Lögberg-Heimskringla - 25.02.1994, Blaðsíða 3

Lögberg-Heimskringla
Föstudagur 25. febrúar 1994 • 3
Obituary:
Bjorn Bjornson, Public Relations Man,
War-White House Correspondent Dies
Bjorn Bjornson, 85, long-time
public relations official for
Northern States Power, died
recently of heart failure at the
Methodist Hospital after a long ill-
ness.
Bjornson was Honorary Consul for
Iceland for more than 35 years and
was decorated by the Icelandic gov-
emment with the Order of the Falcon
for his services.
He was bom in Minneota, Minn.,
where his father Gunnar B. Bjomson,
published a weekly newspaper, the
Mascot. Bjorn worked on it, and on
his graduation from the University of
Minnesota in Journalism, he became
its editor. He left the Mascot to head
Poet’s Corner
NATURE RED
by Bragi
ln the wildemess solitude
She stayed without fear
Among the birds and animals
Alone throughout the year
With a compassion for nature
This was her fondest dream
To live in a simple cabin
By a clear mountain stream
She fed the birds and beasts alike
When snow was on the ground
And they had trouble finding food
In the woods all around
She strolled alone without a gun
Where black bears were prowling
It did not seem to bother her
When the wolves were howling
It was her solemn conviction
That love could conquer all
That vultures just like other birds
Would understand her call
Caught one day in a hunter’s trap
She held off screams of pain
But had no means to pry it off
In the snow clad terrain
A heavy frost was creeping in
The snow was getting red
Without the most unlikely help
She might as well be dead
Wolves came howling in a pack
And vultures hovered near
When finalJy it struck her mind
That shé was there to share
“Blood is bíqod and they could
sense it '
A long distance away
ihe food chain rests on harmony
All *Í&IL
All
By
It’s
To the peril of all” ^
__ Minnist
BETEL
í ERFÐASKBÁM YÐAKf
1 v 1M6 v Ir■. ° r1 x
dying things are upforgrabs
creatures bigand small
man tohq tenés to skevwthe
- ~: W ^
world
the Journalism department at the
University of North Dakota. In 1939
he joined the Minneapolis Tribune as
an editorial writer until 1941 when he
went to work for NBC as an overseas
War Correspondent. He was stationed
first in Iceland for two years, then in
London and in Sweden. He was later
attached to the U.S. Ninth Army and
followed it across Europe to
Germany.
At the war’s end he was reporting
from Scandinavia, his last assignment
being covering the Quisling trial in
Oslo. He then returned to Washing-
ton, D.C. where he was a White
House correspondent for NBC and a
congressional reporter. In 1950 he
returned to Minneapolis to begin
work for Northern States Power
Company as a public relations official,
a post he held until his retirement in
1973.
He was past President of the CCPE
(Citizens Committee for Public Edu-
cation), a member of the Minnesota
Press Club, Secretary of the Minnea-
polis Six O’Clock Club, National and
Overseas Press Club, Minnesota
Consular Association and headed the
Word Watchers Club.
Bjomson’s life-long hobby was the
English language and how it was
used. He wrote an analytical column
for the Minnesota Newspaper Asso-
ciation for 25 years pointing out com-
mon mistakes being made in any
newspaper that he came across. The
column was called “Syntax, Sematics
and Such.” The column, circulated to
every newspaper in Minnesota and
was widely quoted by editors.
Television and radio didn’t escape his
sharp ear and he often put the right
words - correctly - in the presenters
mouths where they belonged.
He traveled widely with Truman as
White House correspondent to
Canada, South America and often to
Independence, Mo. and to the Key
West White House retreat of Truman.
On one of the Key West trips, news-
men covering Truman were treated to
a fishing trip and one of the Admirals
had a contest for the biggest fish won
until Bjom caught one bigger and the
Admiral told Truman he had the prize
until “they brought in that double-
talking Icelander,” meaning Bjorn
Bjornson.
In his foreign assignments he met
his wife, Birgit, in Sweden where they
were married when the war in Europe
ended in 1945. Birgit Jacobsson is the
daughter of Per Jacobsson who was
later head of the IMF (Intemational
Monetaiy Fund in Washington, D.C.
Surviving children (all of
Minneapolis) are: Gunnar, Eileen
(Mrs. Chriss Weber and children
Ammanda, Luke and Bryan), Bryan,
Kevin and Bruce. A daughter, Sylvia,
By Pat St. Germain
Duneda Sutherland and Kristjan
Kristjansson had a very public
engagement on Valentine’s
Day last year — Kristjan proposed to
Duneda through a blazing red head-
line on the cover of The Winnipeg
Sun’s Sunday magazine.
Duneda said yes, they said I do,
and now they’re waiting to hear a doc-
tor say whether it’s a boy and a girl,
two boys or two girls.
The twins are due in May, and the
Kristjanssons are looldng forward to a
long and happy family life together,
although the road to marital bliss
wasn’t always smooth.
On their wedding day August 14th,
Kristjan, 25 and Duneda, 27, woke up
to find the city awash in water as a
record downpour dumped more than
55 millimetres of rain on Winnipeg
and sent gallons of runoff and sewer
sludge into their basement.
“Two of the groomsmen, at one
o’clock in the afternoon, were down
in the basement shovelling it out,”
Duneda says.
An outdoor wedding at Kristjan’s
father Þráinn’s Oakbank ranch was a
washout, but fortunately Thráinn had
the foresight to have founded Grapes
restaurants. With help from owner
Patrick Munroe, the couple moved
250 guests and Ron Paley and his
Orchestra to Grapes at Leon’s Centre
for the ceremony and reception.
died of leukemia at 17. Memorials
may be sent to the Sylvia Bjornson
Leukemia Foundation, the Grace
University Lutheran Church
Memorial Fund, The University of
Minnesota Icelandic Exchange Fund
or the donor’s choice.
Other survivors include sisters,
Mrs. Helga Brogger of Minneapolis
and Mrs. Stefania Denbow of Athens,
Ohio and brother Jon of Mineapolis.
Burial was Sunday, Feb. 6 in the
Icelandic Lutheran Church Cemetery
in Minneota, Minn.
And the bride’s scheduled 4 p.m.
walk down the aisle was only delayed
half an hour.
Kristjan says the weather may have
been all wet, but the wedding was the
beginning of what promises to be a
bright future.
The icing on the cake is that the
couple’s business selling computer-
ized phone systems is also going
swimmingly. The company, Progres-
sive Communications, is progressing
so well they plan to hire four new
people soon.
“This year, I think has been the
best year,” Kristjan says. “It started off
with Valentine’s —the wedding day,
in my opinion, was the best because if
you can get through that, you can get
through anything.”
But, this Valentines, Kristjan says a
quiet, private engagement may be in
order — he and his bride may need
the rest.
COURTESY WINNIPEG SUN
AU the world loves
valentines
Hire Enthusiasm.
Hire a Student.
Under the Government of Canada’s
summer employment program for students,
organizations of all kinds are eligible to apply
for funding assistance that supports the
creation of summerjobs.
Apply now through your local Canada
Employment Centre - listed under Employment
and Immigration Canada in the
grey pages of your a/j
telephone book. AÉ lll//)Uflt/ /
OAf
APPLICATIONS MUST BE POSTMARKED NO LATER THAN MARCH 11,1994
Note: The deadline may vary. Please contact your local Canada Employment Centre for further details.
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