nordstjernan The Swedish Newspaper of America
Published by Swedish News. Volume 144 No. 13, July 15, 2016. Price per copy $2.50
This Week, Page 3
The U.S. Navy dropped anchor in Stockholm.
Sweden, Page 2, 3
With the Maypole, ferries and the Statue of Liberty in the harbor, Battery Park in New York is one of the greatest places to celebrate Midsummer. “More Swedes than at similar celebrations in Sweden” often attend this annual event at the very tip of Manhattan.
Photo: Dag Bennstrom
Sweden celebrates a victory in the UN Security Council / Record numbers of British citizens want to move to Sweden / There’s hope for Don’t Grope campaign / Stockholm welcomes US Navy and USS Mount Whitney / Film Festival finally gets the godfather of filmmaking to visit Sweden
Feature, Page 7
Massive furniture recall: IKEA’s problems with furniture tip-overs won’t go away.
Pacific States, Page 10
Three young women make up the Queen’s Court at the Sveadal Midsummer celebration.
Our cultural luggage
Continued on page 3
Page 10
Dashboard, Page 10, 11
Suitcase restrictions may prevent us from buying too many souvenirs when we travel, but some important things don’t fit in luggage anyway.
Photo: Shutterstock
Cultural heritage is luckily a portable possession. Although the early emigrants couldn’t take many of their physical belongings with them, they could carry remembered tunes and rituals inside their heads across the oceans and rugged terrain. They could break out in song anywhere, a cappella or with a fiddle, on board a ship, riding a wagon train or rail car, and in lodge halls. As Swedish Americans dispersed into settlements across the country, annual performances of rituals like Sankta Lucia bound them together and with their homeland. The prevalence of singing societies and church choirs that sprang up in urban centers, and the naming of various lodges for Jenny Lind, attest to the continuing importance of music to these Swedish immigrants. Today,
A Scandinavian-American run for Congress / Swedes raced to spend some banknotes before they went out of circulation / Zlatan announces retirement from Swedish soccer / Standing ovations (and dancing) as the King awarded the 2016 Polar Music Prizes / First highway for electric trucks.
Midsummer at the ‘Old Farm’
There are more than 100 open-air museums in the United States, many of which are historic. But only one is devoted entirely to Swedish immigration in America: Gammelgården (“Old Farm”). At the Scandia, Minnesota museum, five historic buildings on 11 acres have been carefully restored and preserved to tell the story and show the culture and daily lives of our immigrant forefathers. Throughout the year, Gammelgården hosts language classes, farmers markets, exhibition and handiwork weekends, concerts, cooking classes and special events, including a lutfisk dinner, a meatball run and Lucia Dagen. One of the most highly / Page 5 anticipated days of the year, however is Midsommar.
Page 4
Photo: Kathleen Erickson
by Kitty Hughes guest@nordstjernan.com
news in brief. page 2
Swedish News Ta väl vara på veckan. Gästledare
Sydsvenska Dagbladet 17 April, 2016
Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallström is proud to represent Sweden on the United Nations Security Council
A seat on the UN Security Council
In an exciting vote that was well above the required twothirds majority, Sweden won a seat on the UN Security Council. At the United Nations headquarters in New York on June 28, the 193-member UN voted for Sweden, together with Ethiopia, Bolivia and Kazahkstan for the open seats for the 2017-18 term with begins Jan. 1, 2017. These are the non-permanent seats in the UN Security Council which includes 15 member countries, five of which are permanent: China, France, Russia, UK and USA. The last time Sweden was a member of the Security Council was 20 years ago in 1997-1998; it also served 1975-1976 and 1957-1958. Sweden will promote international peace and security as well as the Swedish view on democracy, human rights, gender equality and development.
Brexit affects Swedish citizenship
In the wake of Brexit, Sweden has seen a marked uptick in the number of Brits applying for Swedish citizenship. Sweden’s Migration Agency said 129 Brits filed for citizenship (compared to a weekly average of around 20) since the June 23 vote in Britain to exit the EU. The Brits who are already living in Sweden are keeping tabs on what’s next: If they’ve been living there for more than five years, they can apply for citizenship and stay in Sweden; that’s true for Brits who have a Swedish partner with children in Sweden as well. If they’ve been in Sweden fewer than five year and are working, they can apply for a work visa, but they need to leave the country until their visa arrives (which can take up to 5 months). Brits are encouraged to watch for updates as this unprecedented transition process evolves.
Don’t Grope Campaign #tafsainte
As festival season swings into full force, a zero tolerance campaign to curb sexual harassment among young people has police handing out wristbands. After a couple festival seasons with increasing numbers of reports of sexual molestation among youth, “We’re hoping this will get many, especially young guys, to think twice. A lot of them don’t seem to realize (groping) is a crime,” national police chief Dan Eliasson said. The Don’t Grope campaign is part of a wider plan to counteract sexual harassment among young people. Police officers are handing out rubber bracelets at major youth events this summer. The text reads: “Polis avspärrat #tafsainte (Police cordon off, don’t grope.)
Nordstjernan, July 15, 2016
Prata om integrationen. Så var det dags igen – årets Almedalsvecka är här. I Visby samlas beslutsfattare, påverkansgrupper och journalister. Och en intresserad allmänhet. Det är ett tillfälle att lyfta, vända och vrida på viktiga politiska frågor och i bästa fall hitta nya infallsvinklar. En fråga som årets vecka inte får skynda förbi är flyktingpolitiken. Under hösten kom det som mest 10 000 asylsökande i veckan, under hela förra året drygt 160 000. Ett fåtal EU-länder var villiga att ta ansvar och Sverige var ett av dem. Det blev ohållbart, mottagningssystemet höll på att braka samman och riksdagspartierna, alla utom SD och V, enades därför kring en skärpning av asylpolitiken. Den 21 juni röstade riksdagen med klar majoritet igenom regeringens lagförslag om en paus – tillfälliga begränsningar i möjligheten att få uppehållstillstånd i Sverige. Den gör tidsbegränsade uppehållstillstånd till en huvudregel och den begränsar möjligheterna till familjeåterförening. Framför allt det sistnämnda fick hård – och berättigad – kritik från tunga remissinstanser på grund av risken att familjer splittras. Lagen gäller i högst
tre år och går att försvara bara om Sverige endast just tillfälligt lägger sig på denna miniminivå enligt EU-rätten och internationella konventioner. Hela poängen med lagen måste vara att skapa lite andrum, köpa lite tid. Under tiden ska samhället rustas så att integrationen fungerar – med jobb, bostad och skola. Det är nödvändigt för att långsiktigt kunna värna asylrätten. Att lagen är just tillfällig innebär en respit – inte att sätt att skärpa den generösa politiken bakvägen. Här finns brännande problem och ingen tid att förlora. Det måste gå snabbare för nyanlända att få ett jobb, bostadsbyggandet måste ta fart och skolan behöver rustas – inte minst för de många nyanlända eleverna. Allt detta kräver breda politiska reformer. Det kan inte lämpas över på enskilda kommuner. Nyanlända med en utbildning i bagaget behöver snabbare få den validerad, andra behöver kompletterande utbildning. Konjunkturläget är gynnsamt och det finns brist på arbetskraft inom många yrkesområden. Men arbetsmarknaden måste också öppnas för den stora grupp som saknar utbildning och arbetslivserfarenhet. Principen är enkel: alla som kan ska bidra till sin egen försörjning efter bästa förmåga. Allt annat ökar utanförskapet. Och i klartext är det som då behövs enkla
jobb – till lägre löner. Vad detta innebär för socialförsäkringar och arbetslöshetskassa är bara några av de helt grundläggande fundamentala frågor som politikerna måste ge sig i kast med utan dröjsmål. Även regeringen förefaller nu att ha insett behovet av att skapa fler enkla jobb. Men fortfarande är detta med lägre ingångslöner svårt att ens diskutera. Här krävs att näringslivet och de fackliga organisationerna vågar ompröva och förändra. Svensk skola har länge haft problem och är illa rustad att möta de många nyanlända eleverna. Skolan blir också helt central då det gäller att lära ut vilka värderingar som gäller i samhället. Och medan allt detta sköts på hemmaplan måste Sverige fortsätta att verka för att EU tar sig samman och gemensamt tar ansvar för flyktingarna. I dessa brexittider är risken uppenbar att EU lägger för mycket kraft på sina inre angelägenheter och missar att sköta de problem som unionen finns till för. En Almedalsvecka är bara åtta dagar lång. Och det finns en del mer än rosémingel att fylla den med. Almedalsveckan, tidigare kallad Politikerveckan i Almedalen, genomförs årligen i Visby på Gotland, där företrädare för såväl de svenska politiska partierna som allehanda intresseorganisationer och företag samlas och diskuterar politik och samhällsfrågor.
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News in brief. page 3
Our Cultural Luggage
Swedish News
The USS Mount Whitney dropped anchor in Stockholm for a scheduled port visit. Photo Alyssa Weeks/US Navy
U.S. Navy port visit in Stockholm
A fiddler in Oakland, California recently performed a concert of music the early Swedish immigrants brought with them to America. This concert got Swedish American Kitty Hughes thinking about the ways cultural traditions are needed and shared. (Above, Tim Rued performing Swedish folk music.) Continued from page 1
my Vasa lodge still sings “Happy Birthday” in Swedish, and we sing Swedish Christmas songs, following an old Swedish tradition of marking traditions with melody. Recipes, of course, were also portable. For many years, the women of my mother’s family passed down a recipe for cardamom rolls with cooking lessons in the kitchen. Until it arrived to me, a fourth generation Swedish American, the recipe had never been written down.
