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Bake and Tag Sales
at The Finnish Heritage House
Saturdays 9:00-12:00
March 16, 2013 through Mid·December, 2013
(click here to see a list of items available in our Tori)
Shop in our Tori, chat, view the exhibits, and remember ...
The coffee (kahvi) pot is always on !
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FINNISH FOLK MUSIC CONCERT - JULY 21, 2013
July 21, 2013 - 3:30 pm - Odd Fellows Hall - Tenants Harbor, Maine
Sattuma (a family folk music group)
Sattuma, a family folk music group from Petrozavodsk, the republic of Karelia, NW Russia, started in 2003 and has performed in festivals, clubs, concert halls, private parties and schools. The band performs traditional music from Karelia and Finland. Their program includes instrumental music such as polkas, waltzes, shottish and songs. Songs are traditional from Karelia, Ingria, Finland, and performed in local dialects. Sattuma also composes its own songs in folk style. Their arrangements use traditional elements but are also open to more modern rhythms. Link to a YouTube video of the group.
Sattuma will be performing at the I.O.O.F. hall (Odd Fellows Hall) in Tenant’s Harbor, Maine on July 21, 2013 at 3:30 pm. The performance will be a 2 hour show with an intermission with refreshments. There will be Finnish Pulla (nissu ~ Finnish coffee bread) brownies and cookies with coffee, punch and bottled water.
Admission is $12.00 at the door, refreshments included.
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FREE LECTURE - MAY 18, 2013
Yvonne Lockwood, Finlandia Foundation Lecturer of the Year
May 18, 2013 - 1:00 pm - Finnish Congregational Church
The Finnish Heritage House and the Midcoast Finnish American Society are pleased to sponsor a free lecture presented by Yvonne Lockwood, Finlandia Lecturer of the Year on May 18th at the Finnish Congregational Church. Yvonne Lockwood was Curator of Folk Life at the Michigan State University from 1981 to 2009. The title of her presentation will be “Traditional Material Culture In Modern Finnish America”. Her illustrated talk will include such Finnish traditions as rag rugs, looms, spinning, knitting, foodways, sauna, woodworking, visiting traditions and will show how the skills brought to America by the Finnish immigrants have been altered and adapted in this country. This is a wonderful opportunity to reconnect with the life our ancestors left in Finland and what they brought with them to the United States.
The program will be preceded by a potluck luncheon for our members and guests in Jura Hall at noon followed by Yvonne Lockwood’s presentation in the Church at 1:00 pm. Members are asked to bring a salad, or main course, or dessert if possible. Coffee and drinks will be provided.
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SUMMER EXHIBIT - JUNE THRU OCTOBER 2013
The 2013 Summer Exhibit at FHH will be titled: Honoring Finnish-American World War Two Veterans
Two hundred and fifty surveys have been sent to members of the Finnish Heritage House and the Finnish-American Society of Midcoast Maine. Completed surveys are beginning to be returned. The centerpiece of this summer’s exhibit will be the “Honor Roll of Veterans” currently displayed in the Mietinen Room at the back of the Finnish Congregational Church.
Ann Mahonen Little holding the Honor Roll
However, there are a number of veterans missing from that document and it is hoped that information regarding their service in WW II will be forthcoming and can be included in the exhibit. If anyone has any material regarding any Finnish-American veterans including photos, newspaper clippings, documents, awards, and certificates, please contact Steve Gifford at 4 Park Avenue West, Brewer, Maine 04412 or naskali2@hotmail.com or 207-989-1971. Our combined efforts will make this summer’s exhibit the best ever at Finnish Heritage house. The exhibit will be displayed at Finnish Heritage House from the third week in June until the middle of October. Kiitos.
Previous exhibits have included:
“Remembering Grandmother and Grandfather” compiled by Steve Gifford. This exhibit featured the memory boards from previous exhibits (sauna, Finnish-American music, blueberry farming, granite industry and the poultry business) and photographs of Finnish families of the midcoast.
