International Order of Runeberg Supreme BoardPresident’s Message

Finnish National Anthem........................... 3Lodge News............................................ 4-7Genealogy Corner .................................... 8Resolutions ..............................................10IOR Website Activity Report ................... 12

WHAT’S INSIDE:

CVII EST. 1906 La Palma, California June 2013 Number 2 www.orderofruneberg.org

InternationalScholarship Winner

We are pleased to award the2013 International Order ofRuneberg Scholarship to HeidiMcCarthy, Coos Bay, Oregon,Lodge #126. Heidi McCarthy, hasbeen a member of Coos Bay Lodgefor 34 years, where she is currentlyFinancial Secretary. She is thedaughter of Clara and GaryRobinson, longtime members ofCoos Bay.

Heidi graduated from South-western Oregon Community Col-lege with honors and received anAssociated Arts Degree. She also re-ceived the award for being an Or-egon Scholar. She has worked attwo local pools teaching many lev-els of swimming from preschool toadults.

She coaches the Gold CoastSwim Team and was an assistantcoach for the local Special OlympicsSwim Team.

Heidi is currently in Lane Com-munity College’s physical therapistassistant program. Her goal is workin the therapy field.

Good Luck and Best Wishes fora future that will meet yourexpectations.

Lorene Mara Scholarship Chairman

Greetings to ourmembers inCanada, Fin-

land, and USA. It tooklonger than usual, butwinter is finally behindus here in Connecticut.We’re looking forwardto the summer.

All of our high schooland college students (& theirparents!) will be very interestedto learn that, during our mostrecent quarterly Runeberg Su-preme Board Skype-conference,the board voted and approved toincrease our annual three (3)scholarships from five hundredto one thousand dollars each!This will be effective for the up-coming 2014-year applications.A page at our website is dedi-cated to the scholarship program(www.orderofruneberg.org, and continued on page 3

click on page-menuitem “IOR Scholar-ship info”). Thepage includes thedown-loadable ap-plication form andthe rules for apply-ing.

The BBC NewsMagazine web-pub-

lished, on June 4, 2013, an ar-ticle I found to be fascinating.The article is titled: “Why Finn-ish babies sleep in cardboardboxes,” by Helena Lee, of theBBC. There may be many of youthat have personal knowledge ofthis social welfare program.

An excerpt from the article:“For 75 years, Finland’s ex-

pectant mothers have been givena box by the state. It’s like astarter kit of clothes, sheets, and

Need photo

2 June 2013

The Leading Star / LedstjärnanInt’l. President: Stewart Lyons

Editors: Dale and Mary Lou Hjort

Subscriptions payable in advanceOne Year, U.S. & Canada $15.00Overseas $20.00

Resolutions, single column, per inch, $5.00

Advertising rates available upon request.

Address all correspondence to:Postmaster: Send changes of address to:The Leading Star, Attn: Dale & Mary Lou Hjort

7682 Tracy LaneLa Palma, CA 90623-1501

Telephone/Fax: 714-739-0932Email: d.mlhjort@juno.com

The LEADING STAR (ISSN No. 0744-7485) is published quarterly by the International Order of Runebergfor its members and others interested in the Order at 7682 Tracy Lane, La Palma, California 90623-1501.

Correspondents: Information received by the first Friday ofthe quarterly month or as noted will be included in thatquarter’s issue.To correct our listing of your address, fill in the requestedinformation in the form below and send your old mailing label to:

Dale & Mary Lou Hjort 7682 Tracy Lane

La Palma, CA 90623-1501

Name:_____________________________________________

Street:_____________________________________________

City:_______________________________________________

State:______________________________ Zip_____________

Lodge & Number:____________________________________

___________________________________________________

toys that can even be used as a bed.And some say it helped Finlandachieve one of the world’s lowestinfant mortality rates. It’s a tradi-tion that dates back to the 1930sand it’s designed to give all childrenin Finland, no matter what back-ground they’re from, an equal startin life.

The maternity package—a giftfrom the government—is availableto all expectant mothers. It con-tains bodysuits, a sleeping bag, out-door gear, bathing products for thebaby, as well as nappies, bedding,and a small mattress.”

As mentioned, I found the entirearticle fascinating. If you’re not fa-miliar with this program, I recom-mend reading the BBC article.There’s a link to the article andsome pictures of the maternitypackage at our website (click on“Cultural Topics”, then click “Thematernity package”).

As you are aware, commencingwith the March 2013 issue of the

President’s MessageInternational Order of Runeberg Supreme Board

continued from page 1 Leading Star, we’ve updated theformat of the Leading Star. Thisnew format allows us to have thenewspaper accessible to read and/or download from our website (youmay read &/or print it—the link ison the “IOR News, Events, Info”web page). This brings a great op-portunity to all lodges. Knowingthat our website pages are visitedover 430 times per month (5,190times in year 2012), this providesfree and easy opportunity to informpotential members exploring theweb for Finnish / Swede-Finn cul-tural information and activities.You / your lodge are encouraged tosubmit meetings information (pic-tures and/or text articles) to theLeading Star, enhancing the vis-ibility of the lodge to a widerInternet audience that may includeperspective new members—don’tforget including contact informa-tion for your lodge.

