Foundation Grants Bring Norwegian Culture to Wide Audiences

Through grants and scholarships, the Sons of Norway Foundation helps fund activities that positively affect members, assist lodges and preserve the heritage and culture of Norway. Read on to see how in 2016 General Heritage & Culture Grants supported projects that help advance our mission.

At the Carnegie: Scandinavia Yesterday and Today

Fedrelandet 1-579, in Mitchell, S.D., launched a three-month series of Scandinavian events and displays across the main floor of the local Carnegie Resource Center. Complete with a Scandinavian juletre and Christmas display, the lodge organized thousands of items loaned by members and friends including dolls, needlework, carvings, spinning wheels, clothing, kitchen items, books, Scandinavian music and more. Events also included a festive Syttende Mai celebration for members and the general public that included Edvard Grieg piano music and various Scandinavian foods and beverages.

A Live Theatre Production: The Other Country

Thanks to a Foundation grant, producer Nancy Bourne Haley and Toy Boat Theatre organized a seven-minute vignette of “The Other Country,” part of the full-length production set to premiere on Aug. 10, 2017 in Tacoma at the historic Foss Waterway Seaport. The abbreviated performance took place at the 2016 Sons of Norway International Convention in Tacoma, Wash.

The play tells the fascinating story of Norwegian-American Thea Foss, who settled in Tacoma and in 1889 launched Foss Maritime, which would become the largest tugboat company in the western United States – and continues to thrive today.

A Recital and Masterclass Tour: Grieg’s Haugtussa and Other Nordic Works

With help from the Foundation, renowned artists Anna Hersey (soprano) and Alan Johnson (piano) traveled to educational institutions across the Midwest to promote interest in the Norwegian and Nordic art song tradition. At each stop, they performed a recital program that included Edvard Grieg’s only song cycle, Haugrussa, as well as other rarely heard songs by Nordic composers. They also presented multiple master classes to students, musicians and the general public on this unique repertoire.

To learn more about the different scholarships and grants the Sons of Norway Foundation offers every year, please visit the Foundation page of the Sons of Norway website.