Lögberg-Heimskringla - 01.03.2002, Side 5

Lögberg-Heimskringla • Föstudagur 1 Mars 2002 • page 5
FRÉTTIR • NEWS
Canada
Brian Edits Bogi
Brian Bjamason of Surrey,
BC has edited the writings
of his father, Bogi Bjamason.
Bogi Bjamason was bom
and schooled in Mountain, ND.
The farm he grew up on, which
was home-
steaded by
B j a r n i
Bjamason in
1889, is still
in the family.
Lynn, son of
Tryggvi
Bjarnason,
now farms
it.
A f t e r
Bogi died
in 1977 and his mother moved
into a smaller place, Brian
found himself in possession of
many heavy cardboard boxes,
which contained his father's
papers. After he himself retired
after spending thirty-eight
years flying for Air Canada, he
started going through the
papers. There he discovered a
book.
Brian notes that his father
Bogi Bjarnason,
edited by Brian
Bjarnason
was fluently bilingual, that he
wrote in both Icelandic and
English, and that "He was
fussy about the English lan-
guage and how it was used." At
first Brian put together the edi-
torials, short stories, poems,
both narrative and quatrains
and correspondence, for mem-
bers of the family. The
response he received made him
realize that this was a book for
a broader audience.
Bogi came to Canada
around 1910, and was the edi-
tor of the Wynyard Advance
during World War I. Later he
edited the Westem Review at
Foam Lake. Then, in the late
1920s he was the publisher of
both the Lögberg and
Heimskringla. In 1929 he
moved to Trehearne, MB
where he took over the
Trehearne Times. When he
arrived, he dragged out all the
old subscription lists and sent a
notice to everyone on the list,
offering to accept payment in
kind, given the hard times. As
a result, the circulation shot up,
the advertising shot up, and the
paper flourished right through
the 1930s. Bogi himself was
successful as a result, driving
an Essex throughout the
Depression, and flying his own
airplane, which he purchased
in 1931.
Bogi did not take out
Canadian citizenship until
1935. Duming the First World
War he was called up by the
US Army, and went down irt
1918. His brother took over the
Wynyard Advance in his
absence, and Bogi sent letters
from the front, his experiences
both in training and in the
trenches.
In 1943 he retired and
moved to the west coast.
Because working conditions
were so different there, he
never worked at a newspaper
again. The legacy of his work
is now available in the book
Bogi Bjarnason — His Words,
published by Granville Press in
Vancouver. It is available for
purchaSfe online at:
<www.creativeconnections
publishing.com>. In Manitoba
it is currently available at
Tergesen's in Gimli.
Gimli Chapter Generosity
The Gimli Chapter of the
INL/NA made the follow-
ing donations during the year
2001: $700 to the INL for a
bookcase for the office, $150
to the INL in memory of
deceased members, $100 to the
Icelandic Festival of Manitoba,
$100 to the International Visits
Program, $1,000 to the
Community Health Centre and
$900 to the Lögberg-
Heimskringlci.
The Raffle Committee,
chaired by Benna Martin,
offers some great prizes. The
raffle is.the main fundraiser for
donations to the Lögberg
Heimskringla.
The Club also offers an.
annual scholarship of $500 for
a graduate of the Gimli High
School who is registering in a
course in the Icelandic Studies
Department at the University
of Manitoba. For more infor-
mation, contact Susan Wallis
or Loren Gudbjartsson.
The Gimli Chapter execu-
tive this year is Claude
Thorsteinson, President, Loren
Gudbjartsson, Vice President,
Laura Sigmundson, Past
President, Susan Wallis,
Secretary and Helga Malis,
Treasurer.
Gimli Chapter INL Newsletter,
Winter 2002
Hraðast fer sá
sem einsamall
fer
He travels the fastest
who travels alone
Icelandic Language Gimli
Club Mandate
Don Martin
Gimli, MB
Icelandic Classes have once
again begun in Gimli. This is
the fourth consecutive year for
the classes. The first class was
held on Tuesday, January 22nd
and wiii be for ten weeks. This
year we are very pleased and
fortunate to have Elva
Simundsson as our teacher. As
was the case last year, we are
again meeting at 7 pm every
Tuesday in the Council cham-
bers of the old Gimli Public
School. The first two years the
classes were organized by Don
Martin, and for the first time
last year, the Gimli Chapter of
the INL agreed to sponsor the
classes and to make the preser-
vation of the Icelandic lan-
guage a definite part of their
mandate. So far this year there
are twenty-three people
enrolled. Members of the
Icelandic class committee are
Kristjana Stefansson, Sigga
Nielsen and Don Martin.
Claude Thorsteinson, the pres-
ident of the Gimli Chapter was
instrumental in securing Elva
Simundsson as the teacher this
year and is also an enthusiastic
student.
Marno I. Olafson, B. A.
Financial Advisor
Tel: 204.925.2058
Cell: 204.793.5000
Fax: 204.956.1296
Toll Free: 800.848.0580
E-mail: marno@wellwest.ca
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