Early June took Sisu to northern Minnesota for a 10-day tour. This area is known for a large concentration of Finns. They say that if you throw a sauna rock any direction here, you are likely to hit a Finn. Or, three.
First on the agenda was a town called Finland, halfway from Duluth towards the Canadian border, on the north shore of Lake Superior. Today, the drive to Finland offers scenic views but when settlers first arrived, there were no roads. Settlers were dropped off a boat to shore.They then carried their belongings to the homesteads. Logging provided work outside of family farming.
The Finland Minnesota Historical Society Heritage Site in Finland offers a wealth of information about the local history. Sisu was so pleased for the opportunity to visit, and recommends including Finland in your north shore itinerary.
A big thank you to Joretta and Dale Nikula for organizing the afternoon get-together.
From Finland, Sisu continued to Duluth. Duluth is connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Great Lakes, and offers a seaport for ocean vessels in the middle of the continent.
In Duluth, Sisu was welcomed by Northland Chapter of Finlandia Foundation. Both the Mayor of Duluth and the Mayor of Superior, Wisconsin declared June “Finland 100 Month” in their respective cities which declarations were read out loud by respective city representatives.
The location was right on Lake Superior, by the boardwalk and beach on the world’s largest lake. Truly fantastic for a sauna and swim!
Thank you, Steve Leppälä and Northland Chapter of Finlandia Foundation.
Next up, National Sauna Day in Embarrass. On it’s third year, the event is starting to get nice traction and attracts a pretty good crowd. The location, Nelimark Museum, is another great example of a heritage site worth visiting.
Three saunas and one Finnabego were on display, main building hosted a gift shop and a coffee room. In the outside area a tent was setup where lunch was available from the grill. All in all, a very nice gathering with quite a few brave souls getting in the 200 F heat in Sisu, on a beautiful summer day.
Musical entertainment was provided by Steve Solkela One Man Band.
Thank you to John Kinnunen and SISU Heritage for a great event. Traveling Sauna crew hopes to revisit next year!
Next three days Sisu traveled around in the Iron Range, visiting Virginia, Hibbing and Giants Ridge in Biwabik. Joining Sisu was Honorary Consul of Finland for the northern Minnesota, James L. Johnson. With Jimmy’s guidance, Sisu learned about the area history and connected with the area Finns.
Mines in the Iron Range needed labor in the early 1900’s, attracting immigrants, including Finns. Finns then got a reputation for participating in the labor and co-op movements. Gus Hall, anyone? Some families scraped together enough money to buy parcels of land to start small family farms. Life was tough but the Finns were tougher!
Today, Finnish heritage is represented by several organizations, such as Knights and Ladies of Kaleva in Virginia, and Hibbing Finns and Friends. Nice, leisurely afternoons were spent in good company with sauna, coffee and pulla.
A big thank you to Jimmy Johnson, Beth Pierce from the Mesabi Iron Range Tourism Bureau, and Bill Aho from Eveleth Super 8 providing lodging for the travelers! “Finnish your day in the Super 8 way!”
Salolampi, the Finnish language summer camp at the Concordia Language Villages in Bemidji, MN, was Sisu’s next destination. The staff for all the camps was in orientation in anticipation of the first campers next week, and Sisu wanted to go and check out what’s going on.
As it happened, Sisu’s visit coincided with the last day of orientation. Salolampi already has an indoor and an outdoor sauna by Turtle Lake. Both were heated along with Sisu, and the staff was treated with a 3-sauna conclusion for a busy week of training. What an experience!
And, if three saunas were not enough entertainment, the one and only, Mr. Elvis "Niilo" Pessi serenaded samples from "Greatest Elvis Sauna Hits" all evening long, including "Sauna House Rock", "It's Hot in Here, Right Mama?" and everybody's favorite, "Thank You for the Sauna"!
The Concordia Language Villages offers summer camps in multiple languages; Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, German, French, Russian, Arabic, Chinese, Spanish, you-name-it. A wonderful resource for those interested in world cultures and languages.
Last on the trip were stops in Menahga, New York Mills and St Anthony Village.
Menahga hosts a statue of St Urho in front of the Menahga Area Historical Society and Museum. Sisu stopped for a photo-op upon arrival and was immediately greeted by the museum staff. A quick tour of the museum provided another opportunity to learn about local history.
The Cultural Center in New York Mills hosts the Great American Think Off which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. Invited to kick-off the event, Sisu couldn’t be more thrilled! Good times, great company.
Last on the tour was St Anthony Village, which is a first ring suburb to Minneapolis and St Paul. St Anthony Village maintains an active connection with its sister city Salo. Cultural exchanges, visits and correspondence is continuous between these two cities and their sister city volunteers.
Thank you Dick Baso, Betsy Roder from the Cultural Center in New York Mills, Karen Wiemeri and Ruth Ann Marks from St Anthony / Salo Sister Cities for hosting Sisu!
Next opportunity to see Sisu on the road: Old World Wisconsin in Eagle, WI June 17, and Juneau Park in Milwaukee, WI, June 18-19.
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Sisu’s full schedule and up-to-date calendar, please click here.
Finland Centennial Calendar in the US, please click here.
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