The power of poetry
We have almost forgotten that the Swedes brought poetry with them as well. The early immigrants loved poetry, fiercely in fact, revering their literary heritage with an almost religious fervor. Today, VASA’s Tegnér Lodge #109 in the Scotia, New York (Albany area) and our Oakland, California Lodge #149 provide testamentary evidence of the early Swedish immigrants’ literary interests. Both were named for the Swedish poet Esaias Tegnér, whose translation of the Icelandic Frithiof’s Saga into Swedish was popular all over Europe in the 19th century. Both of these Tegner lodges formed around the turn of the last century (#109 in 1907 and #149 in 1908). The Augustana archives list a Frithiof Lodge #5, Independent Order of Svithiod, in Detroit, Michigan, was formed in 1891 making it one of the oldest Swedish American organizations to base its name on Tegner’s achievement. This lodge appears to
have disbanded around 1980. Tegner Lodge #59, Independent Order of Vikings, also formed in Detroit, but at a much later date, 1919, and seems to have met the same fate. Few Swedish Americans today remember Tegnér’s enormous status and influence as a literary figure in his time. He did not simply translate Frithiof’s Saga into Swedish, he rendered it into 24 rhymed cantos, in his own highly romantic poetic language, in keeping with poetic trends of his day. Published it in 1825, Tegnér’s poem attracted the attention of the esteemed German poet, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe who recommended “its old, mighty gigantic-barbaric style of verse” to his contemporaries. Today, even the most current English translations of Tegnér’s poem sound a bit antiquated and stodgy. (It may be time for a new translation that would appeal to modern ears.) But, in another way, his poem is all too familiar. Full of larger-than-life heroes and their exploits, the figures in Frithiof’s Saga might be compared to today’s superheroes, the Star Wars and Superman figures with their widespread appeal in comic books and movies. Tegnér may be credited, not only for his poetic achievement, but for instilling pride in our Viking heritage. Recently, I came upon an unexpected reference to the Frithiof Saga while reading Wallace Stegner’s Pulitzer Prize winning novel The Angle of Repose: The narrative follows the trials of a pioneer couple settling a new mining community in Idaho in the late 1800s. Discouraged there and hoping to find a vein of silver in a mine in Mexico,
the couple set off for Michoacan in Mexico, taking a voyage by ship from California down the Pacific Coast. On board the ship the couple enjoyed nightly entertainments by their fellow passengers also seeking their fortunes where opportunity called. The wife recalled in a letter that they … “sat up one moonlit night to hear a fantastic recitation of the Frithjof Saga in the original by a young Swedish engineer on his way to build a Mexican railroad.” I reread this passage several times. The Swedish engineer was undoubtedly reciting verses of Tegnér’s famous rhymed translation of the Frithiof Saga! The passage captured the magnetic appeal of Tegnér’s poetry in Swedish, which could entrance even non-Swedish speaking listeners. It also conveyed the Swedish engineer’s passion for his literary heritage and his identification with the Viking spirit of exploration and adventure.
Discovering common ground
I had a sudden revelation — a sort of “aha” moment. It struck me that our lodge’s choice of name reflected more than a literary bent. Some early Swedish immigrants most likely felt a connection with the adventurous spirit of the Vikings that Frithiof’s Saga celebrated. If you made it as far as California, whether straight from Sweden, or as part of the great western migration from the eastern United States, you were part of a great new adventure. The West Coast, for many, Continues on next page
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The U.S. 6th Fleet command and control ship USS Mount Whitney (LCC 20) was anchored in Stockholm for a scheduled port visit for a few days at the end of June. The crew hosted a reception on board the ship and crewmembers participated in a community relations project with youth at the Fryshuset Activity Center. “USS Mount Whitney’s visit to Stockholm is a wonderful opportunity to continue strengthening the bonds between the United States and Sweden as we work together toward mutual goals. On a personal level, we look forward to interacting with the great people of Stockholm to learn about and enjoy the rich culture and history of Sweden,” said Capt. Carlos A. Sardiello, commanding officer, USS Mount Whitney (LCC 20). The ship departed Stockholm on June 29 en route to Gaeta, Italy.
Father of The Godfather fulfills a dream
American screenwriter, film director and producer Francis Ford Coppola, will receive the Bronze Horse for lifetime achievement at the Stockholm International Film Festival in November. Coppola’s career began in 1962, his films encapsulating “their own era with perfect authenticity, yet remaining equally relevant today.” Coppola, who won five Oscars and four Golden Globes through his long career with cult films like “Apocalypse Now” (1979) and “The Godfather” trilogy (1972, 1974, 1990), last directed “Distant Vision” (2015), a new multi-generational Italian-American saga. “His prophetic images and powerful stories have defined cinema for generations,” the festival stated. The filmmaker has never been to Sweden: “In my lifetime, I’ve never had the pleasure to visit Sweden and its capital Stockholm, which I’ve always wanted [to do],” Coppola said, looking forward to his November visit. And “to welcome the godfather of cinema to Stockholm is a dream coming true,” said Git Scheynius, festival director.
Sweden in America
apps for your smartphone that gives you instant access to everything Swedish and Nordic in the U.S. www.swedeninamerica.com - where Sweden meets America: Places, events and organizations. (Apps by Nordstjernan)
The Exchange Rate: $1.00 = SEK 8.52 07.06.2016
July 15, 2016 Nordstjernan
feature. page 4
Tegnér member Marie-Ann Hill, active in VASA for many years, cutting the cake for the lodge’s 100th year celebration in 2008. Photo: Kitty Hughes. Continued from previous page
was imagined as the end of the known world — and getting there the ultimate adventure. Tegnér’s poem, by celebrating the Viking’s travel lust and risk-taking feats, helped ease the pain of separation from family and friends left behind. Poetry whether or not heroic, offered spiritual and emotional sustenance in a new and unsettling environment. The first issues of Vestkusten, the Swedish American paper published for years in San Francisco, often featured a poem on the first page. One of the frequent contributors, Reverend A.M. Lebeau, was minister of the First Swedish Evangelical St. Paul’s Church of Oakland. He organized the church in 1887, which makes him a key figure in consolidating and building community in early Oakland. He was said to have walked the streets, proselytizing new congregants for the church by handing out a small flyer in Swedish. The church was so small at the time that it met in an Oakland area home. Le Veau’s poems often appeared on the front page of Vestkusten in the early editions. Like other Swedish immigrants with literary aspirations, LeVeau turned to the local newspapers in his native language to find an outlet for self-expression. (Tegnér himself set a precedent for ministers pursuing a dual career, serving as Bishop of Lund as well as publishing poetry.) For me, one of the most intriguing local Bay Area talents was August F. Brandstedt, born in Norrköping, Sweden, in 1856. He immigrated to America in 1886 and organized the Swedish dramatic club of San Francisco in 1895. Under his leadership, the club gave many public entertainments. His own comedies, including “En dag under smekmånaden” (A Day in the Honeymoon) and “En liten lexa” (A little lesson) were Bay Area favorites. Brandstedt produced one of his musical comedies in Oakland as a fundraiser for the Swedish Pavilion at the 1915 Panama-Pacific Exposition. Brandstedt wrote and published poetry as well. His verse, primarily in a humorous style, appeared in leading Swedish journals in the U.S. and Sweden. In a more serious vein, he published a rhymed poem in Swedish in the program that welcomed the 1915 Convention of Swedish Singers to the Bay Area. A photo of Brandstedt accompanies the poem. He is shown in profile, with a serious
Nordstjernan, July 15, 2016
expression, turning away from the viewer as if lost in thought. Serious poetry was all fine and good, but the Swedish-speaking newcomers to the Bay Area in the late 1800s and early 1900s definitely had a penchant for light comedy. Two months before the San Francisco 1906 earthquake and fire, the biggest news in Vestkusten was the upcoming production of the play Yon Yonson about a Swedish country bumpkin who finds work in a lumber camp in Minnesota. The paper featured a full page ad with a photo of the smiling yokel dressed in his woodsman attire. If the play made fun of the less sophisticated country cousins in both Sweden and the Midwest, it also reminded the urbanites of their peasant origins, which they had left behind not long ago. No one knew that San Francisco’s Swedish community would all too soon have a major tragedy to contend with. Uprooted once again, this time by the great earthquake and fire, many were moved to refugee camps in Oakland, later buying land and making the east side of the Bay their new home. And luckily for the East Bay, the Swedish American transplants once again brought their music and traditions with them. Although numerous Swedish churches and businesses were already established in the East Bay by the late 1800s (Vestkusten ran a regular column about Oakland right after the San Francisco news), there was no VASA lodge and no hall comparable to the San Francisco Swedish American Hall. Spurred by the arrival of the newcomers, Tegner Lodge #149 was formed two years after the earthquake, and its numbers quickly swelled into the 1920s, as new Swedish American arrivals continued to find work in the East Bay’s growing industrial economy. Oakland’s Jenny Lind Hall, completed in 1915 in downtown Oakland, served as a grand meeting place and performance space for many Swedish American organization for many years. Designed by Frederick Soderberg in the Beaux Arts style, the building is a city landmark, although it no longer serves its original function. The Swedes have moved out. Tegner Lodge now meets in the Bjornson Hall Sons of Norway Lodge in another part of town. But the Lucia Fests, the crayfish parties, the Kubb games with other lodges, and, of course, singing Happy Birthday in Swedish — those all got carried across town with us. By Kathryn “Kitty” Hughes
News brief for Yon Yonson in the newspaper Vestkusten. The play was big news with full page ads, published only months before the devastating San Francisco earthquake and Fire. Tim Rued performing on nyckelharpa.
Cover for Fritiof’s Saga, 1876.
Jenny Lind Hall built 1915 in Oakland, Oakland’s response to San Francisco’s Swedish American Hall, an Oakland city landmark now with an adapted reuse as a Buddhist center.
Portrait of Esaias Tegner.
Right and, left in photo: The author’s granddaughter Jane sixth generation Swedish American and youngest performer in Tegnér Lodge #149’s Lucia Fest in 2015. She recently performed with the children in the 2016 Midsommar program at Sveadal (page 10).
