The Icelandic Canadian - 01.09.1977, Page 29

THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
27
SOLSKIN OF VANCOUVER ■ ■ ■
60 YEARS OF GOODWILL
by Kristiana Magnusson
Have you ever had the special, happy
experience, when reading through the
pages of an old record, of finding your-
self fascinated with the treasures and in-
formation contained therein? Such has
been my experience in reading the Sec-
retary’s and Treasurer’s 60 years record
of Solskin (Sunshine) activities. In the
pages of these records, so lovingly kept,
are the dreams and aspirations of a de-
dicated group of women through the
years.
It all began the evening of November
1st, 1917, when a group of Icelandic
women in Vancouver met at the home of
Runa Tipping. The purpose of this
meeting was to get together to create a
strong friendship link amongst Iceland-
ic-Canadians in Vancouver, and to ex-
tend the hand of companionship and
cheer to anyone in need, in the Icelandic
community. They named the club
“SOLSKIN”, set the membership fee at
50c per year, and decided to hold
meetings once a month, on the last
Thursday in the month. These original
rules are still in force today. The first
President elected was Valgerdur
Josephson, and the first Secretary, Emily
Thorson.
This was during the war years, when
many young soldiers of Icelandic descent
were serving overseas, and the first
concern of Solskin members was to
brighten their Christmas. They took up
a collection of $21.00 at a special meet-
ing held a week later, and sent this
money to “Soldiersof Icelandic Descent”
through Jon Sigurdsson I.O.D.E.
Chapter in Winnipeg. That year they
kept busy knitting woollen socks for
soldiers, and 22 pairs were sent through
the Jon Sigurdsson Chapter.
Solskin became a very active club,
with Tombolas, Homecooking and
Bazaar sales, Christmas parties, and
Whist Drives, which were always
followed by a lively dance, with music
provided by Barney Fridleifson. The big
yearly events were the “Sumardagurinn
Fyrsti Concert”, and the “Thorrablot,”
the mid-winter Festival. For the
Thorrablot Concert, Solskin would buy 2
or 3 carcasses of lamb. The lambs would
be slaughtered for them, then cut up and
distributed amongst the women who
would make rullupylsa, kaefa, and
hangikjot to serve at the meal. Nothing
was wasted. The heads were pickled
and made into svid. Skyr was another
big undertaking and large amounts of it
were always made, as that was a popular
dessert. The Thorrablot meal featured a
wonderful variety of Icelandic dishes.
All meetings were conducted in
Icelandic. At the conclusion of the
meetings there would be guest speakers,
or else a game of cards. Poems, plays,
and articles were read sometimes, and if
any member had been on a trip to
Iceland, she would relate her
experiences there. During the summer,
picnic meetings were held in various
parks in and around Vancouver.
The Solskin Charter was formed in
1918, and the laws and regulations were
as follows: