Lögberg-Heimskringla - 18.10.1996, Page 3

Lögberg-Heimskringla • Föstudagur 18, október 1996 • 3
Who is He?
is name is Peter Gudmundson
and he’s only 7'2" tall. Yes,
he’s an avid basketball player
and fan, who used to play for the
Washington Huskies and the Los
Angeles Lakers. He grew up in
Reykjavík, Iceland, Seattle’s sister
city.
Standing with him are dedicated
curlers Dr. Tom and Sophie Wallace
wearing their Icelandic sweaters. They
have been working hard for six years
Sophie, Peter and Tom in front of Lief
Ericksson statue on the waterfront in
Seattle, WA
to try to introduce the great sport of
Curling to the only country with “the
right name for the game,” but it has
never had an indoor arena.
Finally in August, the “Great”
news came: The government has
agreed to build the “First” multi-
purpose ice arenas in each of their
two main cities — Reykjavík and
Akureyri!
Now, you know why Peter is out
on our beautiful ice. He will be going
home at Chnstmas as a New Curler! □
Submitted by
Sophie and Tom Wallace
Krístjanson Family Remembers
its Icelandic Heritage
Left to right: Hannes Kristjanson & Anna Brorson, Grand Forks, ND;
Rosa Thorfinnson, Mountain, ND; Lara Stanton, Ithaca, NY;
Margaret Thonasson, Grafton, ND; Sibbie Kristjanson, Seattle, WA
By Lara K. Stanton
The offspring of Sigurbjorn
(Barney) and Kristbjorg
Kristjanson gathered at the
Arrowwood Resort near Alexandria,
Minnesota, for their first reunion in
July, 1996. Of 91 direct descendants,
69 were in attendance plus spouses
and friends.
Bamey, bom in ND, was the son
of Kristjan G. and Svanfridur Krist-
janson who emigrated from Iceland to
Canada in 1878 and then North
Dakota. Kristbjorg was bom in Ice-
land to Jón and Stefania Amason,
leaving there to join her sisters in
Canada at age 15 in 1905.
Bamey and Kristbjorg lived and
raised their children in the Mountain,
North Dakota community until the
end of their lives in 1970 and 1982
respectively. The two first born
children, Jóhann Gunnlaugur and Jón
Vilmar are deceased. All six of the
remaining children attended the
reunion: Hannes and Elsie Kristjanson
from Grand Forks, ND, Margaret
Thomasson, Grafton, ND, Anna and
Norman Brorson, Grand Forks, ND,
Lara and Bemard Stanton, Ithaca, N Y,
Rosa and Richard Thorfinnson,
Mountain, ND, and Sigurbjorn
(Sibbie) and Emily Kristjanson,
Seattle, WA. The senior member of
the group and only great-grandfather
was Hannes Kristjanson, age 76. The
youngest was Kristjan Jóhann
Pedersen, born June 6, 1996, from
Edmonds, WA, grandson of Sibbie
and Emily. Family members came
from as far away as Hemet, CA, and
Providence, RI.
The three-day event was well
planned and executed by represen-
tatives from each sibling’s family,
namely: Doreen Kristjanson Marsten,
Hudson, WI, Rick Thomasson, Kent,
WA, Lon Brorson, Grand Forks, ND,
Margaret Stanton McNamara,
Wyckoff, NJ, Roxane Thorfinnson
Gehli, Eden Prairie, MN, and Greg
Kristjanson, Seattle, WA.
Aside from golf, swimming,
boating, eating and dancing, there was
plenty of time for reminiscing. The
entire group assembled on the lawn
of the resort one evening. The six
siblings seated in the center of a circle,
were quizzed about their growing up
years and what they remembered
about life on the farm, special
moments as children and/or teens,
values leamed, as well as mischief
they got into. Before the hour-long
session ended the six siblings also
leamed of some of the pranks of their
own children’s lives, confessed and
remembered fondly. If laughter is
good for health, everyone left this
event healthier.
The children under 10 were
royally entertained one aftemoon with
Continued on page 6
Continued from page 1
Einarsson Records
Oral Culture
These few samples hope to ex-
press something of the range and
wealth of material found in Icelandic-
Canadian Popular Verse.
As K. N„ a major representative
in this book, died in 1936, browsing
through a copy might help commemo-
rate something of the unique life of
this colourful, robust, witty and bawdy
versifier, whose drinking songs are
still sung in Iceland, and whose death
occurred 60 years ago this year.
These verse creations sustained
the sense of family or community in
the scattered settlements, and the hu-
mour often provided ironic distance
between reality and the individual, and
frequently supplied a healthy outlet
for criticism or scorn.
While realizing that his transla-
tions fairly rob the originals of their
charm, Magnús Einarsson hopes, with
his most recent book, to principally
communicate, especially to those who
no longer speak Icelandic, some sense
of the idea-world which forms the
basis of their own culture. Einarsson
deserves praise for a sincere and
thoughtful effort, worthy of attaining
the best success intended for this
work. □
Donations
The following donations to
Löberg-Heimskringla are
gratefully acknowledged:
Vatnabyaggð lcelandic $50.00
Club of Saskatchewan
Elfros, SK
In memory of:
Beth Johnson, Wynyard, SK
Ted Scyrup, Wynyard, SK
Steini Gudmundson, Tisdale, SK
Doris Armstrong, Brandon, MB
Agnes Gislason, Leslie, SK
Grace Willis Grand Bend, ON $12.55
Ross Oddson Sun City, A2 $56.00
M. Partridge Surrey, BC $10.65
Gimli Chapter INL Gimli, MB $700.00
D.V. Pekary Manotick, ON $25.10