Rededication of Danes Hall

Rededication of The Danes Hall By Annette Lind, Lodge 15 Milwaukee, WI

Despite threats of snow and possible difficult driving conditions, seventeen representatives of Lodge #15 Milwaukee, one of Lodge #20 Kenosha and two representatives of Lodge #4 Chicago travelled to Waupaca, Wisconsin on November 30 to attend the re-dedication of Danes Hall. An article on Danes Hall appeared in 2018 in the National Sisterhood News. You can also read more about the history on the following Internet page: www.daneshallwaupaca. com by selecting About Danes Hall. The following is quoted from that internet site. “The Danes Home (De Danske Hjem) was the first lodge to organize for social and literary purposes. In 1882 it incorporated under the laws of Wisconsin. The constitution and bylaws were adopted and the name “The Danes Home” was formally adopted. The bylaws provided that all males born to Danish parents, 18 years of age, or older, who were able to read and speak the Danish language, would be eligible for membership…. Construction of this three story brick building began in August of 1894 and the building was completed on November 22, 1894. The total cost of the new building was $7,000. The Dedication ceremonies took place on November 29, 1894 with about 400 people in attendance.” In August of 2016 Michael Koehler and his brothers formed the Danes Hall LLC and bought the Danes Hall in Waupaca which had been sitting empty. And so began the journey to the fabulous day in which 20 members and friends of the Danish Sisterhood of America joined in the celebration and rededication of Danes Hall. Michael Koehler and his family have brought the building back to life. With the help of our member Marcia Jante and her enthusiasm for this project, our lodge has become well- known to the Koehlers. For this event our members made over 200 Danish heart baskets, enough to decorate one of the Christmas trees in Danes Hall and to present each dinner attendee with a little piece of a Danish Christmas to take home. Susan Jensen and Ruth Ann Higgins demonstrated/taught the making of heart baskets to those attending the afternoon open house. Beginning at 1:00 pm. on November 30, 2019 the 125 Year Rededication of Danes Hall of Waupaca began in the beautifully restored ball room on the second floor. The master of ceremonies, Bill Clarke the General Manager of Danes Hall introduced Michael Koehler. Mr. Koehler talked about his family and other Danes who had dreams of a new homeland and a new life. They and thousands of other immigrants came to the United States. He talked about the first dedication which started at 9:00 pm (Dairy farmers had to get their work done) and continued until 2:00 a.m. Over the years many area residents met their wives and husbands at dances at Danes Hall. As the largest venue in Waupaca for many years, a lot of celebrations were held at the hall. Koehler said his great great grandmother celebrated her 90th birthday there. It was at Danes Hall that Danish ministers met in 1872 for a meeting that would ultimately decide the future of the Danish Church in America. Reverend Fredrick Lang Grundtvig, the son of N.F.S. Grundtvig, and Reverend Peter Sorenson Vig both attended meetings at Danes Hall. Michael Koehler introduced a special guest at the Rededication, the great granddaughter of Reverend Peter Sorenson Vig and current member of Lodge #4 in Chicago, Karen Vig-Keathley. Koehler traced briefly the history of Danes Hall up to the present. He said “ In 2015 the building was standing idle, it stood waiting for ‘US’.” When tKoehler bought the building, he remembered going back to his wife at their home in Illinois. She asked him, “What are you