Hoping you all have a wonder-ful summer, Stew Lyons

About the new lookof your paperHere are some of your com-ments about the new lookLeading Star.I like the new Leading Star. Bettercolor contrast, easier to read, thesmaller form is easier to handleand it saves money. Good foryou! Good for the board!Alfred Nelson, Western DistrictPast President and Coos BayLodge member

Just received my copy of the Starand wanted to say I like it. Ireceive publications from a feworganizations that have switchedto that format and they seem tobe easier to read, more compact.Good job.June Pelo, Genealogy Cornercontributor

Dale and Mary Lou, good jobputting together the newsletter. Itreads very well and is in a goodformat. Thanks for making ithappen!!!Dick Erickson, SFHS President

Let us know if there is anythingmore we can do to improve uponthe look of the Leading Star. – DH

3 June 2013

The first Friends of Finland Caucuswas established into the U.S. Congress on May 9th. So far the Cau-

cus has sixteen U.S. Congressmen asmembers, four of whom act as co-chairs of the group.

The Speaker of the Parliament ofFinland, Eero Heinäluoma, took partin the founding meeting of the FinlandCaucus. In his speech SpeakerHeinäluoma thanked the four co-chairs

Friends of Finland Caucusestablished into the U.S. Congress

and mentioned three especially impor-tant political issues in the U.S.–Finn-ish relations: transatlantic trade rela-tions, arctic matters and cooperation indefense.

The objectives of the Friends ofFinland Caucus are to strengthen theties between the U.S. and Finland andto serve as a forum for dialog amongmembers of Congress and the govern-ment of Finland. It also has the task ofpromoting issues of mutual interest andsupporting the interests of Finnish-Americans.

The co-chairs are CongressmanJohn Carney from Delaware, Congress-man Sean Duffy from Wisconsin, Con-gressman Dan Benishek from Michi-

gan and CongressmanRick Nolan from Minne-sota. The latter threestates have significantnumbers of Finnish-Americans as inhabitants.

In his speech at thefounding meeting Con-gressman Carney men-tioned the long history ofthe Finns in Delaware.The 375th Anniversaryof the arrival of the first

Finns and Swedes to the coast ofAmerica was celebrated inWilmington, Delaware, on May 11th.In 1638 the joint colony of the Finnsand Swedes was the first permanentEuropean colony to be established inthe area.

Congressman Sean Duffy under-lined the strong Finnish influence in hisstate of Wisconsin in his speech. Thismatter was also highlighted by Con-gressman Dan Benishek, whom theSpeaker Heinäluoma met before thefounding meeting of the Caucus.

News, 5/13/2013Embassy of Finland, Washington, D.C.

U.S. Congressman Sean Duffy andAmbassador Ritva Koukku-Ronde atthe founding meeting of Friends ofFinland Caucus.

Congressman John Carney and theSpeaker of the Parliament EeroHeinäluoma shaking hands at thefounding meeting of the Friends ofFinland Caucus.

The Finnish national anthem,with words by Johan LudvigRuneberg and music by FredrikPacius, was first performed in 1848by students celebrating Flora Day(May 13) in a meadow belonging toKumtähti Manor in Helsinki.

J.L. Runeberg, headmaster ofBorgå Lyceum in Porvoo, had writ-ten the original text in Swedish,called “Vårt land” (Our Land), twoyears earlier. The poem was pub-lished in autumn 1846 as the pro-logue to Runeberg’s Fänrik Stålssägner (The Tales of Ensign Stål), acollection of 35 heroic ballads setin the days of the War of Finland in1808–09. As a result of this war,Sweden ceded Finland to Russia inthe 1809 Treaty of Hamina.

Runeberg’s aim was to stir Finn-ish patriotic feeling with his epic.He is said to have been inspired towrite “Vårt land” by MihalyVörösmarty’s “Szózat,” the Hungar-ian national anthem published in1836. Until well into the 20th cen-tury, Finns responded strongly to theidealistic and political idealism ofFänrik Ståls sägner and “Vårt land.”Runeberg was promptly elevated tothe status of national poet.

Runeberg was a conservativeand moderate nationalist, and loyalto the powers that be. The main con-cern of the authorities was to pre-vent the emergence of radical ideas;the revolutionary spirit of theMarseillaise was finding some sup-port in Finland at the time. “Vårtland” helped appease the patrioticyearnings of the students, and the

continued on page 11

The FinnishNationalAnthem

4 June 2013

LODGE NEWS

Held May 18th, 2013It was with joy that we wel-

comed some 36 people to ourMay 18th meeting—unbelievable!Two new members signed up,also—so we are looking at some50–52 total in our membership.

“Thank you,” Elsie Thomson,for decorating each table sonicely with flowers. We knowhow you enjoy flowers and all theflowers around your own home.

“Thank you,” Eileen, for set-ting up the food and desserttables and opening the kitchendoor at the church. Everybodypitched in to find tables andchairs and soon we had a roomfull of members—who all helpedin one way or another.

Good to see our Treasurer,John Sandstrom, back in ourmidst—also Suzanne Edwards.Both feeling so much better. Ourdaughter Karlyn and grandsonSten-Erik Andreassen joined thecrowd. Sten-Erik was celebratinghis name’s day that day, May18th. In Scandinavia, names’ daysare more special than regularbirthdays, unless you turn 50,65, 75, 80, 90 years of age.Karlyn Andreassen has been amember of the Order ofRuneberg since the age of four.In fact, Sten-Erik was four yearsold when he and his mother andMormor Marita traveled to Swe-den, Denmark, and Finland onesummer.

Lodge #106Tacoma, Washington

Someone asked me aboutKarlyn’s name. She is named af-ter her morfar Karl Gustafsson,who was born in Oravais, Fin-land. We had several members whohad birthdays in April that weasked to stand up and be rec-ognized: Elsie Thompson,Marita Agnew, Scott Alexander,Lena Erickson, Sten-ErikAndreassen, Jane Ely, DebbieSantelli, and Marge Kunschakand one “May Birthday,” ourvice president Carolyn Nelsonon the 12th of May; however, sheis celebrating that in Finlandwith lots of relatives andfriends. She will continue ondown to Copenhagen, Den-mark, then to Sweden and onto Norway. We will hear moreabout her trip when she arrivesback the beginning of July.