Finnish families who settled along the River Road (Route 131) in South Thomaston, St. George & Tenants Harbor compiled by June Ranta. This exhibit included a number of interviews with those who grew up along this stretch of highway and contained many interesting insights into the families and villages along this road. The centerpiece of the "River Road" exhibit was be a 15-foot map of the road, with ownership designations and illustrations. This exhibit also included a special feature regarding the Finnish girls who worked as maids (Piikas) for well to do families.
"Finns and Feathers: The Poultry Industry in the Midcoast" compiled by Steve Gifford. This exhibit focused on the years 1930 to 1970 when the Finns played a major role in the local poultry industry. Topics covered included: the poultry farmers, the local poultry processors, the egg business, the hatching egg business, the Belfast broiler industry and the United Farmers Co-Operative (UCF).
These exhibits at the Finnish Heritage House would not have been possible without the assistance and generosity of the local Finnish community. Kiitoksia paljon.
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FINNISH LANGUAGE LESSONS - APRIL 6 THRU MAY 11, 2013
Finnish Language Class To Be Offered starting April 6, 2013
Want to learn Finnish?
Marja-Leena Bailey, the department chair of World Languages at Middlesex Community College in Massachusetts, has announced that she will be teaching a new Finnish Language class this April. She will be ably assisted in instructing this class by her friend and teaching colleague, Aire-Maija Schwann. And...the classroom location is right here in mid-coastal Maine!!!
Classes will be held in Jura Hall, beneath the Finnish Congregational Church in South Thomaston, starting on Saturday, April 6, 2013 at 4PM. These two-hour classes will run for six consecutive Saturdays until May 11, 2013. Cost will be $115 per person, with a discount for a second family member. A new textbook and CD will also be available. If you are interested and wish specific details, please contact Steve Gifford (our trustee) by phone (207-989-1971), mail (Park Avenue West, Brewer, ME 04412), or email at (gifford7tree@gmail.com).
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KANTELE LESSONS - SPRING 2013
Suomalaiset Jouset
(Finnish Strings)
The kantele ensemble, sponsored by the Finnish Heritage House, was organized in July 2010 and continues to hold regular rehearsals, with up to twelve students at each session. The ensemble meets bi-weekly for rehearsals in Jura Hall beneath the Finnish Congregational Church in South Thomaston, Maine. Eleven string kanteles are made for the group by craftsmen in Finland and cost about three hundred dollars. The ensemble is learning many new Finnish and American songs, including those with layered harmonies, chords, and harmonics. The talented members often utilize other folk instruments in their performances including guitar, autoharp, mandolin and violin.
A limited number of instruments are available for loan to beginning students including children (ages ten and up), teens and adults. The cost of lessons for adults is thirty dollars for 5 two hour lessons with the fee waived for children and teens.
The ensemble performed 39 concerts in 2012 at nursing homes, retirement communities, senior citizen groups, historical societies, schools, museums, and churches.
If you would like join the ensemble, observe a rehearsal, or schedule a performance please contact Celia Jones (Musical Director) at 594-4506, Jackie Harjula at 354-6547 or Steve Gifford at 989-1971. email address: finnstrings172@gmail.com
Suomalaiset Jouset (Finnish Strings) and the western Maine kantele ensemble A'Chordin to Kantele appeared together in concert at the annual Fall Finn Fling in September 2012.
Suomalaiset Jouset (Finnish Strings) provided music for the Christmas Service at the Finnish Congregational Church in South Thomaston in December 2012.
CLICK HERE TO VIEW A PRINTABLE BROCHURE
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"FROM A FINNISH KITCHEN" Cookbook
The Finnish Heritage House has prepared a cookbook titled "From A Finnish Kitchen". 
It features recipes from members of our Finnish community.
The cookbook is bound and is sure to be treasured for many years.
The book makes a wonderful gift.
