Lakselaget's Five-year History
On April 7, 2007
Lakselaget celebrated its Fifth Anniversary!
How far we've come!
April 6, 2002 – April 7, 2007
Women who swim against the current…
November 3, 1983 - Conception
Ingeborg Dahl Sorensen and Leslee Lane Hoyum believe women need an organization much like the Torsk Klubbs.
November 2002 - June 2003 - Planning Stages
Leslee and Ingeborg believe it is time to establish a women’s organization – one created for professional women and college and university students who are also Norwegian, of Norwegian descent, or are interested in contemporary Norwegian issues and all things Norwegian. They invite Linda Pederson to help and advise them about how to appeal to young women.
January 2002 – June 2002 - Lakselaget’s History
Leslee, Ingeborg and Linda write by-laws and complete and register incorporation papers. The first board of directors consists of: Ingeborg Sorensen, President; Leslee Lane Hoyum, vice president; Linda Pederson, program director; and Ingerid Halvorsen Mohn, membership director.
2002
March 15, 2002
Invitations are mailed to potential Lakselag members advising them of the first Lakselag meeting, which would be held in April.
April 6, 2002
The first Lakselag meeting is held at the Radisson Hotel, Plymouth Harbor. Lorna Landvik, Minnesota author, entertains by speaking about “How I became a writer and other experiences in my life.”
May 4, 2002
The organization moves to its permanent home at the Golden Valley Country Club. Jenny Engh, Chief Tax Policy Officer for the Minnesota Department of Revenue, speaks about “Women in public service.”
July 26, 2002
Lakselaget is incorporated in the State of Minnesota.
July 26, 2002
With assistance from Larry Waldoch, Lindquist and Vennum, the Internal
Revenue Service rules that Lakselaget has a five-year, temporary ruling as a not-for-profit, allowing it to solicit money for tax-deductible, educational purposes.
August 2002
Kirsti Synsteby, Synsteby Law Offices, reviews the organization’s by-laws, makes suggestions and they are finalized.
The organization joins forces with the Minneapolis Foundation in order to invest its scholarship funds.
October 5, 2002
Amy Petterson, short-track speed skater and five-time Olympian and three-time Olympic medalist, shares her feelings: “I wasn’t washed up, and I wasn’t over the hill.”
November 2, 2002
Susan Slack, hypnotherapist and owner of Pursue Development Strategies, talks about “Taking care of yourself first; those you love depend on it.”
December 7, 2002
The Science Museum of Minnesota presents information about its current exhibit: Vikings – the North Atlantic Saga.
2003
January 4, 2003
Lorna Benson, host, “All Things Considered,” Minnesota Public Radio (MPR), shares what it is like behind the scenes at MPR.
The organization knew it needed a website; Jeannette Henrikssen, a member and talented webmaster, stepped up to the challenge. She designed it with all board suggestions in mind and added practical ideas of her own. Member Phyllis Framstad’s husband, Jim, took the photo that appears on the homepage.
February 1, 2003
Peggy Olson, oncology nurse, Parker Hughes Cancer Clinic, talks about breast cancer.
March 1, 2003
Marjorie Dorner, Minnesota award-winning author and former professor at Winona State University, presents and discusses her most recent book: “Seasons of Sun and Rain,” the story of five friends, one of whom develops Alzheimer’s.
April 5, 2003
Kay Dixon, vice president, TCF National Bank, tells about her experiences as an Ecumenical Church Loan Fund (ECLOF) volunteer, an organization that believes poverty, inequality and injustice are the primary enemies of social stability and peace.
May 3, 2003
David C. Johnson, Chancellor Emeritus, University of Minnesota, Morris Campus, tells about the value and benefit of international exchange.
June 7, 2003
First, annual Lakselag picnic, which was hosted at the Consul General’s residence and organized by Cheryl Grasmoen, JoAnne Jorud and Claire Hoyum, all of whom helped with the picnics through June 2006.
October 2, 2003
Anita Helland, Royal Norwegian Consul, addresses the organization about working in foreign service.
November 1, 2003
Amy Klobuchar, Hennepin County Attorney, addresses “Justice for all: Financial crimes and prosecuting the powerful.”
December 6, 2003
Janet Letness Martin and Suzann Nelson, Those Lutheran Women,” and well-known Minnesota humorists and authors, share their characters that most readers will recognize from “Growing up Lutheran.”
2004
January 3, 2004
Mary Lahammer, program host and political reporter for Twin Cities Public Television, talks about accessing politicians, especially Governor Jesse Ventura.
February 7, 2004
Dr. William Carter, founder of Edina Plastic Surgery, presents, “Plastic surgery – extreme makeover? Not Always.”
March 7, 2004
Roger Moe, former Senate majority leader, shares information about Norway’s 2005 Centennial and health care for Minnesotans.
April 4, 2004
Jane Evershed, artist, presents her work, which she considers socially conscious art for the world.
May 2, 2004
Margaret O’Leary, professor of Norwegian, St. Olaf College, discusses “Defining Norway in the 21st Century.”
Lakselaget presents its first scholarship to Jaya Schoffner, who plans to attend the 2004 International Summer School in Oslo, Norway.