Carolyn Nelson has invitedour Order of Runeberg groupout to her home on Clear Lakein Eatonville. The date is July20th. It will be potluck. More onthat later.

It was good to see Ray andSally Thompson, SandraMcLeod (looking good), DebbieSantelli, Carina and JoeMohammadi, Scott Alexander,and also other visitors whojoined the crowd: Elaine LarsonO’Neal (Norwegian back-ground), Larry Kronquist(background from Finland),Meryl Bernstein, and Don Dale.Several of our regular memberswere not present—either underthe weather, on vacation, or toofar away.

Before closing the meeting, ashort discussion was held aboutthe size and change and the newformat of the Leading Star—andonly one person did not like thenew format. The new size willsave us money; and, also, if ex-tra copies are needed, just somany can be ordered; and sincesome of us do not have comput-ers, mailing a copy to thosemembers can be done and every-one will be happy.

New suggestions come fromyour Tacoma #106 I.O.R. Presi-dent Marita Agnew: So, whydon’t we in our lodge, send insome interesting articles, photo-graphs of events, from picnics,recipes of food, baked items, etc.,that we can share at our potlucksand picnics. Perhaps you havejust returned from an interestingtrip. Write up an article aboutthat, enclose a photo or twoabout that. And if you enjoy writ-ing poetry, that would be extraspecial. A funny rhyme! We haveso many of our Tacoma #106members with different nation-alities—where were you born? apicture of yourself maybe?

So, in closing, let’s see whateach and every one can come upwith.

Send them addressed to: The Leading Star

Attn: Dale and Mary Lou Hjort7682 Tracy LaneLa Palma, CA 90623-1501Telephone/fax: 714-739-0932Email: d.mlhjort@juno.comSubmitted by Marita Agnew

5 June 2013

Copied from the cookbook, Kotiruoka (Homecooking)

The first edition was printed in 1908 by Edith Rainila, Sophia Calonius, and Valma

Krank.

2 cups mashed berries (any kind) strawberry, lingonberry, blueberry, raspberry, red

currants, cranberry, etc.

½ to 1 cup sugar (depending on the acidity of the berries)

2 cups water

4 tablespoons potato starch (corn starch can be used, although the result is not as

clear)

Mix in a pan the cold water and the potato starch. Heat the mixture on the stove at

medium heat continually stirring it. When it forms a thick pudding, remove the pan

from the heat and stir in premixed berries and sugar. Pour the Berry Pudding into

serving dish, and let it cool.

Serve the pudding in individual dishes and top them with whipped cream.

Submitted by

Eeva LaLone, Tacoma Lodge #106

Marjakiisseli(Berry Pudding)

½ cup of eggs

(beaten well) (takes 2 eggs)

2 cups Lactose-free milk

½ cup “Splenda” granular

½ cup raisins

Rice Pudding

—for diabetics

Preheat oven to 325°F. In large bowl, combine eggs, milk,

Splenda granular, raisins, cooked rice, vanilla, and salt. M

ix well.

Blend cinnamon and nutmeg in small bowl. Pour rice mixture into

9x9-inch glass baking dish. Bake 25 minutes. Remove from oven.

Sprinkle top with cinnamon/nutmeg mixture.

Return to oven and bake 40 minutes more. Makes 6 servings.

Enjoy!

Sent in by Marita Agnew, O.R. #106 President

(Jim and I enjoy this very much.)

1½ cup cooked white rice

1 tsp. vanilla or orange extract

½ tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. ground nutmeg

Graavilohi-gravlax Copied from the cookbook, Keittotaito (The Art of Cooking)

First edition printed in 1932, Helsinki, Finland

2 salmon filets, with skin

½ cup coarse kosher salt

Wash the cleaned, fresh fish. Discard the head, tail, fins, backbone, and thelarger bones. Wipe the filets dry with paper towels. Mix the salt and sugar. Putsome salt and sugar mixture into the bottom of a glass pan (meatloaf pan). Lay asalmon filet on top of it, skin side down. Now, sprinkle most of the salt and sugaron the filet and cover it with washed dill. Place the other filet on the very top withthe skin side showing. Pour the rest of the salt and sugar mixture on top ofeverything. Cover with plastic wrap and place a weight over the fish (food cans, arock, a brick, etc.). Refrigerate the fish for 24–48 hours. Afterwards, cut off a partof a filet or eat one filet at a time. Rinse your portion heavily under running waterto get rid of the salt and dill. Dry the rinsed filet and cut thin slices of fish off theskin. Serve with boiled sliced potatoes, boiled sliced eggs, and fresh minced dill,or use the lox on decorated open-face sandwiches with plenty of sliced egg,tomato, sliced olives, and fresh minced dill. In the olden days in Finland, all the fish or meat was either salted or smoked topreserve them for winter use. Submitted by Eeva LaLone, Tacoma Lodge #106

½ cup sugar

1 bunch fresh dill

A traditional Christmas dish in FinlandFinnish Carrot Rice Casserole 1 cup cooked rice (white or brown) 2 cups milk 5 medium carrots, shredded 1 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon dark brown sugar 2 eggs

½ teaspoon allspice (or nutmeg)

½ cup apple, grated (optional)

1 tablespoon grated lemon zest (optional) 3 tablespoons butter 1/3 cup fine bread crumbs (sourdough)

Combine the rice, milk, carrots, salt,sugar, allspice, and eggs. Stir inapple and lemon zest if desired.Pour into a well-buttered 1½-quartcasserole. Melt the butter in aseparate pan and stir the crumbsinto it.Sprinkle over the top of casserole.Bake in moderately hot oven (375degrees Fahrenheit) about40 minutes or until the top is lightlybrowned. Serves 6.

