IT'S THE LEFSE SEASON!

The holidays are nearly upon us, I know because the hunters are hanging out their orange and the homemakers are baking goodies, goodies, goodies. I love fall because of both of these activities.

One of my favorite holiday treats is lefse, the Norwegian and Swedish potato pancake. When you say lefse here in Wisconsin and Minnesota you automatically include lutefisk in the back of your mind. This is our ethnic heritage, even though a large percentage of us aren't even upper European. That doesn't mean we don't enjoy the food does it?

I had an opportunity to talk to Amelia Olson Bralick at the grocery store the other day. She told me about her grandmother who ran a boarding house for lumberjacks from the mill. Amelia's gramma made lefse on the round plates on her wood cookstove. Amelia and her mom lived with her grandmother for awhile and she remembers that the lumberjacks had to line up out back and clean up in a washtub before they could come in the house. Her gramma Olson came from the old country and attended the Norwegian Lutheran Church. I have to spend more time getting details from Amelia. I am sure there are tons more stories around town like this one.

As a matter of fact, I was chatting with Leroy Weingarten in the parking lot and he told me about his own holiday memory. His mom, Freida, used to make plum pudding and goose for Christmas dinner. He remembers his mom making the pudding but he doesn't remember the recipe, is there anyone out there who has one? I am checking in some of the books I have at the Museum. The Weingarten's emigrated as a young couple from Germany to be married in the Lutheran Church here in Hayward.

Other holiday season sweet treats include rosettes, timbales, fruit pies, cookies in all shapes and sizes, zillions of delightful candies and breads in all shapes and forms.

WISCONSIN HISTORY DAY 2000
I got a letter from Michelle Swarick, the Assistant State Coordinator for the Wisconsin History Day program. It is an exciting project for young people that is sponsored by the U.W. Stevens Point. History Day is a great way for students to explore historical issues, ideas, events and people. Students in grades 6-12 may participate and present their knowledge creatively in four different ways; media projects, papers, performances or exhibits. For more information you should contact the Department of History at Stevens Point, Wisconsin, 715-346-2147 or e-mail at cclark@uwsp.edu.

This sounds like a great project, if you are reading this and know of a young person who might be interested, help them get the information. There are scholarships available.

Mimi Dahlby the District Gifted and Talented Coordinator has asked me to find a dozen people who could come to the school to talk to the kids about their histories. The students will learn to conduct proper interviews and then assemble the information that they receive into a report or story. I think that this project could be done every year. I believe that heritage is passed from generation to generation in this way and that we need to reinforce this activity. Many kids don't have extended families around them to learn about their immediate past.

I thought that we could focus on the Civilian Conservation Corps this year because I recently received a large number of CCC photographs that the kids could use as a basis for their interviews. I would like to use the reports, pictures and interviews at the Museum with the kids' permission. If you know anyone who might like to participate could you take the time to call the school and ask for Mimi?