish author Karen Blixen with photos from Birgitte's and her husband’s trip to Denmark and Karen Blixen's home last year. Then time for lunch, which was prepared and served by Sister Birgitte and Sister Pia. Freshly baked croissants, from our Danish bakery Taste of Denmark, which was filled with pesto, ham and cheese, accompanied by a delicious salad prepared by Sister Pia. The dessert was a good old fashioned Danish æblekage (apple cake) with tea and coffee. The chatter was lively and a lot of catching up among the Sisters. It was a beautiful day and with a sign of spring in the flowerbeds. Our next meeting will be just before Easter and with that Ellen Lodge 21 wishes everyone in the DSS a lovely Easter. Respectfully submitted by Birgitte Ellen Lodge 21 President |
No. 21This is a collection of articles written and compiled by members of DSS Ellen Lodge #21. Check in to find anything Lodge related or to find important Danish news! Archives
November 2023
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