Submitted by Jane Fant Ely, Tacoma Lodge #106

Recipeswith ataste ofFinland

6 June 2013

LODGE NEWS

Lodge #205New Haven,Connecticut

The New Haven lodge held itstraditional “summer picnic”gathering on June 8th at thehome of Inke Sunala. Inke gra-ciously hosted all of us and, asshown in photos accompanyingthis article, provided deliciousentries, such as salmon (smokedby Inke on the outdoor grill),fresh oysters, baked scallops,and grilled chicken. Absolutelydelicious, Inke—thank you! ALLthe picnic participants contrib-uted delicious foods, such as ap-petizers, salads, side dishes,and dessert.

All-in-all—a fun day! The“summer picnic” photos accom-panying this article may beviewed in color on the Lodge#205 page of the Runebergwebsite.

Anne-Lilja Rentof, a sopho-more at Hunter College, is amember of Runeberg New Ha-ven Lodge #205.

The Hunter College ChoirOn May 6, 2013, the Hunter

College Symphony & Choir per-formed Finlandia. There’s a linkat the Runeberg website (Cul-tural Topics / Sibelius &Finlandia) that allows you to lis-ten online & since the link opensin a separate window, you maylisten to the performance whilebrowsing other pages. Lodge#205 members are impressed

Aaron, Noora & Jamie

Inke preparing smoked salmon

7 June 2013

with Anne-Lilja’s vocal talentand that she travels from Man-hattan with her dad, Peter, toparticipate in our Lodge eventson a regular basis!

Advanced information for theNew Haven Lodge #205 “FallHike & Potluck Dinner” has beenpublished on the Runebergwebsite (Lodges / L205). Infor-mation includes location, date(Saturday, Sept. 28th), and hik-ing trail details.

For persons / families withan interest in Finnish / Swede-Finn culture, and within traveldistance of the New Havenarea, we encourage you to joinus. Our Lodge’s contact info isavailable at the Runebergwebsite: www.orderofruneberg.org, then click “Lodges” / “L205”).

Hope to see you! Submitted by Stew Lyons

LODGE NEWS

The oysters were a favorite. From L–R: Inke, Jason, Nooora, & Kirsti

Seated, clockwise: Dottie, Kirsti, Annamarie, Tuula, Kaarina,Sirpa, & David. Standing: Chris & Leena

Finland’s creditrating golden again

Finland once again enjoys agolden triple-A credit rating, follow-ing an upgrade in its outlook to‘stable’ from Standard & Poor’s inmid January.

A year ago the agency down-graded Finland’s outlook to nega-tive.

Finland now once again has astable AAA credit rating and out-look. Luxembourg is the only othereurozone country with such a solidrating from all major agencies.

From The FinnishAmerican ReporterFebruary 2013

8 June 2013

Genealogy CornerJ

ohannes Granö felt the urgeto travel to Siberia in the fallof 1880 after he met PastorUdelius who worked at thecounty jail in Åbo. Udelius

had suggested that he go to Siberiaand take charge of the destitute andabandoned people. In the summerof 1885 Johannes, his wife Alma,nee Fontell, and two minor-agechildren traveled to Omsk, Siberia,which became their headquarters.One can wonder why a Lutheranpriest would leave secure employ-ment in his homeland for work in aforeign country. In the Åbo jailGranö had met a deported runawaywho told him of the terrible condi-tions for Finlanders in western Si-beria. That influenced his decisionto travel to the unknown. That’s how pastor JohannesGranö, who was born and grew upin Granö village in Terjärv, decidedto work as a spiritual advisor fordeported prisoners. The post hadbeen vacant since 1879 but had noapplicants. Earlier the Church hadsent spiritual guides on a tempo-rary basis, but needed someonethere permanently. Siberia had long been a place ofexile for prisoners of all types, in-cluding Finlanders who were im-prisoned there. In Borgå in 1809there was a proposal to banish Fin-landers, but deportation had firstbegun when a number of prisoners,sentenced to death, were pardonedand sent to Siberia. During the au-tonomous times 3,321 Finlanderswere banished. Among those whowere deported, the majority ofthem were Osterbottningar whohad been pardoned from death sen-tences. Instead of being put behindbars, they were given the choice ofbeing sent to Siberia. Most of themwere males, but there were somewomen who had been sentenced forinfanticide.

Johannes Granö,a Priest in Siberia

June Pelo,A Dedicated Genealogist

At the end of the 1800s somepeople who weren’t sentenced fora crime also went to Siberia withthe hope of a better life and workas railroad workers. The Trans-Si-berian railroad was completed in1893 and Finlanders were still go-ing to Siberia in the early 1900s.

Not all prisoners who chose tomigrate were approved. The well-behaved prisoners were allowed totravel over 4,000 km to their placeof exile. When their term of pun-ishment was served, the Crowngave them land to cultivate and alittle initial capital, and they had achance as a foreign national to seekemployment in some venture in Si-beria.

Johannes Granö was born in1850 in Terjärv. As an 18-year-oldhe became one of the first farmerstudents to study theology inUleåborg and Åbo. After his ordi-nation in 1877 he served a shortperiod in Lappo and Kimito. In1893 Granö wrote a book, Sex år iSiberia. He had served 17 years inSiberia, but the book covers onlyhis first period in the country.