Karen Vig-Keathley, Lodge #4 and Michael Koehler

going to do with that building?” Koehler’s response, “I’ll get back to you.” On January 11, 2017 he took a hammer and crow bar and began the restoration. Along with his brothers and sister and cousin Diane they began to take out what did not belong. An architect was hired and many contractors and the Koeher family worked tirelessly on the project. Now five generations after it was built it is again truly Danes Hall. In dedicating the restored building Koehler spoke of his hopes for future generations and the role Danes Hall can play in that future. He spoke of our ancestors dreams and the importance of preserving our heritage. He spoke of it as a place to preserve the stories of our ancestors and to make our own stories. He gave his thanks to the Mayor and citizens of Waupaca, to Annemarie Sawkins (the Honorary Consul for Denmark in Wisconsin), to the architect and contractors, and to the arts community of Waupaca and ended by saying, “Let’s make memories to last a lifetime.” Also speaking were: Brian Smith, Mayor of the City of Waupaca whose relatives came from Denmark. He said he could picture them coming to the first dedication. And Aaron Jensen, City of Waupaca Administrator who talked about how lucky the people of Waupaca are to have this incredible building on their Main Street. And Kevin Petersen, Wisconsin State Representative 40th District who began with a quote by Jackie Kennedy who was very involved in the restoration movement. “ We are the only country in the world that trashes its old buildings. Too late we realize how very much we need them.” He talked about what an amazing job the Waupaca area in general has done in preserving their old buildings. He said there around 40 + buildings and landmarks and also 71 other properties in and near Waupaca on the Register of Historic Places, including Danes Hall. These serve as bridges from the past to the future. Susan Jensen, the President of Dronning Margrethe Lodge #15 of Milwaukee spoke briefly about the Sisterhood and our lodge history and our link with Danes Hall. She presented a Royal Copenhagen porcelain figurine “Boy with Cows” given to Danes Hall by the members of Lodge #15. The piece was chosen to represent the agricultural background of the Waupaca area. Karen Vig-Keathley a Trustee of the Danish Sisterhood of America and representative of their board spoke and read a Declaration from the Danish Sisterhood of America. She presented a framed copy of the declaration to Michael Koehler. Twice during the rededication Eric Grenlie performed on the beautiful grand piano purchased for the Danes Hall. He first played a nocturne by Edvard Grieg. The second piece a nocturne by Chopin. The rededication ended with William Clarke the General Manager of Danes Hall who talked briefly about his background and current role at Danes Hall. After the ceremony the hall was open to explore. I was most fascinated by the lovely art work on the walls. Michael Koehler told me the fascinating story of his acquisition of the works from the Skagen School of painters. (The Skagen Painters (Danish: Skagensmalerne) were a group of Scandinavian artists who gathered in the village of Skagen, the northernmost part of Denmark, from the late 1870s until the turn of the century.) The collection began with a print of Artists’ Luncheon at Skagen by P.S. Krøyer. The piece is hung in the entrance hall in a place that could almost be the room shown in the painting. Then the Waupaca Community Arts Board purchased another print Hip, Hip, Hurrah! also by Krøyer. He said he plans to have tables outside for people to gather much like those in the Hip Hip Hurrah print. Michael Koehler’s eyes filled with the excitement you always see in them when he talks about Dane’s Hall, but this time he was talking about the art work. With the two prints in his possession, Koehler wanted to see if he could get some originals from the Skagen School. Using the internet he was able to find a painting for sale in a Danish gallery. From that beginning he purchased more and even got some paintings from Danes in Denmark who owned paintings and gave them to Danes Hall. There are now 18 paintings in the collection in addition to the

two prints. While attendees roamed through the building, Marcia Jante manned a table selling Danish mobiles/papercuts, ornaments and books. Karen Vig-Keathley set up some National lodge items and information on the Danish Sisterhood of America. Some of the attendees braved the wet weather and walked down Main Street to enjoy the many small shops. In honor of the rediedication, the shops displayed Danish flags. By 6:00 p.m as guests invited by the Koehlers, we were all back at Danes Hall for the dinner. It was a spectacular event held in the ball room. While a musical group played, our members and friends mingled with the people from Waupaca and the people involved in the restoration. Some of us sat at a table with the photographer hired by Mr. Koehler to document the entire restoration process. Marcia Jante gave a short talk about akvavit and then gave a toast. She said when the French gather they sing, the Spanish may have a mass, the Germans cheer for the fatherland, the Brits may read a sonnet and the Americans give a speech, but the Danes simply order another round of drinks. Michael Koehler welcomed everyone and gave the blessing.

We all enjoyed a dinner starting with a spinach salad and followed by roast pork, asparagus, red cabbage and mashed potatoes, ending with a coconut topped cake. There was wine from Denmark (A winery in Denmark Wisconsin) and beer in addition to the akvavit. Marcia of course got everyone to join in the snaps Song—“I want to drink the real elite, Aalborg Akvavit.” And as Danes will always do when they celebrate, Marcia had us all sing the Sailor’s Song, Greet Them at Home from Me.

“Toward south toward north east and west, they ventured forth Young young Danes with homes and dreams, toward foreign shores Many thousand, thousand miles separate us from their smiles Swallow, fly o’er land and sea, and greet them all from me Greet the folks in Denmark.”

Annmarie Sawkins spoke as a representative of the Danish Consul and talked about the United States as a land of immigrants. It was a beautiful evening and everyone who attended was excited to be a part of Wisconsin history, 125 years after the Danes of Waupaca celebrated the first dedication of Danes Hall. All day the rain had fallen and as the event drew to a close the temperatures were falling and the rain turned to snow. Most of our members were spending the night in Waupaca. Sunday morning we all left for home and drove through what was a winter wonderland of snow-covered trees and bushes. Luckily the roads were mostly clear. Everyone drove home with happy memories and thoughts of what else we can do to continue to be a part of the “resurrection” of this historic building and the history of Danes in America.

70th Year Certificate Recipient

This is Betty Haar who recently received her 70th year certificate in the Danish Sisterhood at a Freden Lodge luncheon. Betty and her family used to own a Danish Bakery in Connecticut.

Certificates were also sent out to Barbara Sorensen for her 60 years and to Lille Peters for her 70 years. We thank all these ladies for their faithfulness to Freden Lodge 12 and to the Sisterhood.

Carol Faruolo, Freden Lodge President