June 5, 2004
Annual potluck luncheon hosted at the Norwegian Consul General’s residence, Wayzata
October 2, 2004
Eric Dregni, writer for “The Rake” magazine, reports his experiences while living in Norway, including the birth of his first child.
November 6, 2004
Gro Tjore, United Nations World Food Programme in Washington, D.C., speaks about the organization’s mission as the frontline agency against global hunger.
December 4, 2004
Rob Simmonds, Nordic Roots Music, offers how many Nordic musicians are bringing the music of their ancestors through new ideas, arrangements, influences and instrumentation to an often lost art.
2005
January 1, 2005
Jane Laurence, Sergeant with the St. Paul Police Department, speaks about what it’s like to be a woman in the police force, and how she juggles her private life with her career.
February 5, 2005
Kathrine Nygaard, Fulbright Scholar, shares how the world is a melting pot and that people must live with many cultures, each having their own faiths and values, even in Norway.
March 5, 2005
Joan Mondale, wife of former Vice President and Ambassador to Japan Walter Mondale, discusses “Many great things, indeed, have been achieved by those who chose not to leap into the mainstream.” She is best known for her dedication to the arts.
April 2, 2005
Steinar Opstad, Ph.D. from Østfold, Norway, shares the importance of
exchanges between business, people and education, and how exchanges build strong communities, particular in Norway and the U.S. Midwest.
May 7, 2005
Cheryl Grasmoen, Liv Dahl and Sarah Baggot speak about Lakselaget’s
scholarship program and the experiences of the 2004 awardee, Jaya Schoffner, at the International Summer School. Lakselaget awards two scholarships in 2005: Guro Brækken, Norway, who will study physics at the University of Minnesota; and Rachel Pederson, Duluth, and a graduate of Luther College, who will study conflict resolution at the University in Tromsø.
June 2005
The annual potluck is held and, new this year, a book sale takes place with proceeds going to the Scholarship Fund. Four hundred dollars is raised thanks to the efforts of Liv Dahl and Gaelyn Beal. The event was hosted at Nancy Gossell’s home in Minneapolis.
October 1, 2005
Pastor Jens Dale, Mindekirken, shares his reflections about serving in Minnesota.
November 5, 2005
Tom Hanson, consultant and program secretary for the St. Paul-Minneapolis Committee on Foreign Relations, shares his experience as a former foreign service officer and the importance of these relations, including his experience while attached to Norway.
December 3, 2005
The Twin Cities Hardingfelelag performs for the organization. It also includes the history of the instrument and old and new compositions for it.
2006
January 7, 2006
Coleen Rowley, one of Time Magazine’s “People of the Year,” communicates the importance of maintaining ethical standards in government and private industry.
February 4, 2006
Newly-appointed Consul General Rolf W. Hansen conveys the role of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
March 4, 2006
Molly Yergens addresses the organization regarding art education and language immersion.
April 1, 2006
The Dolce Wind Quintet performs a lecture-recital about Norwegian wind music focusing on Edvard Grieg. All performers are graduates of Norwegian-American colleges.
May 6, 2006
Guro Anne Brækken, 2005 scholarship winner, conveys her experiences as an exchange student at the University of Minnesota in physics and numerical analysis. This year, Lakselaget awards four scholarships: Hannah Stevens for the International Summer School, Oslo; Rebecca Lofft, Høgskolen i Telemark at Rauland; Elise Lovall, University of Minnesota; and Anna Korpela, Scandinavian Studies in Telemark.
June 2006
The annual potluck takes place at the home of Nancy Gossell.
October 7, 2006
Scott Givot, cookbook author and co-worker of Ingrid Espelid Hovig, Norway’s answer to Julia Child, relates his experiences living and working in Norway and America.
November 3, 2006
Members attend “Hedda Gabler” at the University of Minnesota.
November 4, 2006
Student actors and the dramaturg from the University of Minnesota BFA Actor Program perform scenes from “Hedda Gabler” and discuss the play in honor of the centennial recognition of the death of the author, Henrik Ibsen.
December 2, 2006
Kathleen Stokker, professor of Norwegian at Luther College, discusses her book, “Keeping Christmas,” which traces the origin, meaning and transformation of Norwegian and Norwegian-American yuletide customs.
2007
January 6, 2007
Lorna Landvik returns to discuss “The Writing Life.”
January 12, 2007
Members join Lorna Landvik’s “Party in the Rec Room” at the Bryant-Lake Bowl where she holds her acclaimed comedy bash.
January 19, 2007
The Internal Revenue Service finalizes Lakselaget’s status as a public charity organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501 (c) (3) as a 170 (b) (1) (A) (vi).
February 3, 2007
Sven Sundgaard, KARE 11 Weekend Meteorologist, shares his career, interests and connections to Scandinavia.
March 3, 2007
The Milan Village Arts School, which specializes in Scandinavian folk arts, presents a program about its history, classes and the traditions of the Milan area.
April 7, 2007
Lakselaget celebrates its fifth anniversary and unveils its commemorative keepsake. Kathy Tunheim is the speaker. She is CEO and president of Tunheim Partners, one of the state’s largest public relations agencies.