His work territory covered prac-tically all of Siberia from the UralMountains to the other side of theBaltic Sea. It is 4,000 km betweenGranö village in Terjärv and Omsk,Siberia. Transportation was lim-ited. Before the Trans-Siberian rail-way was completed, the methods toget around were boats along thelarge rivers, horse-drawn carriages,and “shank’s mare.” The villages consisted of run-down, ramshackle houses and out-buildings on the musty-smellingmarsh. About 2,000 people livedthere. Thefts, fights, and lewdnesswere the business of the day, anddrunkenness was a terrible vice. During the many long trips,Johannes had contact with all typesof people. After a while he receivedpermission to appoint his brotherAnders as a teacher and policeman,and he served as a cantor at churchservices. Johannes was active indeveloping the region. Schoolswere built and he made sure therewere books and newspapers. Manypubs were closed and illicit distill-ing was shut down. He built a mod-est log house for his family. He trav-eled around the area, held churchservices, performed marriages andbaptisms, functioned as a priest forprisoners and in the hospital, andmade home-visits. He was both aschool organizer and a farmer. Inaddition to this, he was a priest forEstonian and Latvian congrega-tions in Omsk. There was also alarge German colony in Omsk andmany from Ingermanland. After serving six years in Sibe-ria, Johannes returned to hishomeland and was installed as apastor at the Nedertorneå congre-gation. In 1901 he was elected as apriest representative in the Diet.The following year he returned toSiberia and worked there until1913. In a letter dated 20 May 1904,

9 June 2013

he wrote about the Russian war farto the east. “In Omsk there were40,000 soldiers and cossacks. Wehad seven men and two horses.Yesterday they went to the war. Wehave it warm here. Today it is 40°in the sun.”

On 1 Feb. 1905 he wrote a letterto Terjärv:

Dear Emil,Thanks for your letter I received

some time ago, but I have hadmuch work and a lot of travel, so Ihaven’t written. We are well andhealthy. Soon I’ll begin my travels.Last year I traveled 13,000 verst.Often I have traveled 100 miles byhorse. At times I have been on aboat on the river, sometimes on therailroad. In the summer I live atour country place where there is ariver and much fish and we fish allday. I shall send you a picture fromthere. You can see Uncle Anderswho just went for a swim in theriver. In the other picture we andour guests sit in the yard in Omsk.Did you paint your cottage? WhenI get old, I’ll build a cottage next toyour place.

Many greetings to mamma andpappa, Sandvik Anders, Mathilda,Gambestu Matts, Risbacka men,and everyone I know.

God be with you and everyone.Your Uncle Johannes GranöBut Johannes Granö never built

the house he mentioned in the let-ter. He died 1913 just as he wasplanning to return to his homeland.His son Johannes Gabriel was borntwo years before the family movedto Siberia. When his father was in-stalled as pastor in Nedertorneå,son Johannes continued his school-ing in Finland. He was a studentfrom Oulu Academy and assistantat Helsingfors University.

During 1906–09 J. G. Granöwent on a scholarship explorationexpedition to Mongolia. After thathe published his own doctor’s the-sis and was installed as a docentwith Helsingfors University. Hetook several trips to the Orient. Hisbook, Altai, was re-issued as a new

edition later by SuomalaisenKirjalllisuuden Seura.

He spent the summers in Sibe-ria. It is understandable that the in-terest of this newly appointed sci-entist should concentrate aroundthose summer visits. It awakenedin him an interest in future re-search in geography. In the springof 1906 he received an invitationfrom the Finno-Ugric Society totravel to northern Mongolia on ascholarship. He later made twotrips between 1907 and 1909.

He traveled over 6,000 km byhorse. He had a talent for drawingand in his journal he sketched thestone inscriptions he found. He wasalso a good photographer. He andhis wife moved to Omsk where hebuilt a house on the vacant landbelonging to the Finnish priest.Then he accepted a position as pro-fessor at the university in Tomsk.His knowledge of languages camefrom the time he spent in Siberia.He spoke Finnish with his fatherand Swedish with his mother, butwent to a Russian school. The Ger-man influence in Omsk added to hisknowledge and during his child-hood he spoke four languages,learning French later.

In Dorpat, Estonia, he organizedand led an extensive researchproject in cooperation with arche-ologists and historians. He alsostarted scientific research in Esto-nia. After three years in Dorpat hereturned to Finland as editor for

the third edition of Atlas of Fin-land, and was also a professor of ge-ography at Helsingfors University.He was principal at Åbo Universityand later became Chancellor. Hisknowledge of languages and of theworld, as well as his sense of diplo-macy, resulted in an invitation tobe Finland’s ambassador inStockholm during World War I.But he turned down the invitation,referring to his research. He diedin 1956.

In the summer of 1993 the resid-ing Chancellor of Åbo University,Olavi Granö, son of J. G. Granö andgrandson of Pastor JohannesGranö, took a trip to Omsk in Sibe-ria. He became acquainted with thearea where his grandfather hadworked and where his father didresearch. He met with historicalresearcher Alpo Juntunen and fol-lowed in his father’s footsteps andbecame a geographer. He hasworked at Helsingfors University,Helsingfors School of Economics,and Åbo University. In 1963–88 hewas a professor of geography at ÅboUniversity and served as Chancel-lor 1984–94.

Olavi was born 1925 and hasworked as supervisor atSkärgardens research establish-ment for over 20 years. He is amember of Finland’s Academy,which is a central organization forscience administration. He wasawarded the academic title in 1980.

Ole Granholm, 2004English translation by June Pelo

Omsk panoramic view

10 June 2013

It is with sorrow that we reportthe passing of our Brother

Tauno E. Murtowho won his battle withParkinson’s disease and went hometo the Lord on April 3, 2013, at theage of 81.

Tauno was born in Butte Janu-ary 9, 2013, to Emil and Susanna(Ahteenpaa) Murto and attendedlocal schools. He served his coun-try in the U.S. Marine Corps on theU.S.S. Oriskany and following hishonorable discharge, he returnedto Butte where he married DeloresMoquist on September 8, 1955.