Left: Photo of Swedish American poet August Brandstedt from the archives of the City of Oakland Planning Department, Cultural Heritage Survey.
feature. page 5
One of Minnesota’s many (special) Midsummer celebrations Valorie Arrowsmith, Minnesota valorie@nordstjernan.com
Midsummer celebrations abound in Swedish-American communities, and Minnesota has many. Gammelgården Museum, near the Twin Cities, draws guests from surrounding towns and even from Sweden — many Swedes are abroad during this special time of year, and they seek out celebrations like this one, which is similar to what they are accustomed to in their home provinces. On Saturday, June 25, planners and volunteers at Gammelgården were on the job taking care of last-minute tasks and involving guests in learning activities such as Kubb, cow-milking, weaving, and making flower wreaths. The Midsummer pole takes some time to decorate, and this became the job for Ross and Marta Nelson. They put finishing touches on it, and then quickly dashed home to pick up musical instruments so they could provide a gånglåt, or walking tune, Lynn Moratzka, director of Gammelgården Museum in Scandia, gets ready to sit in the lap of the person behind her in the final stage of the song game “We can dance Labadu.” for the parade that ended at center stage by The program began the majstång. after lunch. There were An outdoor market place was nestled ungreetings and welcome der the tree canopy, where vendors and arspeeches, and both the tisans displayed and sold their wares: wood Swedish and American carving, silver work, embroidered hanging flags were added to the pocket purses and fudge sauce, to name a stage. The pole went few. Volunteers served coffee and korv at up ceremoniously with the food kiosk. Inside the museum, the butik the help of some strong had an array of Nordic books, textiles, gift items, candies, candles and sweaters, which Swedes from the auwere too hot for this particular day, but in the dience. Then the song air-conditioned building one could begin to games commenced. They think about wearing an elegant Norwegian were done in Swedish Marta and Ross Nelson arrived and English, and also bi- early, decorated the midsummer sweater come winter. lingually. For two-thirds pole, and then went home to fetch of the audience, it was their instruments so they could only their first, second, or be part of the parade later at the festival at Gammelgården. third time participating in the Swedish favorites: ”Små grodorna,” “Karu-
Vi har öppet måndag till fredag kl 9:30 till 15:00 Den mobila passtationen är i Fort Lauderdale den 13 - 15 september. Kontakta konsulatet för mera information.
The cow really did produce some milk, as these surprised guests discovered when they tried hand milking in Scandia, MN.
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Learning to weave a rag rug on an outdoor loom was one of the activities at Gammelgården in Scandia when folks celebrated Midsummer.
No doubt most guests thought this was an impossible maneuver for a Swedish song game, however, they managed to sit on the laps of the person behind them in the game “We can dance Labadu.”
sellen,” “We are all mother’s little piglets” and a Swedish-American game called “Vi kan dansa Labadu.” The song games came to a conclusion with the Svenskarnasdag Girls’ Choir from the Twin Cities, who, with a packed agenda, was already performing their second gig for the day. Folks departed for home, with another dose of Swedish traditions in their lives, enough to hold them over until the next event, perhaps at Gammelgården Museum, which has many programs for youth and adults. www.gammelgardenmuseum.org Text and photos by V. S. Arrowsmith July 15, 2016 Nordstjernan
The Pacific states. page 6
Traveling the rails — Retracing Farfar’s journey, part III
The Nordic Heritage Museum by Ted Olsson, San Francisco ted@nordstjernan.com
In Seattle, in the heart of the northwest Nordic community since the 1880s is Ballard, Washington, home of the Nordic Heritage Museum. Like so many other Scandinavian museums throughout the U.S., the collections are extremely important for our history; they feature each of the five Scandinavian countries, and particularly emphasize immigrant experiences. I was there to visit with colleagues and see the vitality of this iconic Swedish organization serving the community while teaching all of us how better to serve our local Swedish heritage and people. As important as these historic exhibits are, perhaps even more important are the superb programs and special exhibits that the museum hosts throughout the year, such as a “Nordic Culinary Conference,” Magnus Nilsson’s “Nordic: a photographic essay of landscapes, food and people” and its excellent annual magazine Nordic Kultur, keeping alive the connections with modern Sweden and contemporary adaptations of older traditions. It is fortunate that modern Seattle is home to so many ScandinavianAmericans descended from early immigrants but also that so many younger Scandinavians have more recently settled here. Many of them attend the special exhibits and performances for their own enjoyment and to help their children appreciate their heritage. Most important now is the construction of a new museum for continuing the mission of the institution. The museum has been fortunate to have converted its facility from a 1907 multi-storied brick primary school with surrounding schoolyard, which now provides ample parking. But the location became untenable when the school district raised the rent more than ten-fold in less than 10 years. Ballard also decided its increased student population once again requires the use of that building to renovate or replace for its original purpose.
Norwegian immigrant. It will house modern exhibits designed by Ralph Appelbaum Associates, known for notable projects such as the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC. The modern design, the novel displays of history, the emphasis on contemporary Scandinavia’s contributions in the region and the world, as well as its general international excellence will make this another signature destination for visitors and residents alike. The 4,000 square foot changing exhibit gallery, entered from Fjörd Hall, will feature temporary exhibits of both historic and contemporary Nordic and Nordic-American shared values in art, design and culture, complementing the permanent exhibits on the second floor, which nicely compares the Nordic countries’ exhibits with those of Nordic Americans across the hall. A Cultural Resource Center will contain the library and Nordic genealogical resources. On the third floor will be offices, the boardroom and meeting spaces. The museum wishes to partner with Nordic firms, particularly in the area of green (LEEDS) and sustainable construction and operations, to showcase their technolo-
The author in front of the original Nordic Museum. Photo: Astrid Olsson.
part of their annual fundraising program; it was so successful that it brought in over $430,000. So, they remain short only $4 million, which they hope to collect in the next few months. To emphasize the national significance of this achievement, the Swedish Council of America held their semi-annual conference in Seattle to lend their support and promote this cause among its affiliates. I know that the Nordic Heritage Museum would appreciate your support in closing this gap to tell our story. www.nordicmuseum.org
The all new museum
So, the Nordic Heritage Museum must now begin construction on its new building. Fortunately this has been carefully planned for more than a decade: By 2009 the museum had completed the purchase of an ideal site located on Market Street near the harbor, just blocks from one of Seattle’s most visited tourist destinations, the Ballard Locks. With concepts by the internationally esteemed Finnish architect Juhani Pallasmaa, the new building has already been designed by local architects at Mithun, founded by the son of a
Nordstjernan, July 15, 2016
Part III of Ted Olsson’s trip along the Pacific coastline by train, to follow in the footsteps of his grandfather. Parts I and II have run in issues 11 and 12 of Nordstjernan.
Above: Exterior of the new museum. Top: Fjord Hall, part of the interior of the new Nordic Heritage Museum near the ballard Locks, Seattle.
gies and products by way of introducing these firms to the American public. This visionary project will cost approximately $45 million. Thanks to generous
support from individuals, foundations and governmental sources they have almost achieved their goal. And this year’s Northern Lights Auktion on April 23 had a goal to raise $310,000 to support museum operations as
You deserve a Sweder Life: Call 1.800.827.9333 ext. 10 for your own subscription. NORDSTJERNAN
feature. page 7
IKEA furniture recall It is really difficult for me to be critical of IKEA. I have been a loyal customer for over 40 years, shopping there both in Sweden and the U.S. IKEA’s design, price point and functionality continue to attract me. It’s a day trip with Swedish food included. I am half Swedish and married to a Swede, we live in Sweden two months out of every year. I have owned a Volvo for years and buy the car because of its stellar safety technology. My children always loved to go to IKEA — it was a family outing complete with many meatballs and tons of Swedish delicacies. I want to support the country and its institutions, yet IKEA’s mounting crisis with furniture tip-overs and dying or severely injured children troubles me greatly about the company, its leadership and corporate culture. How could a problem this severe be allowed to persist? The U.S. Consumers Product Safety Commission recently “doubled down” on what IKEA had to do to avert future injuries. Three months ago I wrote an article in Nordstjernan about IKEA’s tip over problems. They were facing two wrongful death suits filed against them for the deaths of young children crushed by unstable furniture. IKEA was the target of an investigation by the CPSC. In the original article I posed the possibility (based on a published academic crisis communications research study) that IKEA’s stellar reputation for corporate social responsibility might help them weather the adverse publicity storm (as long as they were proactive in averting the problem in the future). Six months ago the original CPSC’s IKEA recall order was strange because no furniture was taken back by IKEA and they continued to sell the popular line of MALM dressers and chests of drawer. Instead, IKEA was allowed to embark on a furniture safety communications program and distribute widely that a free anchoring kit was available from IKEA. Their messages strongly noted that this furniture had to be anchored for it to be safe. The campaign was broad-based, involving traditional media, social media, their own website messages, catalogue inserts and in-store material, plus store staff training to emphasize the need for anchoring. The emphasis seemed to be on the output of many messages to a general audience. No tracking data was mentioned e.g. number of kits requested. Using a guideline for effective corporate crisis communication called PANTCHEK* (www.finemanpr.com/crisis-checklist/), I judged IKEA’s messages to be weak on high-level leadership in the solution and as spokesperson. Another subpar dimension was the lack of concrete measures being taken to eliminate the problem. The latest agreement with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission occurred after releasing evidence that six children had been killed in tip-over accidents. The core of the latest agreement is that IKEA would recall 29 million chests and dressers in the U.S.
IKEA’s problems with furniture tip-overs won’t go away gram impacting all areas of the company to make their furniture safer.
This is what it’s all about; whether a dresser, chest of drawers or other tall or top heavy furniture, secure it to the wall. You find a slew of practical tips and free tools at the website www.IKEA-USA.com/saferhomestogether but better yet: Exchange your old dresser for a safer alternative. Photos courtesy of IKEA U.S.
