Washington Lodge 3-428

Cultural Skills Program

The Cultural Skills Program is open to all Sons of Norway members, both through their lodges or as individual participants. The Cultural Skills Program offered by Sons of Norway serves a variety of purposes:

To encourage active participation in both traditional and contemporary Norwegian-North American pursuits;
To enrich the lives of members of all ages;
To provide the basis for special interest clubs within our lodges; and
To provide new reasons for people to join Sons of Norway.

The awards are as follows:

Specialist: One who wishes to go in depth in one area, e.g. Hardanger embroidery or genealogy, etc
Generalist: One who samples several skills and qualify for the basic level in each, for example: stamp collecting, crafts, and Norwegian foods.
Mentor: One who is skilled in activities offered in the Norwegian Cultural Skills Program can do a different challenge: mentor others who need formal or informal instruction. The mentor is an extremely important person in passing on the Norwegian heritage to others.
Master of Cultural Skills: One who has completed at least three levels of three different skills, or nine individual basic activities




	Reading Circle

The reading circle was launched in 2009. Participants will be working on the Norwegian Literature Cultural Skills Program. If anyone would like to work on the program but cannont attend the discussions, contact Christine Meloni.

	July 22 "The Wreath" by Sigrid Undset (translation by Tina Nunnally). This the first volume of Kristin Lavransdatter Trilogy. September 23 When the Devil Holds the Candle" by Karin Fossum. Contact Christine Meloni at cfmeloni@hotmail.com for information.



	Genealogy Interest Group

The May meeting of the Genealogy Interest Group.

Front row: Christine Meloni, Marilyn Holbeck, Bonita Lestina

Back row: Rick Nelson, Burt Koske, Joel Myklebust, Marvin Reed

Our Genealogy Interest Group now has an up and running wiki! Here you will find information on what the group is doing, how to track down your Norwegian ancestors, and how to complete the Sons of Norway Genealogy Cultural Skills program.

You will also be able to read some personal stories of the ancestors of lodge members. Since it is a private wiki,you need a password to access it. If you are interested in taking a look, contact Christine Meloni ( cfmeloni@hotmail.com ) who will provide you with access information. We hope that you too will want to contribute your own stories to the wiki.