The Cookbook is available at the FHH Tori for $12.00. For an extra $4.95 it can be mailed it to your home.
Thank you for your help with this project.
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2012 FINN FLING DAY - at THE FINNISH HERITAGE HOUSE
It will again be time for some Finnish Fun !
On September 15th, 2012 from 9 am to 2 pm
Our popular Finn Fling Day will be here soon. This will be a joint event with the Mid-Coast Finn-Am Society. Mark your calendar for Saturday, September 15 from 9 am to 2 pm. There will be a video presentation, kantele music provided by Maine's two kantele groups, Accord'in to Kanteles and Suomalaiset Jouset (see the photo in the Kantele Lessons section below), Finnish food to delight your palate, door prizes, a Finnish Rag Rug raffle, and as always, good fellowship. Most of the food will be provided by the Board members, so there will be a charge. However, if you would like to bring food to share, that would be appreciated.
Planned Schedule
9 to 12 - Coffee and pulla at Finnish Heritage House - Register for Door Prizes - Purchase Rag Rug Raffle Tickets - Shop in the Tori - View the Exhibits - Sign the guest book.
9 to 10:45 - Jura Hall - Continuous showing of the DVD “Old Finn Hall Variety Show” - This two hour show was produced for Minnesotta Public Broadcasting and features many Finnish-American musicians and personalities of the upper mid-west. You are welcome to view the entire show or stay for only part of it. Coffee and pulla will be available.
11:00 to 12:00 - The Finnish Church - Combined concert featuring Suomalaiset Jouset (our kantele ensemble) and A Chord’n to Kantele (kantele ensemble from western Maine).
Program order for Saturday, September 15, 2012 from 11 a.m. to 12 noon, at Finnish Heritage House's Finn Fling Celebration:
1. Maine Finn Song - both groups play
2. Dona Nobis Pacem - SJ group
3. Hamalaisen Laule - A'C group
4. Isle of Capri - both groups play
5. Clementine - A'C group
6. Down in the Valley - SJ group
7. Pot-Pourri - both groups play
8. Lamplighters' - A'C group
9. Red River Valley - SJ group
10. Alanningens Island Song - both groups play
11. Raatikoon - SJ group
12. My Country 'Tis of Thee - SJ group
13. America the Beautiful - A'C group
(abbreviation means A'C = A'Chordin to Kantele group; with SJ = Suomalaiset Jouset kantele group)
A'Chordin to Kantele ensemble from greater So. Paris area are: Co-directors are Martha "Tootie" Wilson and Chris Frazier. Other members are Lorraine Pirrainen, Barbara Honkala, Janet Gardner, Lin Gordon, Sally Riman, Kathy Cummings, Deborah Crump, and Irene Rochwarg. Their kantele instruments range from 10-strings to 36-strings.
Suomalaiset Jouset ensemble from So. Thomaston, mid coast Maine is under the direction of Celia Jones. Members playing 11-strings and 15-string kanteles are: Christian Burton, Mary Gifford, Jackie Harjula, Barbara Hooper, Jackie McLain, Peggy Oliver, Jackie Laffely, Ethel Powell, Kay Dodge, Brenda Barrett, Irene Vaino, Anne Little, Ragna Weaver, Karen Wheelis, Robert Powell, and Irene Hawes . Our musical manager is Steve Gifford.
12:00 to 1 - Jura Hall - Lunch Buffet ($3.00 Adults, Children Free)
1 to 1:15 - Jura Hall - Announcements
1:15 - 1:45 - Jura Hall - Door Prizes awarded - Drawing for the Rag Rug
Don’t miss this exciting event!
We will look forward to seeing you there
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2012 SUMMER RAFFLE
This year's prize is a Finnish style woven rag rug, in many shades of blue and white, measuring 27” x 80”, made and donated by Tooty Wilson. The tickets will be $1.00 each, or 6 for $5.00, and will be available for sale at FHH, with the drawing to be held at our Finn Fling in September.
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