‘Act immediately’
At a news conference on June 28, 2016 CPSC officials demonstrated the tip-over threat of the popular MALM line of chests of drawers. The recall requirement was a crucial victory for consumer advocates in its yearlong effort to hold it accountable for a growing death toll of young children dating back to 1989. Elliot Kaye of the USCPSC issued a blunt warning to owners of the furniture included in the recall. “If you have one of these products, act immediately. It is simply too dangerous to have the furniture in your home unanchored, especially if you have children.” He also said that this not just an IKEA problem — it’s a problem of the entire furniture making industry. Lars Petersson, the president and chief executive of IKEA U.S., said the furniture was never intended to be freestanding but rather secured to walls with straps, a step he called “an integral part of the assembly instructions.” Peterson also said “if you are assembling correctly, the product is actually a very safe product.” He declined to comment on the wrongful death suites being brought by families. Another player involved in IKEA’s crisis is Alan Feldman, a lawyer who is representing three of the families of toddlers (all less than 3 years old) in lawsuits against IKEA. Feldman said he welcomed the recall, but wished it had been issued much sooner. These suits accused the company of knowing the risks of its furniture but failing to do anything about it. He said that it took multiple deaths and more than 70 injuries along with an unreported number of near misses before IKEA was forced into action.
IKEA campaign shortcomings
So for six months IKEA was off and running with its own USCPSC-endorsed safety/anchoring campaign. What were the possible shortcomings of this campaign? There can be no other conclusion but to suggest that IKEA could not demonstrate to the USCPSC that their campaign was working,
The Malm dresser, now discontinued.
If you have a Malm dresser:
Call IKEA toll-free at 866-856-4532 or go to www.IKEA.USA.com/recallchestsanddressers or www.IKEA-USA.com and click on Product Recall for more information on how to receive a refund or free wall-anchoring repair kit. that the anchoring kits were ordered and installed. The warnings about tip-overs were not sent to specific buyers or households known to own MALM furniture. IKEA offered no ideas on what they would do in the future (e.g. enhanced furniture safety testing, better designs for safety, etc.). My own experience in ordering the anchoring kit from IKEA and simultaneously buying an anchoring kit on Amazon.com resulted with IKEA’s kit coming three months after making the order; Amazon’s kit came in four days. What else could IKEA have done (immediately)? They could have created a top-level corporate position that reported directly to IKEA’s CEO to create a multifaceted pro-
It did not seem that IKEA had a coordinated, centralized effort lead by a high level person — their efforts cut across corporate PR, store management, etc. Nothing was mentioned about current and redoubled efforts to assure IKEA furniture is designed and built for safety. It might be that safer furniture would equate to heavier, more stable furniture impacting the assemble-ityourself process and the price point they could sell this safer furniture at. So be it. Creating an add-on heavier, more stable base for their light furniture might have worked. Saying that the solution requires everyone who owns MALM furniture to immediately anchor it is impractical and would not happen. What are the consequences of the USCPSC current order? Now IKEA is under the gun with a much stiffer recall order. The popular MALM line has been discontinued. The recall programs will cost the company plenty in terms of refunds and handling recalled furniture. We are taking about 29 million units! Granted, most of these units will never be returned because they have been discarded or because of the inconvenience of bringing them back for a refund. Maybe even more serious is the reputational damage that IKEA’s corporate image will take. This is a situation not unlike Volkswagen’s faking of emission results, but here no consumer injury or death was involved. Press coverage about the new recall will be great; articles about the new tougher recall order are already out there; IKEA’s North American CEO made national television news (NBC, June 27, 2016) with a message about IKEA’s response. By Robert F. Dyer Emeritus professor of marketing, George Washington University * PANTCHEK is a handy acronym to keep in mind when managing communications in a crisis —and not get caught with your pants down: •Public welfare is the first priority •Assemble the facts. Once they are verified, announce all bad news at once •No blame, No speculation, No repetition of negative charges or questions •Tell your side of the story or Take responsibility •Care and Concern for those affected — express it sincerely and right at the outset •High-level organization spokesperson — let the public see the crisis has top-level attention •Ensure that it will not happen again with a solid plan that will generate confidence •Keep a separate plan for moving daily business ahead
July 15, 2016 Nordstjernan
Håkan Swahn, of Aquavit, Anna Throne-Holst, Renée Lundholm, SACC New York President.
Scandinavian-American candidate for Congress inspires The spring’s final CEO luncheon was held at Restaurant Aquavit on June 9, and featured guest speaker Anna Throne-Holst, former Southampton Town Supervisor, who is a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Congress. She may be the first Norway-born, Sweden-raised and America-educated politician to run for a Congressional seat, and she also hopes to become the first female representative from the 1st Congressional District of New York. Throne-Holst spoke a good deal about her family, describing how her great-grandfather, industrialist Johan Throne-Holst, was a Norwegian Artist and singer Eva Dahlgren; Peter Fellman, DI; Artist political activist who held a position and designer Efva Attling and Gabriel Mellqvist, DI. that was similar to Thorne-Holst’s in Southampton. “I have political blood in my DNA,” of life. She also served as the executive director of she said. Even so, running for office was not the Bridgehampton Child Care and Recreational Center, where she was responsible for all areas of something she ever envisioned. “Life has a way management — from planning and oversight to of taking us in directions we don’t always plan,” program and staff development and fundraising. she said. In 2007, the mother of four was elected to the As a student at American University, Throne-Holst dreamed about going into the foreign services. In- Southampton Town Council. Two years later, stead she wound up in New York, where she met she was elected to the position of Town Superviand married her husband. They moved to Suffolk sor and subsequently was re-elected in 2011 and County to raise their family, and Throne-Holst got 2013. Among the many issues she is passionate actively involved in the local community. She co- about are universal early childhood education founded the Hayground School in Bridgehamp- and the pressing need to address climate change. ton, an elementary school dedicated to providing As she concluded her remarks, Throne-Holst said, “I am there for the platform, not the politics.” a first-rate education for students from all walks
A legend leaves Swedish soccer The Swedish soccer star announced his retire- from in Rosengård, what people call ‘ghetto.’ I ment from international football after 16 years made the country my country,” he said. Though with Sweden. Though Zlatan Ibrahimovic plans selected as one of Sweden’s 35 team members for to continue playing at club level — he’s rumored the Olympics this August, he will not participate. to be playing with Manchester United — his years of playing for his country are over. When the final whistle came on June 22, the striker left international football after Sweden’s 1-0 loss to Belgium in the Euro 2016 championship. Ibrahimovic, 34, says goodbye after having left an indelible mark on Swedish football as his nation’s top scorer with 62 goals in 115 internationals, many of them spectacular. On his way out, he kept his chats with the media short, proclaiming that he “came like a king, but left like a legend” and recalled his personal history as the son of immigrants and growing up to be http://www.nordstjernan.com/ news/sports/6836/|[Sweden’s greatest sporting hero] since tennis star Björn Borg. “It’s a nice story, because of where I came A jubilant Zlatan after making the 4-2 goal against England 2014.
Nordstjernan, July 15, 2016
Photos: Bo Zaunders
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New York, NY
Ever since 1996, Swedes (and non-Swedes as well) from around the greater New York City area, have come together to celebrate what many feel is the true Swedish national day - Midsummer. For several years now, Battery Park City in lower Manhattan has hosted this event. A sizable portion of the Swedish expatriate community in NYC showed up to celebrate Midsummer the Swedish way on June 24 but many who happened to pass by also joined in.
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Stockholm, Sweden
Members of the royal family are in the front row of the concert hall with the Polar prize laureates at this year’s Polar Prize Awards ceremony. The Polar Music Prize is a Swedish international award founded in 1989 by Stig “Stickan” Anderson, best known as the manager of the Swedish band ABBA, with a donation to the Royal Swedish Academy of Music. The award is annually given to one contemporary musician and one classical musician. Without any restrictions of nationality, the prize is to be “awarded for significant achievements in music and/or musical activity, or for achievements which are found to be of great potential importance for music or musical activity.” Music
Sandviken, Sweden
A two-kilometer test stretch for electric vehicles, in an environmentally conscious move toward the country’s goal of being fossil fuel-free by 2030, was opened on June 23. Along E16 in Sandviken, electric vehicles can connect to an overhead system similar to light rail. The newly installed wiring above the highway’s eastbound slow lane looks like the cables of electric trolleys, but the wiring is for trucks that want to connect for any period of time to the power lines. Trucks fitted with an intelligent connector, called a pantograph, can connect and disconnect seamlessly from the cables at speeds of 90 kilometers an hour, allowing trucks to pass in other lanes and continue operating normally on non-electrified roads. The system is expected to cut energy use in half.
The Polar Music Prize celebrates 25 years
Standing ovations filled the Stockholm Concert Hall as King Carl XVI Gustaf awarded this year’s Polar Music Prize winners: to Sweden’s own Max Martin, the Grammy Award winning hit-making maestro, and Italy’s Cecilia Bartoli, internationally renowned mezzo-soprano. Both laureates were honored with the 25th Polar Music Prize, the world’s most prestigious award for music. Marie Ledin, managing director of the Polar Music Prize, said this of the winners, whose names were announced in February: “Max Martin and Cecilia Bartoli have both
contributed an incredible amount to music in their respective fields. They embody what the prize represents: excellence in the world of music. It is an honor to have them as our 2016 laureates.” Also known as the “Nobel Prize for Music,” each laureate receives a specially designed trophy by Efva Attling and SEK 1 million ($119,000). The award was established in 1989 by Stig Anderson, the publisher, lyricist and manager of ABBA, with the intent to “break down musical boundaries by bringing together people from all the different worlds of music.”
Max Martin, 45, the writer and producer of many songs known best by the stars who sang them — such as Britney Spears, Kelly Clarkson, Backstreet Boys, Def Leppard, even Michael Jackson to name just a few— hails from Stockholm. Though he generally likes to keep a low profile, he is famous for helping launch many music careers. According to the prize organizers, “In the last 20 years, no composer in the world has written melodies as sustainable or as widespread as those of Max Martin.” Cecilia Bartoli, 50, is known as a downto-earth opera singer, one of today’s most
sought-after opera stars to perform and record. She has sold over 10 million recordings, including several international pop songs. A native of Rome, Bartoli lives in Zurich with her Swiss baritone husband, Oliver Widmer. Past laureates include Paul McCartney, Emmylou Harris, Dizzy Gillespie, Patti Smith, Bob Dylan, Ravi Shankar, Renee Fleming, Ray Charles, Youssou N’dour, Mstislav Rostropovich and the Kronos Quartet, among others. For more info, see www.polarmusicprize.org
Herr & Fru | Mr. & Mrs.
