The Icelandic Canadian - 01.09.1968, Page 37

THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
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Motor Hotel, with addresses of wel-
come and a musical program.
Later Sunday night, the Brothers
Grimm from Winnipeg provided em-
phatic poptdar music for an audience
of some 600, not only the young but
people of all ages.
A midnight dance from 12 a.m. to
3 a.m., with music by the Gimli Fifth,
drew a capacity crowd of over nine
hundred.
Early Monday morning, Gimli was
astir, with thousands of townspeople
and visitors forming solid embank-
ments along Centre Street and Iceland-
ic music blaring from loudspeakers.
Colorful was the parade of some
twenty-five units and bands and major-
ettes. In the leading automobile were
the Fjallkona, Miss SigriSur Hjartar-
son, Matron of Betel Home, Gimli,
and her two maids of honor, Patricia
Arnason and Ingrid Sveinson.
At the Pioneer Memorial cairn the
parade paused for the Fjallkona to
place a wreath.
First prize for floats went to the
Johnson Memorial Hospital, of Gimli,
with a float depicting a hospital operat-
ing scene; second prize to the Gimli
Youth Club, with a float showing a
Hawaiian scene, and third prize to Tip
Top Clover Farm, with a model of
Surtsey in eruption, which became
most realistic when the mechanism mal-
functioned and flames shot up and
smoke belched forth.
During the noon-break, many people
availed themselves of -the opportunity
for a treat of rullupylsa, vinarterta,
skyr, and Icelandic coffee, while dur-
ing the afternoon some 1500 packages
©f hard fish specially imported from
Iceland found ready customers.
At the beginning of the formal
afternoon program the chairman, J.
F. Kristjansson, faced a massed audi-
ence of some two thousand people.
The Fjallkona delivered her greet-
ing to her children in America.
The Toast to Canada was delivered
by Hon. Sterling Lyon, Attorney-Gen-
eral in the government of Manitoba.
He paid tribute to the Icelandic
pioneers and their descendants and
spoke of Canada’s future, including
the need for law, order, a sense of
responsibility, and spiritual faith.
In his Toast to Iceland SigurSur
Sigurgeirsson expressed in poetic terms
love of his native land including the
landscape and the Icelandic language.
Musical items on the program in-
cluded selections by the Gimli Band;
a solo by Miss Aurora Stevens, ac-
companied by Mrs. Elma Gislascxn,
and Icelandic folksongs by Leonard
and Karen Vopnfjord.
A pleasing item were the Icelandic
folk dances by a group of young girls
in costume, under the direction of
Meros Leckow.
Several visitors from Iceland, in-
cluding ungfru Sesselja Eldjarn, aunt
of the newly elected President of Ice-
land, Kristjan Eldjarn, were present
and were presented to the audience.
Community singing in the evening
was conducted by Ken Honey and
Meros Leckow, assisted by Heimir
Thorgrimson for the Icelandic num-
bers.
During a break in the community
singing, awards were presented to the
beauty contest winners. Miss Ellen
Benjaminson of Winnipeg, carried off
the honors, and the runners-up were
Miss Heida Kristjansson of Winnipeg,
and Miss Melanie Meredith, of Glen-
boro.
Athletic awards were presented. The
Club trophy of the senior sports, the