Once again, St Urho is going to drive away those pesky grasshoppers and save the grapes! When the first St Urho’s Day happened in 1976, do you suppose those Finlanders had any idea it would go on for 40 years? March 13th, 14th and 15th, 2015 will be the 40th Annual Celebration! Join us for a fun-filled weekend of remembering your favorite floats and themes, the best of the best in Finland creativity! As usual, plans include the Friday evening Miss Helmi beauty and talent competition, the Saturday Parade at noon on Highway 1 (the only state highway in Minnesota to shut down for a parade!), music, food, crafts and much more!
We are pleased to announce that the Clair Nelson Center is now a location for Community Education Classes in partnership with Lake Superior School District. This means that if you read Community Ed’s Good News publication (mailed out 4 times a year to all households in the District), you will see that along with Silver Bay Community Ed and Two Harbors Community Ed, there will also be a section called Finland Community Ed that will showcase classes at the Clair Nelson Center.
Do you care about the future of this community? What kind of future do you envision? Are you interested in taking an active role in creating the future you want to see? What do you like about this area? What are some things that you would like to see happen here? This may sound familiar. These are the kinds of questions Finland struggled with about 10 years ago when the community came together and created the Crystal Bay Comprehensive Community Plan. At that time, the Project to build the Clair Nelson Community Center was one of the biggest reasons to complete the Plan; it allowed the Town to apply for more grants in order to build the Center. What’s next? Right now we’re at a point where it would be a good idea to revisit and revise the Comprehensive Plan with input from the public indicating what would be best…
The Clair Nelson Center is hosting our first kids day camp this week, thanks to a grant from the Duluth Superior Area Community Foundation that is allowing us to expand the activities we offer for area youth, and so far it is a smashing success. In fact, I think if most of the community could see it happening, they would all agree that this is truly the fulfillment of a vision. The work put in by the organizers, Amy and Kathy, has been phenomenal. The grant money has allowed us to offer a Counselor-in-Training opportunity for some older area youth to assist with leading activities and gain some valuable skills in the process. Various community members have taught classes, from guitar lessons and outdoor survival skills to the Tuesday Talents craft group showing the kids how to make pillows without sewing. The fun and sheer energy is palpable.
It is our great pleasure to announce that this summer, due to generous support provided by the Duluth Superior Area Community Foundation, The Clair Nelson Youth Program will be offering the first ever CAMP FINLAND! Camp Finland, a day camp, will be held June 16 – 20th, 10am to 4 pm, with one overnight on June 18th, details to follow. We will be providing breakfast, lunch, snacks – Dinner and smores for the overnight. It is our intention that Camp Finland provide our young people with a high quality summer camp experience, fostering a lifelong love of discovery, friendship, learning and leadership. Camp Finland Leader-Coordinators are Amy Gardner and Kathy Nelson. We will be drawing in local talent to lead various activities, as well as utilizing interested teenagers and young adults as “Counselors in Training”. First and Foremost, Camp Finland will be FUN!!! Camp Finland is open to area children…