Him: “It got to be a nice picknick after all” Her: “Yes but, I just don’t understand ...”
Her: “... where that chocolate bar disappeared to.”
Her: “I must have forgotten it at home.” Him: “We’ll have to have it with our evening fika.”
‘Name’s days’ of the Swedish Calendar: July 16 Reinhold/Reine
/Kommande två veckors namnsdagar
In New York In Stockholm In Kiruna Lund In Los Angeles
July 15: Sunrise 5.38 a.m. 4.00 a.m. 12.56 a.m. 4.46 a.m. 5.54 a.m.
Sunset 8.25 p.m. 9.47 p.m. 12.32 a.m. 9.40 p.m. 8.05 p.m.
July 17 Bruno July 18 Fredrik/Fritz July 19 Sara July 20 Margareta/Greta July 21 Johanna July 22 Magdalena/Madeleine July 23 Emma/Emmy July 24 Kristina/Kerstin July 25 Jakob July 26 Jesper/Jasmine July 27 Marta July 28 Botvid/Seved July 29 Olof July 30 Algot July 31 Helena/Elin
June 30 was the last day that the current 20-, 50- and 1000-kronor bills were a valid form of payment in Sweden. The new banknotes have been criticized by many for depicting celebrities rather than people from Swedish history. The new 500-kronor note will feature the late opera singer Birgit Nilsson rather than King Karl XI.
Banknotes expired July 1
The national campaign reminding Swedes to use or exchange these notes before July 1 was widespread, but Central Bank (Riksbanken) reported that about two billion kronor in these denominations were still in circulation as the Thursday night deadline drew near. As the country moves in the direction of becoming a cashless society, increasingly fewer Swedish banks handle cash anymore, making it difficult to find a bank branch at which to submit the bills for exchange or deposit into a personal
account. If someone isn’t able to spend their notes before July 1, they can still deposit them to their bank account until August 31. Sweden is due to get more new notes in October, including a 100 kronor note adorned by Greta Garbo, and a 500 kronor note carrying the image of Swedish soprano Birgit Nilsson. The one krona, two kronor and five kronor coins will also change appearance in the autumn, though the old versions will still be usable until June 30, 2017.
“Pengar är inte det viktigaste här i livet, men man kan inte bjuda ut det viktigaste om man inte har pengar.” [Money is not the the most important thing in life but you won’t be able to date the most important if you don’t have money.]
July 15, 2016 Nordstjernan
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Historic Midsummer at Sveadal
Parade Marshall Muriel Nelson Beroza escorted by her son, Paul, flanked by Bob Olson (U.S.) and Dwayne Erickson (Sweden). Photo: Kathleen Erickson by Ted Olsson, San Francisco ted@nordstjernan.com
On June 18 the Swedish American Patriotic League (SAPL) again celebrated the oldest Swedish Midsummer in the Americas, the 122nd annual observance of this ritual. But the occasion was even more historic for it was Midsummer’s 50th anniversary at Sveadal and also marked 90 years since Sweden’s Crown Prince Gustav (VI) and Princess Louise dedicated the site on July 26, 1926. The Swedish royals had been in the U.S. commemorating Sweden as the first country to have official relations with the new United States, since Ben Franklin signed the Treaty of Amity and Commerce (April 3, 1783) during our Revolutionary War. This year, the weather was temperate with a gentle breeze, but during California’s prolonged drought, fire is always on the mind. Fortunately, with vigilance by everyone in the crowd, which exceeded one thousand people, Midsummer remained joyous.
Midsummer open
Each year, participants begin drifting in a day early to set up camp and vendors’ tents for the marknad, and to secure the maypole to its anchored stanchion. The clubhouse and its adjoining dance floor get set up for dining. Food for dinner and the Midsummer Café is purchased, prepared or stored in the walk-in refrigerator. The parking lot is striped and the stage is built in its shaded inglenook of the main semicircular lawn. People eventually retire to their cabins or other sites to enjoy a mild evening with friends. Fortunately there are often bottles left from an earlier akvavit contest.... Early the next morning final preparations
Nordstjernan, July 15, 2016
are made and the crown arrives. This year, in true northwest fashion, the base layer of the maypole was covered with redwood branches. The admissions table did a brisk business early in the morning as families arrived to stake out their picnic areas and familiarize themselves with the grounds. Young families headed to the pool. Aspiring kids practiced their basketball shots, and adults wandered from one vendor’s booth to another choosing the best treasures early, though items were continually replaced for later buyers. By 11 a.m. older adults drifted off to enjoy fika on the clubhouse patio, where they could also buy delicious baked goods to enjoy throughout the day. But all the kids were summoned to the maypole where they picked up bunches of flowers to decorate the still prone pole. Young ones were asked to lie beneath the pole to decorate that side so that when raised the maypole would be thoroughly festooned. Just before noon the call went out for strong young men and women to help us raise the pole. Some two dozen came and the maypole was quickly hoisted and secured. With the lawn surrounding the maypole cleared, Jan Nordin singing the traditional Midsummer dance songs, and everyone, especially those with young kids, gathered to follow the instructions of Karin Forsell, a huge crowd of dancers did Swedish lineand ring-dances. It is always enjoyable to see how new generations of young kids are taught these old dances which become familiar to them as the years pass. For newcomers and veteran festival goers alike, this noontime initiation instills fun and breeds nostalgic bonding as everyone weaves about the maypole. During this early dance, typically only Karin is dressed in her
SAPL President Conor Massey escorts Queen Sarah Lipscomb, with Karin DeBreer and Nina Webber (in costume) admiring from behind. Photo: Vicki Feodor-Thurman
among the picnickers as he read the newspaper’s Midsummer recipe for “Strawberry cake á la Karin” (a sponge cake with meringue, almonds and strawberries). He said it was as simple and foolproof to prepare as written and he even wended his through the picnic tables offering slices of the cake he made. He came to Fylgia’s table and offered everyone a slice, showing them the page with the recipe — and traded a piece of cake for a sip of “Kommander Olson’s” winning akvavit; both were satisfied with the deal. If Franz were offering subscriptions for a taste of his Proud mom and daughter Kylie &and Laura Carlson. cake, Nordstjernan would have Photo: John Carlson doubled its local base. All of Fylgia agreed on the delicious recipe and Swedish folk dress and others are all casual, noted where to find it. Perhaps the newspathough some may be wearing just-purchased per should print a cookbook. items or Midsummer head wreaths. After lunch people either needed a siesta, a spot to relax or a walk to recover. While Relaxing in the afternoon Muriel Beroza gave visitors a brief history After an hour of dancing under the noon of Sveadal by explaining the historical mesun, it is time to retire to picnic with friends. mentos in the cool of the Clubhouse, Fred The Picnic Area between the road and the Bianucci regaled his followers with a tour Old Dance floor has tables with benches set of the grounds. His walk covers both our up and reserved for the lodges that constitute community history and the natural history the SAPL, and a smörgåsbord is set up with of our heartland. all the fare brought and shared by members as the clubs celebrate with their members. This is usually the time when each group Prelude and parade As the musical prelude by the favorite recognizes its Maid of Honor with a gift of Zaida Singers beckoned everyone to the appreciation for representing them in this lawn, people drifted to their spots around annual celebration. the stage where they could enjoy the proThe food and drink and song and cagram. The pageant participants, musicians, maraderie are all abundant in this shady officials and Midsummer maids assembled dell. Thanks to Nordstjernan and to Franz in the clubhouse. Then, with pomp and Mayerhofer, who was particularly popular pride by spectator and participant alike, the
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Families and friends celebrate several anniversaries
Nordin musical ensemble: The fiddlers (LR): Daniel Nordin, Jeanne Sawyer, Kikki Nordin, Anders Holtsberg) with Jan Nordin singing all the traditional Swedish folk songs. Photo: Vicki Feodor-Thurman
2016 Midsummer’s three reigning representatives: Svea (Kylie Carlson); Queen (Sarah Lipscomb); Columbia (Amelia Lipscomb). Photo: Kathleen Erickson
parade began with the musicians, then came Parade Marshall Muriel Beroza and her son Paul, and the flag bearers with the colors of Sweden and the U.S. They were followed by everyone attending the festival in a Swedish provincial costume; then the maids of honor walked before the regnants with their SAPL officers as escorts: Columbia, Svea and the Midsummer Queen with her two train bearers and crown bearer. A word needs to be said about this pageant and program because recent Swedish immigrants never quite understand this tradition. After all, in Sweden today, Midsummer is rather like America’s Independence Day picnics with family and friends, an informal affair, preferably, for Swedes. However, the formality of this festival is due to its dual Swedish and American heritages, which began with the Swedish immigrants celebrating their beloved secular holiday of Midsummer at San Francisco’s first of three world’s fairs, the Midwinter Exposition of 1894 in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. At that time the immigrants took pride both in their native land and in their new homeland, so they chose a woman to represent each country, Svea and Columbia. The fair and this celebration were so successful that they formed the Swedish American Patriotic League for the purpose of continuing the annual festival. Once the League was formed, and because only three young women could otherwise be chosen, they decided to form a Queen’s Court — the beauty of young women complementing the beauty of nature in celebrating the fullness of life at the height of summer. Each Maid of Honor would represent a constituent organization
Karin Forssell leads noon-time dancers — many of the kids who decorated the maypole — in a big ring dance. Photo: Kathleen Erickson
in the congress comprising the League. That is the joint heritage that we celebrate yearly with this festival.
