Lögberg-Heimskringla - 01.04.2012, Qupperneq 8

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8 • Lögberg-Heimskringla • April 1 2012
One of the latest programs which has been added to the INL
of NA Convention program on
Friday May 4 at 10:45 a.m. is
an update on the Fara Heim
project, featuring expedition
organizers Johann Straumfjord
Sigurdson and his nephew
David Collette.
In Old Norse, að fara heim
means “going home”. The
Fara Heim team will sail from
Manitoba through Hudson
Bay and the Arctic on their
way to the lands of the original
explorers.
Using modern technolo-
gies, the team will visit likely
sites to search for and record
any signs of Norse presence.
Sites are selected using his-
torical data, verbal history,
community knowledge and
analysis of modern data. The
objective is data collection us-
ing a defined search protocol
to protect all visited sites and
artifacts from damage and per-
manent loss. The data package
will be analyzed for evidence
of Norse presence with posi-
tive results leading to formal
archaeological digs.
The team will train the crew
and prepare the sailboat on Lake
Winnipeg, Manitoba in 2012.
The expedition will depart
from Churchill, Manitoba in
the early summer of 2013. The
expedition will travel from
Canada to Reykjavík, Iceland
over a three month period
while searching predetermined
locations for evidence of Norse
presence.
The core team members are
Johann Straumfjord Sigurdson,
who has recently become a
member of The Explorers Club,
and David Collette. Additional
crew include those whose
specialized skills are critical
to the success of the journey
and a few others who wish to
join the expedition in one to
two week segments for “travel
with a purpose”. The final crew
complement and schedule will
be developed as the project
moves forward.
Johann Straumfjord
Sigurdson was born in Lundar,
an Icelandic community in
Manitoba’s Interlake bet-
ween Lake Winnipeg and
Lake Manitoba. The son of
community leader Johann
S. Sigurdson who served as
President of the INL of NA,
Johann was never far from his
deep-rooted Icelandic culture.
Educated at the University
of Manitoba, Johann started
his professional career as a
Biologist for the Canadian
Fisheries and Oceans and
finished as a Resource Manager
with the Department of Natural
Resources in Manitoba. He has
spent years in, on, and around
the lakes and Hudson Bay
coastline of Manitoba.
Johann has designed and
built hundreds of aluminum
vessels including a 50 foot
motor sailer for use in the
Arctic Char fishery as well
as whale watching boats for
the Port of Churchill. He also
designed a polar bear resistant
module for use during field
research on Arctic bears in
their natural habitat and a
modernized aluminum komatik
(Inuit sled) used in transport of
goods across the Arctic.
A life-long adventurer
who holds a Commercial
Pilot’s License, Scuba Diving
Certifications, Master of
Inland Waters Certificate,
Johann has set this decade as
the time to develop and launch
this expedition along with his
kindred-spirited nephew, David
F. Collette to undertake a life-
long dream of exploring northern
waters in search of presence of
ancient Norse passage, but this
time Fara Heim.
David Collette also has the
Nordic sense of experiencing
life to its fullest. Born in
Beausejour, Manitoba he grew
up across Canada, the son of an
RCMP officer. David spent all
his teenage summers working
on his afi’s ranch in Lundar.
He has a BSc Mechanical
Engineering from the University
of Manitoba and an MBA in
Finance and Marketing from
the University of Chicago.
A pilot in the Canadian
Air Force, David taught at the
Aerospace Navigation School,
flew as a Captain for a South
American airline while living
in Curacao and founded several
tech start-ups. He has worked
with Unilever, Johnson Wax
and is now Director, Marketing
and Strategy for Cintas in
Cincinnati, OH.
David has a passion for testing
his limits via outdoor sports and
participates in ultra marathons,
scuba diving, mountaineering
and sailing. He has spent the
last decade honing his offshore
sailing skills while living on
the shores of Lake Michigan.
He is a Past Commander in the
United States Power Squadron,
a Navigator and Instructor. He is
now looking over the horizon to
find the wind in his face as he
puts miles under the keel of a
sailboat on an expedition to find
Norse presence in the Arctic and
voyage like his ancestors.
More details about the
expedition are available on the
website: www.faraheim.com/
PHoto: joHAnn sigurdson iV
Johann Straumfjord Sigurdson and David Collette prove that sail boats are more than
summertime obsessions
Gail Einarson-McCleery
Toronto, ON
Fara Heim added to Convention lineup
Joe Olafson Saturday
night conference MC
Joe Olafson is pleased to be a part of the 2012 Icelandic National League Convention in Brandon.A proud Icelander himself, Joe grew up in Lundar
where his parents Ken and Paula farm and are active members
of the community.
Joe graduated with honours from the Creative
Communications program at Red River College. He has a
passion for telling the stories of the people who call Manitoba
home. After graduation, he moved west and began his career
in Brandon, where he spent four years as a producer, reporter
and anchor. Joe also worked for A-Channel Winnipeg before
he got the call to join the CTV News team where he spent
time in front of the camera as a reporter and anchor before
he assumed his current role as a producer.
In 2006, Joe travelled to Iceland to explore the unique
connection our province has with the island nation as part
of CTV’s documentary program “Manitoba Moments.” This
was his second visit to Iceland as he first made the trip with
his family as a child. The trip was a chance to learn more
about his own family history, visit the original homestead
and reconnect with his many relatives living there.
WWW.ICELANDAIR.CA
Now available on the Icelandair website:
book from 10 additional cities throughout Canada,
making your flight home that much easier.
Seasonal service from Toronto and Halifax now ongoing.
+ For further information, please visit
www.icelandair.ca or call (877) I-FLY-ICE.
CLOSER TO HOME
WWW.ICELANDAIR.CA
Now available on the Icelandair website:
book from 10 additional cities throughout Canada,
making your flight home that much easier.
Seasonal service from Toronto and Halifax now ongoing.
+ For further information, please visit
www.icelandair.ca or call (877) I-FLY-ICE.
CLOSER TO HO E
We offer help to descendents of
the emigrants who are looking
for their roots in Iceland.
For those who have decided to
visit Iceland, we offer help in
planning their journey.
Phone 354.473.1200
E-mail vesturfarinn@simnet.is
www.vesturfarinn.is Kaupvangur 2, Hafnarbyggð 690 Vopnafjörður, Iceland
Vesturfaramiðstöð Austurlands
East IcEland EmIgratIon cEntEr