Tauno worked as an apprenticecarpenter and for the Butte, Ana-conda & Pacific Railway, as well asthe Northern Pacific Railroad inAnaconda and Butte before joiningthe Butte Fire Department. He re-tired as a battalion chief and wasvery proud of his service in both theMarine Corps, as well as the ButteFire Department.

Lodge #105Butte, Montana

He belonged to Gloria DeiLutheran Church, Mount MoriahLodge #24, A.F. & A.M., BagdadTemple of the Shrine, the ScottishRite Bodies, the Burikka Patrol andButte Court #23, Royal Order ofJesters. He also belonged to theOrder of Runeberg, was a life mem-ber of the Marine Corps League andthe VFW, and belonged to theAmerican Legion. He loved spend-ing time at his cabin at GeorgetownLake snowmobiling, hunting andfishing, and was proud of the factthat along with his father, builtboth his homes in Butte.

Tauno is survived by his wife,Delores Murto; and son and daugh-ter-in-law, David and Kathy Murtoall of Butte; and daughter, SusanMurto and her partner, AndySorensen, both of Anchorage,Alaska. Also surviving are hisgranddaughter, Katie Murto andbrother-in-law, Glen Moquist, bothof Butte, and several cousins andrelatives in upper Michigan and inFinland. Besides his parents, hewas preceded in death by an infantbrother, Emil Murto.

Memorial services were con-ducted in Gloria Dei LutheranChurch with Pastor Paul Balabanofficiating. Interment of ashes tookplace in Mountain View Cemetery.

Memorials may be made toGloria Dei Lutheran Church or theShriners Hospital TransportationFund, 314 W. Park, Butte, MT59701.

Lodge #105 extends our deepestsympathy to Delores and family.

Resolution CommitteePat McCabe

Finland could have

massive tornadoes,

experts sayA meteorologist and storm

chaser says that the kind of tor-

nado that recently killed dozens

of people in Oklahoma in the

USA is also possible in Finland.

Finland suffered extensive de-

struction in a series of massive

twisters that struck in 1932.

On the afternoon of August 4,

1932, Finland experienced un-

usual weather conditions that

spawned a number of tornadoes.

The first stuck in Nurmijärvi,

killing a 17-year-old boy. How-

ever, the worst of the weather

systems tore its way through Oiti

in Hausjärvi, north of Helsinki,

where it left a 500-meter trail of

devastation. Altogether, Finland

was hit by a total of more than

20 tornadoes in a three-hour

period.

“In terms of their violence, this

series of tornadoes can be

compared to the tornado

outbreak in the United States,”

said the Finnish Meteorological

Institute’s chief meteorologist

and storm chaser Ari-Juhani

Punkka.

Dozens of tornadoes are de-

tected in Finland each year, and

frequently occur in the Gulf of

Finland. Generally, they leave

little or no signs of destruction.

The Finnish American Reporter

June 2013

11 June 2013

Lorena Leona Volz ofThousand Oaks passed away onApril 24, 2013, in ThousandOaks, at her elder care home,

Possibbly the oldest livingSwedish Finlander in the USA passes

Lorena Volz and her sonDonald at her 107th birthday onOctober 9, 2012

Hillside Manor. She was 107½years old.

She was born in Au Sable,Michigan, on October 9, 1905, toArthur and Selma Spring of Finnand Swedish heritage. She wasmarried to Harold (Scoop) Volzon August 16, 1930. Their onlychild, Don, of Thousand Oaks,was born in 1933.

Lorena spent many years inSaginaw, Mich.; Mesa, Ariz.;Marco Island, Fla.; and the last11 years in Thousand Oaks.

A memorial service was heldat the chapel of Pierce Brothers

Mortuary in Westlake Village onSunday, May 5, 2013. Her asheswere buried in Mesa, Ariz., nextto her husband, who died in1969.

The Finnish American Reporter, June 2013 Note from June Pelo about hercousin: Lorena was the daughterof Arthur Spring (also know asAdolf Karlsson Källström),1878–1969, who was married toSelmaVictoriaAlexandersdotterWargström, 1881–1956. (Selmawas my mother’s sister). Arthur/Adolf’s father was Karl MattssonKeldo-Källström, 1819–1878,who was cantor of the Karlebychurch 1861, and he came froma family of church cantors inFinland.

bloodshed seen in other parts ofEurope was averted in Finland. Several composers had already at-tempted to set Runeberg’s loftypoem to music before FredrikPacius, a German-born composerand music lecturer at the Universityof Helsinki, but his was the first ver-sion to gain widespread popularity.The composer himself conductedthe university choir in a slow, ma-jestic first performance, andantemaestoso, which moved the crowdto tears. Pacius’s tune was later alsoadopted for “Mu isamaa” (MyCountry), the Estonian national an-them from 1918 to 1940 and againsince 1990. Historians like to saythat Finland was born on Flora Day,May 13, 1848. Fredrik Cygnaeus,chairman of the student body, madethe main speech at the celebration,concluding with the toast “To Fin-land.” The student body had a flag,representing a laurel-crowned lion

on a white field, made specially forthe celebration; this can be said tohave been the first Finnish flag. Atthe end the audience, several hun-dred strong, jubilantly joined in with“Vårt land.” For the first time, theidea of a distinct Finnish nationalidentity had been put forward.

“Vårt land” rapidly won generalacceptance as an expression of pa-triotic sentiment, especially afterPaavo Cajander published his pol-ished Finnish translation(“Maamme”) towards the end of the19th century.