The program and dancing
At the stage, MC and SAPL President Conor Massey welcomed the audience. After the singing of the national anthems, he summarized the historic occasion represented by this Midsummer, the League and Sveadal and thanked everyone who organized it as well as everyone who attended — they are the purpose for these labors of love and whose attendance extends this legacy another year, while instilling the traditions in their children and friends. Quoting the plaque at the entrance to Pio-
neer Grove (“They had the foresight”) — dedicated to the six men who discovered this site, persuaded the League to buy it, and four of whom pledged their fortunes to secure the deal — he listed the six pioneers, concluding with his “personal favorite, my great-grandfather Alexander Olson” who was founder of all three institutions: Midsummer, the League and Sveadal. This year’s Queen, Sarah Lipscomb, was crowned. She thanked Svea Lodge (VOA#348) for selecting her and the League for honoring her with this distinction. Her grandmother first came to Sveadal years ago and Sarah not only joined Vasa as a teenager but now holds office in Vasa District Lodge #12. She has come to Sveadal every year, but
this year is so special because it is the 30th anniversary of when her parents married here in Sveadal and because she was sharing this honor with her sister Amelia, who this year represented Fylgia Lodge (VOA#119) as Columbia. Later in the program, SAPL Vice President Laura Carlson took special pride in presenting her daughter, Kylie Carlson, as Svea, selected by the Sveadal Cabin Owners. Kylie also comes from a long lineage at Sveadal — her Swedish immigrant paternal greatgrandparents, Martin and Anna Nelson, built one of Sveadal’s early private cabins and were Sveadal caretakers in the 1940s. Her great-grandfather and grandfather were both presidents of the League, as were her great uncle and his father, Eric Strom, a founder of Sveadal. Her grandmother had earlier been queen and her grandmother’s sister had been both Columbia and Queen. Today both Kylie’s parents serve on the SAPL/Sveadal board. A highlight of every year’s program is the greeting from Sweden, presented by Consul General Barbro Osher. This year’s was a very personal greeting, since Mrs. Osher had just returned from the royal baptism of Crown Princess Victoria’s son, Prince Oscar. But first she hailed Muriel Nelson Beroza and led the audience in a four-fold Hurrah for the Parade Marshall, on her 90th year, for recording the local history of The Golden Gate Swedes, but also for having been born a month before the founding of Sveadal, for having come to this smultronstella every year since, and for sharing this spot with everyone. Mrs. Osher brought greetings from the Royal Family and reminded everyone of how special this spot and occasion is. The moment you are in Sveadal, the mundane world shuffles off and one is seeped in one’s original or adopted Swedish heritage and its summer traditions. At the conclusion of the program, Conor invited all to fall in behind the parade and march to the adjoining lawn for dancing in the dusky evening around the maypole. Continues on next page
July 15, 2016 Nordstjernan
The Pacific states. page 12
Families and friends celebrate several anniversaries at Sveadal midsummer 2016
Continued from previous page
The first dance is the Queen’s waltz, with her father, when all the maids in the pageant are paired with their escorts. Then the traditional Swedish line and ring dances are led by the Nordins and Forsell. The dancing continues for an hour — sometimes imitating hopping frogs, or daily chores, or playing musical instruments. In the cool of the evening, after the vendors have mostly packed up, everyone limbers up by folk dancing before a meal, only later to dance the night away. People drift off to their own dinner or to the generous smörgåsbord offered in the Clubhouse. Thereafter they gradually make their way down the hill to the Old Dance Floor, as the tunes wafting in the night air seduce them onto the dance floor, where at least in the early evening the music is shared between old folk dances and contemporary ones. The bar always does a brisk business, but gradually as the older folks drift off to their cabins and beds, the music is dominated by the contemporary tunes as the younger adults party on.
Memories linger
This year’s Midsummer in Sveadal was a very peaceful, convivial day and evening. Those who stayed the night awoke the next morning to complimentary coffee and baked goods and fond memories of another historic Midsummer, older than anyone living, but as young as all those decorating the maypole or dancing throughout the night. What remains magical to me about this occasion and similar events and institutions is at the very essence of humankind: our voluntary socialism — working together for
the greater good, without seeking further recognition. The Midsummer Committee, chaired by Past President Twinkle Peterson for many years, had worked for a year on all the arrangements. All of the roles had been assigned; all the day’s vendors and performers had been confirmed; ads, signs and a beautiful 60-page printed free souvenir program had been published; the financial systems to support each of the activities were Franz Mayrhofer shares Strawberry ready; the picnic tables Cake á la Karin (Nordstjernan, issue 11), for all the clubs had been a Midsummer treat but special any day. reserved as well as those Photo: Roxanne Schulkin for individuals beside the old dance floor; the expensive and professional audio system had been donated once again and was set up in its different venues throughout the day; the traffic, parking, cleanup and security committees to manage the crowds were in place. Most importantly the hundred or so volunteers were all committed — the old, reliable regulars as well as some new recruits as successors to learn how to continue the infrastructure that makes all aspects of this festival possible. The myriad of little details that are still annually improved after a century of productions is remarkable and necessary to assure the success of each year’s festival. We look forward to seeing you at this oldest Midsummer next year on June 17, 2017. Check www.sveadal.org for details.
Maids of Honor Viktoria Gilbert and Samantha Spelman followed by Svea Kylie Carlson, Columbia Amelia Lipscomb and Queen Sarah Lipscomb, trailed by her Train Bearers, Liberty and Lucius Niesen, and Crown Bearer Jordan Massey. Photo: Vicki Feodor-Thurman
Linda Beroza leads the children of Sveadal chorus with Paul Beroza as uke accompanist. Photo: Vicki Feodor-Thurman
‘Not my time to die’ The Titanic and the Swedes on board Perfect bound, large size paperback, 296 pages. Richly illustrated. Please send me ____ book(s) x $19.95 = _______
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The 123 Swedes on board made up the third largest ethnic group on the Titanic after the American and the British. The book profiles each of the Swedish passengers; including the 34 survivors... Mail order form to: NORDSTJERNAN P.O. Box 1710 New Canaan CT 06840 Or call 1.800.827.9333 ext. 10
feature. page 13 perspectives.
Olle Wijkström olle.wijkstrom@nordstjernan.com
Det talas mycket om utanförskap i dessa dagar. Mestadels gäller utanförskapet människor emellan. Till exempel flyktingar. Flyktingar som efter att ha flytt sina hem i fjärran länder har av naturliga orsaker svårt att komma in i det samhälle dit de flytt. Språk, sedvänjor, religion och tusen andra ting ä annorlunda än vad de är vana vid. Följden blir hemlöshet och en känsla av utanförskap. Dock kan utanförskap upplevas även om man inte är på flykt utan sitter lugnt och stilla i sitt eget ombonade hem och har tillgång till livets nödvändigheter och behag. Just idag känner jag mig vara starkt utanför. Utanförskapet har med min bristande kunskap om att klara problem med att få min normalt behändiga computer att göra vad jag vill. Jag har ofta enormt mycket att tacka min computer för. Förr tvingades jag exempelvis vandra till ett post- eller bankkontor för att betala räkningar. Tack vare att jag - visserligen efter viss möda - lärt mig använda min datamaskin och dessutom av banken erhållit en speciell mojäng tillhör jag numera den folkgrupp som kan sitta lugnt tillbakalutade i sina hem och utföra sådana och åtskilliga andra övningar. Men om datamaskinen krånglar dör min glödje. Detta har nu plötsligt inträffat. Därför lider jag just nu av utanförskap. I den stund som nu är vägrar min computer att komma in på Internet. Förmodligen kan alla datakunniga redogöra för varför jag misslyckas. Vilka knappar jag glömt att knappa in på. Eller vilka knappar jag felaktigt knappat in på. Faktum är att det just nu bara inte går. Det är minsann icke lätt att per telefon finna någon kunnig person som kan ge hjälp när det krånglar. Det är svårt att hitta rätt personer i telefonkatalogen. Skall man leta under elektronik, data, eller kontorsmaskiner?
I scream for ice cream Utanförskap Om du mot förmodan ändå når en sådan person, inser du efter en stund att han i sitt tal använder ett för dig främmande begrepp och uttryck. Det existerar elementära fikonspråk inom datavärlden som du icke känner till. Efter diverse hopplösa försök och elaka svärord - som jag nu försöker glömma vad gäller mitt krångel med computern bestämmer jag mig för att totalt strunta i allt vad elektronik heter. Jag tar i stället fram paraplyet och vandrar till närmaste postkontor. Där skall jag tala med en snäll fröken som förstår vad jag säger. Det är ibland förtjusande att få tala med levande människor All utveckling är som regel till vår lycka, Utvecklingen förbättrar vår trevnad, bekvämlighet och hälsa. Medikamenter hindrar smärtor. Elakartade tumörer skärs bort. Dock går det inte att undvika att utvecklingen också ställer till nya problem. För att kunna komma i åtnjutande av de fördelar utvecklingen innebär krävs det att vi lär oss - eller i varje fall sätter oss in i - hur tekniken kan bli ett hjälpmedel och icke en plåga. För mig var det en plåga att brottas med en computer som bara vrenskades. Blotta oförmågan att hitta tänkbara lösningar till problemet tog på humöret. Förmodligen kommer jag om någon tid när nuvarande svårigheter att komma in på Internet klarats av att fortsätta glädja mig åt att betala räkningar utan att behöva gå till posten
It’s warmer outside, perfect weather to stop for an ice cream... The biggest ice cream consumers in the world are the New Zealanders, who consume over 25 liter per person and year (6.6 US gallons), followed by Americans who consume 20 liters per person and year (5.2 US gallons). No official statistics exist and the numbers change every year but Sweden and Finland (colder climates?) are usually at the top in Europe and yet, ice cream is the only food that’s supposed to be consumed frozen. According to GB Glace (the largest ice cream company in Sweden and part of Unilever), 71 percent of all ice cream consumers feel happy when consuming ice cream. The frozen dessert was probably invented by the Chinese and brought to Europe by Marco Polo in 1298. There’s proof that the Chinese ate ice cream as long as 3,000 years ago, when they mixed honey, snow and fruit juice. The kind of ice cream we eat today has existed since the 18th century, and it came to Sweden at around that time too, where it was served at King Gustaf III’s court in Stockholm. Ice cream remained a luxury food served only at weddings and larger parties for a long time. Carl von Linné, the Swedish botanist, wrote about how it became popular among the Swedish nobility. “Glass,” the word for ice cream in Swedish, was borrowed from the French name for it: “crème à la place” meaning frozen cream. Not until the beginning of the 20th century did ice cream reach the common people of Sweden, and then it was usually made at home — influenced by Russian and Italian immigrants. It wasn’t until the 1950s that ice cream became really popular in Sweden, and the popsicle didn’t reach Stockholm until the 1930 Stockholm Exhibition.
