Vesterheim Sets Full Day of Activities for Norwegian Christmas Festival

It's your town. Your lives. Your stories. Make sure someone's telling them—donate to Decorah News now. DECORAH — Kick off the holiday season with a Norwegian Christmas celebration at Vesterheim, the National Norwegian-American Museum and Folk Art School, on Saturday, Dec. 6, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission to the museum building is free for youth under 18, and activities throughout Heritage Park and Hanson Vesterheim Commons are free. Throughout the day in the outdoor setting of Heritage Park, visitors can stop by to see goats from Lost Pine Farm in Decorah and take a photo with Nils, the giant nisse. Guests can warm up with hot drinks, Scandinavian s'mores around the fire, or bites of traditional Norwegian lefse—all free—on the patio behind Hanson Vesterheim Commons. Don't be frightened by the julebukker—costumed folk who roam the museum campus scaring away evil spirits—or the young julenisse (Christmas elves) playing tricks. Visitors can enjoy juletrefest, the Norwegian tradition of singing around a decorated tree, with a visit from the julenisse at 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. in Hanson Vesterheim Commons. Live music by local musicians will be a feature of the event, with four performances in the museum's Bethania Church: Eden Ehm at 10 a.m., Decorah Chorale at 11 a.m., Northern Lights at noon, and the Luren Singing Society at 1 p.m. The Decorah High School Madrigal Singers will perform in the museum building at 11:45 a.m., and A Touch of Brass will perform in Hanson Vesterheim Commons at 12:15 p.m. The celebration will also feature handcrafted folk art throughout the museum building. Sally Stromseth and Margaret Hahn will demonstrate rosemaling, and Marley Harmening will demonstrate carving along with students from Vesterheim's youth Whittling Klubb. Chris Johnson, Vesterheim president and CEO, will whittle Santa pencils to give away. Beverly Schrandt will make and sell straw wheat ornaments, and Renee Thoreson and Lynette Aanonson will show Hardangersøm embroidery. Oneota Weavers Guild members will demonstrate weaving and spinning. Rebecca Hanna will demonstrate flat-plane figure carving in the Museum Store. On Friday and Saturday, the Oneota Weavers Guild will be in the Westby-Torgerson Education Center near the store selling items such as mittens, scarves, Santas, knit decorations, weavings and more. Visitors can make their own craft decorations at stations throughout the museum building and the first floor of Hanson Vesterheim Commons, including Scandinavian heart baskets, yarn hats, bird ornaments and cardboard Christmas trees. The museum building will be decorated for the holidays, including trees with traditional ornaments. Visitors are also welcome to tour Vesterheim's new forging studio with guided tours led by staff at 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. Guests should meet in front of Hanson Vesterheim Commons to join tours. The Museum Store will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. with a wide variety of Scandinavian gifts. The Norman Borlaug Heritage Foundation will sell julenek—sheaves of wheat grown from Borlaug wheat developed in the 1960s by Howard County's Dr. Norman Borlaug in an effort to address world hunger. In Norway on Christmas Eve, julenek are hung outside to feed the birds. Proceeds support supplies for the foundation's food program, which packages meals for people in areas of food scarcity. Visitors can also explore Vesterheim's special exhibitions, including "200 Years of Norwegians in America," "Exploring the Natural World: Printmaking of Olive Nordby," "Past/Present/Future of Folk Art," and "Pioneering Pages: Forming the New American Woman." This event is supported by a gift to the Vesterheim Annual Fund in memory of Darrel Morf. Additional support for music is in memory of Lois Christenson. Youth programming is supported by Walmart. Jultrefest is supported by a gift from Milly Rugland in memory of Walt Rugland, and demonstrators are supported by a gift from Jon and Mary Hart. Vesterheim, the National Norwegian-American Museum and Folk Art School, welcomes people of all ages and backgrounds to engage in the story of the American immigrant journey through the lens of the Norwegian-American experience. Unlock a world of knowledge! Sign up for free DecorahNews.com newsletters and receive local news, local events and everything that is happening in and around Decorah.