Updated March 2011 fromthisisFINLAND

The Finnish National Anthemcontinued from page 3

June 201312

IOR Website Activity Reportwww.orderofruneberg.org

13 June 2013

Oops! In the last article re: Con-vention news, I called our freewaythe 401!! “No, no!” my son in-lawRichard pointed out! “That was along, long time ago—it is now the#1.” My age is showing! Sorry forthe miss-information! Now to other things…Did youknow that visiting Vancouver canbe an experience in itself?

Check these out:VanDusen Botanical GardensStanley ParkMuseum of Anthropology(Aboriginal artifacts – totempoles)Science WorldPlanetariumAquariumBeachesJapanese Garden –University of B.C.World-class shoppingChina Town – just to name a few

of our attractions…For those interested in the Arts,

many events happen in thesummer. “Bard on the Beach” is atheatre production that truly takesplace at the beach! Nightclubs,movies, and lots of fancy eateriesabound, priced from the mosteconomical to the mostextravagant. Vancouver has anethnic flare bar none! Name acountry and you can and will fineauthentic food from that area.Public transport, by both bus andsky train, help you get around and,of course, bus tours are available aswell.

In-depth information will beforthcoming for many of the abovementioned venues both before andat registration time. The aboveexperiences are just in Vancouveronly. Outlying areas are also touristfriendly. Other venues to note arethe…

Capilano SuspensionBridge\Seabus – just the ride is fun and on theNorth Vancouver side a shoppingQuay

Whistler (Olympics 2010)Britannia Beach Mine MuseumGrouse Mountain – Gondola to

the top!Burnaby Heritage MuseumSimon Fraser University –

BurnabyWhen you come, plan to stay

awhile and take this opportunity toexperience our wonderful city. Ofcourse, Lodge members are here tohelp plan your stay before and afterthe Convention on August 15 and16, 2014. Have you marked yourcalendar? Have you started to thinkand plan ahead? Vancouver Lodge

Convention News – Vancouver, B.C., August 15 and 16, 2014

Angry Birds movieplotted for 2016

The popular video game AngryBirds, by Finnish mobile gaming com-pany Rovio, will jump off smartphones and onto the big screen in anew animated 3D film due to be re-leased in 2016 by Sony Pictures En-tertainment.

The film is being produced andfinanced by Rovio, which has said themovie could result in it establishingan animation studio rivaling globalgiant Walt Disney. Sony Pictures Entertainment beatseveral major studios to win exclusiveworldwide distribution rights to the3D movie, it said announcing a dealwith Mikael Hed, CEO of Rovio En-tertainment. Despicable Me producer JohnCohen and Iron Man executive pro-ducer David Maisel will work on themovie, according to Rovio.

“There are few titles out there thatbring this kind of excitement, brandawareness and built-in audience to thetable,” Sony Pictures Entertainmentchief executive Michael Lynton andchairman Amy Pascal said in a state-ment in mid May.

The film will be a joint venture be-tween Sony Pictures Entertainmentand Rovio, and follows the game’sforay into television with an animatedweekly series that began in March thisyear.

The Finnish American ReporterJune 2013

#124 is looking forward to hostingand wants everyone to have amemorable visit. I’ll be there and Ihope you will be too!SEE YOU AT THE CONVENTION! Fraternally, Annabelle Kergan

HardtackNo friend have I

Except hardtack made of rye.It is my faithful love

From cradle to heaven above.“Knäcke Bröd” thou art

dearer than gold,More priceless than blood.

I needn’t be told.Superb—lovely—

thou doth bewitch me.With tears of joy I greet thee.

Originally published in a paper1928.

This verse has been enjoyedby many folks who are familiarand love hardtack—like so manyfullblooded Scandinaviens do.My children and grandchildrenlove it, so I keep a tin of hard-tack on hand—and lots of butter.

Submitted by Marita Agnew

14 June 2013

The United States Vice Presi-dent Joe Biden took part inthe 375th Anniversary Jubilee

that celebrated the arrival of thefirst Finns and Swedes to Americain 1638. His participation was oneof the highpoints of the successfulJubilee Day on Saturday May 11th,2013. In his speech Biden paid trib-ute to the bravery, courage and con-science of Finland and Sweden. Healso reminisced his visit to Finlandand praised Finnish equality.

All of Delaware’s political lead-ers were in Wilmington to celebratethe founding of the New Swedencolony: Governor Jack Markell,Senators Thomas Carper andChristopher Coons, as well as Con-gressman John Carney and otherstate representatives from thefields of politics and business. Fin-land was represented by Speaker ofParliament Eero Heinäluoma andMrs. Satu Siitonen-Heinäluoma,and Sweden by the King andQueen, as well as PrincessMadeleine with her fiancé.

Vice President Joe Biden gave aspeech at the gala dinner in hishometown Wilmington’s ChaseCenter. The Finnish and Swedishdelegations also bestowed honors.Speaker Heinäluoma gave the

U.S. Vice President Joe Bidenhonored the 375th Anniversary Jubilee

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden spoke at the 375th AnniversaryJubilee Gala Dinner in his hometown of Wilmington.

Commemorative Medal of the Cen-tennial of the Parliament of Finlandto the President of the New Swe-den Alliance, Sheila Romine, and tothe Vice President Marja Kaisla.

In his speech Vice PresidentBiden said that Finland and Swe-den are examples of bravery andcourage: “Go to the hardest placeson Earth with me, and you’ll findSwedes and Finns working there tomake a difference.” “Go back toMazar-i-Sharif with me, in a god-forsaken part of the world underfire, and you’ll find Finns andSwedes working side-by-side withAfghan forces to give the Afghanpeople a shot at a better life.”