Leve utvecklingen!
“ Olle Wijkströms nyutkomna och rikt illustrerade bok - Min Historia - handlar om hans minnen och möten med alla slags folk från tre kontinenter. Boken innehåller stämningar och möten. Stamhövdingar, presidenter och vanligt folk. Boken kan beställas och betalas via Nordstjernan”
Swedes have a love affair with ice cream and eat 13 liters of ice cream per person and year (that’s 3.4 US gallons), but aren’t the biggest consumers in the world. It’s fairly easy to make your own ice cream, if you feel like it. Recipes vary, but here’s a good one: You need 4 egg yolks, 1/2 cup sugar (you can use Swedish vanilla sugar if you can get it or confectioner’s sugar), 1 cup heavy cream, 3/4 cup milk and then some kind of fruit preserve, such as strawberry, to taste. Beat the egg yolks and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat the cream separately and add it carefully to the egg and sugar mixture. Then add milk and fruit to taste. If you want old-fashioned vanilla ice cream, then heat the milk and add to it a vanilla pod, cut crosswise. Let it sit in the milk for 30 minutes while the milk cools. Then scrape out the vanilla seeds and mix with the rest of the milk and pour into the batter.
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July 15, 2016 Nordstjernan
local events. page 14
More events and list your own, at www.nordstjernan.com-EVENTS
l California
07.16.2016 05:00 PM - 10:00 PM Midsommar Shrimp Feast Scandinavian Center at Nansen Field on the beautiful Palos Verdes Peninsula will host the 16th annual evening event to celebrate a Swedish Midsommar under the stars. All you can eat of peel-your-own shrimp and other delicious food will be offered. Beer & Wine available, other food available for non-shrimp lovers, live music and dancing. Reservations must be received by July 13. Shrimp dinner $35-$40/door. Children $10. Scandinavian Center at Nansen Field. midsummer@nansenfield.com. www.nansenfield.org
l Florida
Continuously The Swedish-American Chamber of Commerce
of Fort Lauderdale and Palm Beach promotes trade, commerce and investment opportunities between Sweden, Fort Lauderdale - Palm Beach and members. See www.sacc-sfl.org
l Illinois
07.21.2016 06:00 PM - 07:00 PM sjUNG: Swedish youth choir The youth choir, sjUNG, is a group of girls from Sundsvall, Sweden. Their repertoire is broad and includes sacred songs as well as old Swedish folk songs and modern pop songs. sjUNG has traveled to the Faroe Islands, Denmark, Paris, London and all over Sweden with their energetic performances—now they are coming to Andersonville. Donations are appreciated and RSVPs recommended. Email museum@samac.org to reserve your seats. 773.728.8111 | www.swedishamericanmuseum.org 07.25.2016 09:00 AM - 07.29.2016 02:00 PM Pioneer the World Day Camp: Session I Travel the world without leaving Chicago! Come and explore the food, dance, folk arts, and cultural identities of a different country each day in our Pioneer the World Day Camp. Campers end the week with their very own World’s Fair to show off their work to the public. Pioneer Camp is always packed with fun and adventure for children ages 6 to 10. The participation fee (per session) for 2016 is $200 members, $250 nonmembers; extended care is available until 4 p.m. for an additional $75 per week. To complete your registration please fill out and return to the Museum the 2016 Pioneer Camp registration form and supplement found on the Museum’s website in addition to making your payment online. Questions can be directed to our education manager, Stacey Nyman, at snyman@samac. org.. Swedish American Museum. 773-728-8111 | www.swedishamericanmuseum.org 07.28.2016 01:00 PM - 07.28.2016 02:00 PM Walking Tour of Andersonville Learn about the Swedish heritage in Andersonville with a guided tour led by the Swedish American Museum. Cost is $5 per person and includes admission to the Museum and a copy of the walking tour booklet. Members pay $1 for the booklet. Guided tours will start and end at the Museum on last Thursday June through September starting at 1 p.m. www.swedishamericanmuseum.org 09.10.2016 06:00 PM - 10:00 PM Annual Crayfish Party SACC Chicago annual crayfish party held at Sheridan Shore Yacht Club, 20 Harbor Drive, Wilmette, IL 60091.. SACC Chicago. 312.257.3002 | www.sacc-chicago.org Continuously Step back in time in historic Bishop Hill. Utopia on the Prairie, then and now. For information call 309-927-3899 or email heritage@bishophill. com. Visit our Website at: www.bishophill.com
l Massachussetts
09.24.2016 11:00 AM - 09.24.2016 03:00 PM Smårgåsbord Nordic Food Festival. The New England Smörgåsbord Nordic Food Festival celebrates Nordic flavors with tasting stations from Denmark, Iceland, Sweden, Finland and Norway. Other highlights include Nordic Vendors, live music, guest speakers, kids’ station, family friendly games, a live Viking encampment, and more “foodie” fun! Sponsors and vendors are still being accepted. Scandinavian Cultural Center. 617.795.1914|www.scandicenter.org
Öppettider 17 jul - 30 jul SÖNDAG
24/7 Högmässa 11.00
06.02.2016 07:00 PM - 08.14.2016 06:00 PM Nordic, a photo essay Magnus Nilsson’s Nordic: A Photographic Essay of Landscapes, Food and People.. American Swedish Institute. 612.871.4907. info@asimn.org. www.asimn.org 06.18.2016 07:00 PM - 10.18.2016 06:00 PM Quilting Art Today Quilting has been transformed into a multi-faceted art form practiced worldwide. The varied works on display in this major ASI exhibition will be staged throughout the Turnblad Mansion, featuring creations by Swedish and other artists encompassing the traditional to the abstract. . American Swedish Institute. 612.871.4907. info@asimn.org. www. asimn.org 08.29.2016 04:30 PM - 07:00 PM Kubb + Mystery Monday. A music event begins with a few rounds of Kubb, the Viking lawn game, on the Grant House lawn. Connor Lestrud is the instructor, and he is a champion Kubb player from the Masse Moro Norwegian Language Camp near Eau Claire, WI. After the Kubb games guests may adjourn to the Grant House restaurant and order off the menu at 5:11 p.m., a mysterious start time. Music by Wink the Other Eye begins at 5:49 p.m. There will also be cryptograms and other puzzles to add to the mystery of the night. Please call to register: 320358-1211. A sliding scale fee is charged for Kubb, $6-$10, and a donation is recommended for the music, $3-$10. We R Able. 320-358-1210 | www. scred.k12.mn.us
l New Jersey
09.04.2016 06:00 AM - 09.04.2016 02:00 PM 32nd annual Scandinavian Fest ScanFest ‘16 Heritage festival celebrating the cultures and contributions of Denmark, Estonia, FInland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden with a full day of foods, gifts and handcrafts, entertainment on 6 stages, special kids’ activities, organizations, music, dancing, reenactors, demonstrating artisans, talks, presentations, encampments, vikings (sorry, only limited pillage & ravagging), ... and the 8th annual all-Jersey wife carry contest finals. 1 Wolfe Road, Budd Lake is near Hackettstown & Somerville -discounted early-sale tickets at www.ScanFest.org . Scandinavian Fest, Inc.. 610-417-1483. Info@ScanFest.org. www.ScanFest.org
MÅNDAG
07.15.2016 01:00 PM - 07.17.2016 04:00 PM Scandinavian Folk Festival in Jamestown, NY, sponsored by the American Scandinavian Heritage Foundation. Scandinavian food, song, music and dance — vendors, speakers, exhibits and much more: Toronto Swedish Folk Dancers, Svenska Spelmän, Thule Children’s & Adult Folk Dance Teams, Jamestown Municipal Band, The Viking Chorus, Sini And Anita from Toronto, Vasa Voices from Cleveland and, new for 2016: Finnish Wife Carrying Contest; the full scale Viking Ship is back; Petting Zoo with Swedish Goats.. American Scandinavian Heritage Foundation. 716.665.0883 | www.scandinavianjamestown.org
SOMMARSTÄNGT
Nordstjernan, July 15, 2016
www.svenskakyrkan.se/newyork TISDAG
Caféet öppet 12-18 12.15 Middagsbön 18.00 Aftonbön
l Pennsylvania
08.06.2016 06:00 PM - 09:00 PM SmorgasBeer’d For the 6th year in a row, the American Swedish Historical Museum invites brewers and beer enthusiasts to come together for a summer evening at the Museum, sampling local Philly and Scandinavian lagers, ales, stouts and more. Take a tour around the museum, discover new beer, enjoy Swedish food and games, and take in the beautiful scenery of the Museum and FDR Park. This year’s breweries include The Brooklyn Brewery, Yards Brewing Co.and Flying Fish Brewing Company. Keep an eye on our social media for updates! See the Facebook event here: https://www.facebook. com/events/1775347402736761/ Admission: $20 Early bird registration (through July 5th) $25 In advance $30 At the door $10 Designated driver price Food, beer samples and museum admission is included. Minimum age of 21 required to drink. Register by phone to (215)3891776, or online. American Swedish Historical Museum. 215.389.1776 | americanswedish.org 08.12.2016 12:00 PM - 08.14.2016 04:00 PM Mt. Jewett Swedish Festival Ethnic food, music, and entertainment with a Swedish flavor. The annual Swedish Festival celebrates the Swedish heritage of Mount Jewett with a traditional Swedish Smörgåsbord. Highlights include rides for children and adults, a maypole dance, Scandinavian folk band with Swedish dancers, a Norwegian storyteller, parade and fireworks.. Town of Mount Jewett. 814-778-5701. mjboro@ mjboro.comcastbiz.net | www.mtjewettpa.com
l South Carolina
05.21.2016 11:00 AM - 10.31.2016 12:00 PM Charleston Kubb Club Our Kubb season is is in full swing every Saturday from 11 a.m.- noon. This is a free, family event. COME AND TRY THIS GREAT SPORT! Find us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Charleston-KubbClub-1588613441460426. Charleston Kubb Club. 843.324.8076. wcui2@aol.com.
l New York
5 East 48th Street, New York, NY 10017 Tel: +1 (212) 832-8443
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Caféet öppet 12-16 17/7 Högmässa 11.00
l Minnesota
ONSDAG
Caféet öppet 12-18 12.15 Middagsbön 18.00 Mässa
If you haven’t seen been to a true Swedish Midsummer event yet, head to Jamestown for the 2016 Scandinavian Folk Festival July 15-17; www.scandinavianjamestown.org
@sk.ny Svenska kyrkan i New York TORSDAG
Caféet öppet 12-18 12.15 Middagsbön 18.00 Aftonbön
FREDAG
Caféet öppet 12-18 12.15 Middagsbön 18.00 Aftonbön
LÖRDAG
Caféet öppet 12-16
local events. page 15
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sports. page 16
Teams ready for Allsvenskan second half Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Andreas Isaksson, Kim Källström / Malmö and Iceland international Kari Arnason battle France striker Olivier Giroud / Oscar Lewicki clutches his leg after a nasty tackle. Chipp Reid, Sports Editor chipp@nordstjernan.com
The 2016 Allsvenskan kicks off the second half of the season July 9 with three matches, the biggest of which sees Djurgården playing host to IFK Norrköping in a clash of title hopefuls. All during the break for the 2016 UEFA European Championship, the 16 teams in the Allsvenskan have been busy, both on and off the field. Here’s a look at some of the ways the clubs have kept busy during the month-long hiatus. (Teams listed according to order in standings as of July 5) Malmö FF (9-0-3, 27 points) The league leaders are in a win a few, lose a few mode. On the win side, Malmö central defender Kari Arnason and his Iceland teammates gave Sky Blue fans something to cheer about after Sweden’s listless three-and-out performance at the 2016 Euros. Arnason started three matches for Iceland, but was not on the field July 3 when France overwhelmed the tiny upstarts 5-2 in the quarterfinals. Arnason was one of six Allsvenskan-based players head coach Lars Lagerbäck selected for the tournament. On the loss side, Malmö finally said hejdå to fan favorite and former captain Guillermo Molins. The 27-year-old midfielder and the club failed to come to terms on a contract extension. Also on the loss side is midfield dynami Oscar Lewicki, who limped off the field in Sweden’s Euro match against Ireland. Head coach Allan Kuhn said the 23-year-old is only 50-50 for Malmö’s July 11 match against Örebro. IFK Norrköping (7-3-2, 24 points) Second-place Peking picked up some midfield help, signing David Moberg Karlsson away from IFK Göteborg. The 22-year-old was languishing on the bench at Gamla Ullevi, where Göteborg has a glut of midfielders. Karlsson signed for 3.5 years. Norrköping has also been busy trying to keep team leading Emir Kujovic from bolting prior to its Champions League qualifiers against Norwegian side Rosenborg. Rumors have Kujovic packing up for England. Norrköping as also adjusting to life after Janne Andersson, who took over the Swedish national team after the Sweden’s exit from the European Champions. Jens Gustafsson is now at the helm. Örebro (7-2-3, 23 points) Surprising third-place Örebro looked to strengthen its squad for the second half, signing Swedish Under-21 international Ferhad Ayaz from Turkish club Gaziantepspor. The 21-yearold winger left Degerfors for Turkey in 2014. AIK (6-4-2, 22 points) Gnaget fans could take a 1-2 punch just as the second half of the season opens. Club
Nordstjernan, July 15, 2016
president Björn Wesström confirmed the likely exit of highly talented winger Alexander Isak. Wesström said July 4 that “many clubs,” including premier league champions Leicester City, have made offers for the 17-year-old. Wesström, in a conference with Svenska Fans, would not say how many clubs have asked about the uber-talented Isak but did say he would likely leave the club via transfer when the window opens later this month. IFK Göteborg (6-3-3, 21 points) The Angels parted company with striker Victor Sköld, who had 20 goals for Falkenberg in 2013 but had yet to find the net this season in limited playing time at Göteborg. Sköld announced July 5 that he is returning to Falkenberg, which is languishing at the bottom of the table. Sköld’s departure did little to dampen the enthusiasm at Gamla Ullevi following Göteborg 5-0 thrashing of Welsh side Llandudo in a qualifier for the UEFA Europa League. Tobias Hysén scored twice to lead Göteborg to the win. GIF Sundsvall (5-4-3, 19 points) Iceland’s success at the 2016 Euros could be Sundsvall’s loss. Icelandic international Runar Sigurjonsson opened more than a few eyes in the tournament and now French side Nantes is ready to swoop in for the 26-year-old defensive midfielder. Sigurjonsson was among the best players on Iceland’s team and his long throwins were an offensive weapon. Sundsvall is also likely to say goodbye to star forward Stefan Silva after Israeli side Beitar Jerusalem made a transfer bid. Sundsvall did not release details of the bid. Sundsvall got some good news as Noah Sanko Sundberg said he would remain with the club through the end of the seasaon. Sundberg is on loan to Sundsvall from AIK. The central defender has started all 12 games for Sundsvall. Elfsborg (5-2-5, 17 points) Viktor Claesson isn’t going anywhere. That’s the word from Borås Arena as Elfsborg has reportedly turned down several bids for the 24-year-old midfielder. Elfsborg reportedly spurned a 12 million kronor offer from a French club, instead holding out for 15 million to 20 million kronor. Elfsborg has a reason to want so much for the talented Claesson as it won the sweepstakes for Tunisian striker Issam Jebali, who is moving to Borås from IFK KVarnamo. BK Häcken (5-1-6, 16 points) Häcken finds out July 7 who it will face in the UEFA Europa League. Cork City of Ireland and Linfield FC met July 7 in the second leg of the first-round qualifiers. The second round opens July 14. Häcken apparently has an eye on the future as the striker rich club announced
it would pick up Alhasan Kamara on a free transfer in the fall.
Kalmar (4-4-4, 16 points) Kalmar and Rasmus Elm came to terms on a contract extension that will keep the former Swedish international at Guldfågeln for another three years. It was one of the bright spots of the break for Kalmar, which saw leading scorer Marcus Antonsson bolt the club for English Championship side Leeds United. Antonsson scored 10 of Kalmar’s 18 goals this season. He left the club on a Bosman free transfer. Kalmar will also be without injured fullback Emin Nouri when it faces AIK July 10. Djurgården (5-0-7, 15 points) After a lackluster first half, Djurgården took steps to address a lack of on-field leadership and scoring by signing former AIK star Magnus Eriksson to a three-year deal. Eriksson left AIK in 2013 to play first for Brondby in Denmark before a sojourn in China. He led the Allsvenskan in scoring in his final season at AIK with 25 points (11 goals, 14 assists). Eriksson’s arrival comes just in time as Mattias Ranegie announced he wants out of the Tele2 Arena. The striker is unhappy with the amount of playing time he has had and said he entertaining offers to leave DIF. Djurgården is also missing striker Sam Johnson, who went into the hospital July 2 with malaria. Jönköpings Södra (3-6-3, 15 points) Jönköpings is looking for a new trainer after Jimmy Thelin left the newcomers for BK Häcken. Thelin will complete the season with the club before moving to Häcken to take over from Peter Gerhardsson. Erik Edman will take over as Jönköpings new trainer. J-Södra is taking a look at a 19-year-old American central defender as it readies for the second half of the season. Jimmy Yueill of the Minnesota Thunder has been training with the club for two weeks. Helsingborg (4-3-5, 15 points) The Skåne side has been relatively quiet during the break as head coach Henrik Larsson remains committed to developing his side’s young players, including his son, Jordan. Arguably the one player who could have the biggest impact is striker Moustafa Zeidin, who has yet to make his debut with the first team. Zeidin is the top-ranked prospect in the Allsvenskan, and Helsingborg has resisted offers from Aston Villa and other English sides for the 18-yearold No. 10. Larsson believes Zeidin could be an impact player in the fall season, although he has yet to say when the talented teen will makes his debut.
Östersund (4-3-5, 15 points) Östersund midfielder Brwa Nouri is channeling his inner Zlatan. The OFK vice-captain said on July 4 that he is looking to make a move, announcing, “I am better than this.” Östersund is currently just above the relegation zone despite playing an impressive offensive, passoriented style of football. Defensively, OFK has had problems and Nouri, an Iranian-born offensive midfielder, said he wants to progress in his career even if the club fails to stay up. “Everyone has ambitions to be the best and I want to show what I can do,” Nouri told Fotbolldirekt.se. Hammarby (3-4-5, 13 points) The first half of the season did not progress the way Hammarby fans or officials expected and the club has said it plans to make some changes once the transfer window opens on July 11. With more than 90 Allsvenskan players possibly available as their contracts expire, Hammarby could be one of the major players in the summer silly season. The Bajen, however, will likely work hard to resign at least three of its own free agents, including team captain Kennedy Bakircioglu, midfielder Phillip Haglund and Brazilian striker Alex. Gefle (1-2-9, 5 points) With just one win in the first half, Gefle needs to make changes but economic realities could see the Gävle side accepting its fate of relegation. Gefle did pick up Finnish midfielder Adam Vidjeskog on loan from FF Jaro, but there is scant hope at the club of remaining in the top flight. Falkenberg (1-1-10, 4 points) Last-place Falkenberg is on the hunt for players who can pull the club out of the basement. Göteborgstidningen reported July 3 that the club is scouring the lower divisions of Swedish football. Club director Lars-Eric Nilsson confirmed the search but refused to comment on which players he is targeting.
Sweden’s national team
After a poor performance at the 2016 UEFA European Championships in France, in which the team collectively managed just three shots on goal in three matches, the Swedish national team is turning the page. Gone is head coach Erik Hamrén, who stepped down after the tournament, and in comes former Norrköping boss Janne Andersson. Goalkeeper Andreas Isaksson, midfielder Kim Källström and striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic all announced their retirement from international football. Zlatan, who joined Manchester United, once more was a flop at the Euros as he registered just one shot on goal.