The Vice President also men-tioned the chairmanship of the Arc-tic Council that Sweden currentlyholds and that will pass on to Fin-land in a few years’ time. In rela-tion to Arctic matters the VicePresident said: “I don’t know ifthere’s another people on Earththat can match the combination ofcourage and conscience of theSwedes and the Finns.” Biden de-clared his admiration towards thenations’ physical courage but espe-cially the courage of Finland’s andSweden’s convictions and theirwillingness to be morally intrepid.

The Vice President also took thetime to reminisce his two-day tripto Finland before continuing toRussia to meet with PresidentPutin. In Finland he had met thePresident, the Prime Minister andMembers of Parliament. He said hemade the visit because Finlandknows better than almost any na-tion in the world the relationshipwith Russia and what’s going on in-side Russia. The Vice Presidenttraveled with his grand-daughterFinnegan. Biden revealed that theywere equally impressed by the gen-der equality in Finland: at the timeboth the President and the PrimeMinister were women, as well asmany of the Members of Parlia-ment.

The 375th Jubilee Day began inPhiladelphia with a symposium atthe Independent Seaport Museum.The “Making it in America” sympo-sium focused on Finnish and Swed-ish success stories and entrepre-neurship in America. The speakerswere design company Artek’s CEOMirkku Kullberg and game-devel-oper Remedy Entertainment’s CEOMatias Myllyrinne from Finland, aswell as the former CEO MarilynCarlson Nelson of the travel andhospitality company Carlson, andMaster Chef Marcus Samuelssonfrom Sweden. The CEO of the Uni-versity City Science Center, Dr.Stephen Tang was the moderator ofthe discussion.

The ceremonies continued inChester, Pennsylvania, where theFinnish Monument by the Finnishsculptor Wäinö Aaltonen is situ-ated. Representatives of the Finn-ish-American organizations, theMayor of Chester John Linder, andthe media were among the crowdas the Speaker laid a wreath at themonument.

A public event was held also inWilmington City Center, whereMayor of Wilmington Dennis Will-iams and the Mayor of its sister cityKalmar in Sweden, gave speeches.A local children’s choir sang allthree national anthems – especiallywell also in Finnish.

News, 5/16/2013 Embassy ofFinland, Washington, D.C.

15 June 2013

The Finnish summer means spend-ing long days outside, relaxing at thesummer cottage and enjoying fresh,seasonal cuisine.

If you ever have the pleasure of be-ing invited to a Finn’s home or cottagein the summertime, you’ll find a greatmany delights to satisfy your tastebuds. A significant part of enjoyingsummer involves being outdoors, aswell as the activity of grilling or bar-becuing.

“In the summertime Finns love theirsausages and their new potatoes,” statesVirve Räisänen, owner and head chefof Helsinki’s Restaurant Sunn. “Actu-ally, summer officially starts for Finn-ish cuisine with the arrival of new po-tatoes.” “New potatoes” refers to potatoesharvested early, while still small, con-sidered a special delicacy. Given theFinn’s reputation for being forthright,it comes as no surprise to learn howthey enjoy their potatoes. “First youboil them with lots of salt and dill—nothing else,” Räisänen explains.“Then serve them with butter—somepeople use onion, but butter is the mainingredient.”

Eating local, from pikeperchto stinging nettles Finnish summer cuisine includes arange of sausages—and yes, they havebeen known to cook them on the sauna

Grilling or barbecuing forms astaple of Finnish summer, whenpeople try to spend as much timeoutdoors as possible.

Taste the summer in Finland

Virve Räisänen is the owner andhead chef of Restaurant Sunn,across the square from Helsinki’slandmark Lutheran Cathedral.She shares the secrets of Finnishsummer cuisine with us.

Photo by: Leena Karppinen

Photoby: SRE

stove; it’s not unheard of. Fishing isalso a popular way to while away thelong summer days. Many summer cot-tage residents prepare the catch of theday in their own smoker, withpikeperch frequently finding its wayonto the dining table.

Meanwhile, the abundance of freshproduce available around the countryduring the warmer months facilitatesall manner of culinary indulgence.

“Finnish people eat more vegetablesin the three months of summer thanduring the rest of the year,” Räisänensays, laughing. “Fresh peas are verygood. We have a summer soup in Fin-land, which is all about utilizing peasand potatoes as the main ingredients.”

This enthusiasm for fresh local pro-duce also extends to the numerous wildherbs that grow here, which are freefor everyone to forage, alongside nu-merous varieties of berries and mush-rooms for which Finland is renowned.Finns pride themselves on being ableto make use of much of what naturehas to offer. Interestingly, perhaps oneof the least likely seasonings is foundin the shape of the stinging nettle plant.Harmless and tasty when cooked, it

acts as a common summer starter dish,appearing in soups and even pancakes.

Celebrating the midnight sunThe centrepiece of the Finnish warmseason comes in the shape of Midsum-mer, the longest day of the year, whichsets off all manner of celebrationsaround the country. Giant bonfires arelit alongside lake and ocean shores na-tionwide as friends and family gatherto mark this annual tradition. Naturally, food also plays a big role.While Räisänen now spends her Mid-summers bringing cottage-style cel-ebrations to the capital region at herrestaurant, her childhood memories ofthe event include one notable treat. “Every family has its own traditionalrecipe of muurinpohjalettu, which ispassed down from one generation to thenext,” says Räisänen. “These are buck-wheat flour pancakes, a Finnish crêpe,prepared in a really rustic way in a bigpan over an open fire. The thinner youcan get them, with a really crispy edge,the better they are. Fold them in four,and put fresh cream and strawberrieson top.” Good company, warm weather andgood food–all of this and more is onoffer during the Finnish summer.

By James O’Sullivan, June 2013 from thisisFINLAND

Photo: Visit Finland

A common summer scenario:It’s a treat to eat outside duringthe warm months.

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