DanishNews072011

Come to theOpen HouseSunday, July 3rd from 2pm

followed by Danish Church Service with pastor Anja Grønne Mathiassen at 4pm.

Come and meet your friends or get some new ones – Everyone is welcome!

Coffee & cake from $2.50(Next Open House – August 7th)

Coming up

AGMSunday, November 27th, 4pm

Up for election and re-election are the president and several committee members. Send in any remits and/or committee nominations to the Secretary,

The Danish Society, PO Box 12 279, Penrose 1642

Coming up . . .2011 Winter Warm-Up

Saturday, August 13th6pm till 10pm approx.

Join in the fun dances from all parts of Europe and elsewhere

See your Danish Folk Dancers in traditional costumeAdmission by donation – Food and drink on sale

NEWS MAGAZINEISSN 0113-4965 (Print) ● July 2011 ● ISSN 2230-4800 (Online)

Film EveningFriday July 15th

The ExperimentOriginal title – Eksperimentet

(a movie based on a true story in Greenland 1951) 2010 Drama

Come and have a hyggelig winter evening with the 3C’s – coffee, cake and candles

Members $5 (donation) Non-members $7

Bingo Afternoon!on Sunday, July 17th, 2pm

at the Danish HouseLots of fun and prizes!

Danish Society News Magazine ● July 20112

THE DANISH SOCIETY (INC)P. O. BOX 12 279 - PENROSE 1642

6 Rockridge Ave., Penrose, AucklandPhone 580 3103

www.danishsocietynz.com

Contact phone numbersThe Danish House 580 3103Valhalla, Leigh 09 422 6194

CommitteePRESIDENTInger Mortensen 443 5105

Email: [email protected] Stewart 480 8282

Email: [email protected] Knights 021 858 248 Email: [email protected] Logan 480 9883

Email: [email protected] MEMBERSAntony Barrett 444 0939 Kim Basse 473 6455Kurt Marquart 476 0244Finn Nielsen 625 5533Louise Robertson 410 0108EDITOR “NEWS MAGAZINE”John Stewart 480 8282 88c Coronation Road, Hillcrest, North Shore 0627

E-mail: [email protected] MAILOUTHelle Scott 521 2844 CHANGE OF ADDRESSKurt Marquart 476 0244

E-mail: [email protected] Other Addresses

ROYAL DANISH CONSULATE GENERALP.O. Box 619, Auckland 1Fax 537 3067 Phone 537 3099www.danishconsulatesnz.org.nzTHE TRADE COMMISSION OF DENMARKP.O. Box 2154, Auckland 1Fax 307 5207 Phone 379 3119 www.dtcauckland.um.dkTHE LUTHERAN CHURCH1 Harris Rd (P O Box 85-014) Mt Wellington Phone 579 4490DANISH CHURCH NEW ZEALAND INC.Pastor Anja Grønne Mathiassenwww.danishchurchnz.org Ph 03 464 0218

SUBSCRIPTIONS (2011 Financial Year – 1st Oct 2010 to 30th Sept 2011)

Member: $60 per memberSenior rate: (65 & over) $50 per member Youth rate: (18 to 25) $50 per memberChildren under 18 Free Family discount: Less $30 per couple

REGULAR EVENTS

QUICK CHECK CALENDAR

DANISH HOUSEAn Open House is held on the first Sunday

of each month from 2pm.

COMMITTEE MEETINGSare held on the second Monday of the

month at 7.30pm

VALHALLA WORKING BEESWorking bees are usually held on the weekend

of the second Saturday of the month.

CARDPLAYERSmeet on the first and third Wednesday

of the month - 11am to 3pm

DANISH MOTHERS’ GROUP

meets every 2nd Tuesday. Call Christina on 021 161 3159 for venue.

FOLKDANCERSmeet at 7.30pm on the second and

fourth Tuesday of every month.

WEDNESDAY MORNING GROUP

Meets on the fourth Wednesday of every month at 10.30am.

JulySun 3rd Open house & Danish Church ServiceSat 9th Valhalla working beeMon 11th Committee meetingFri 15th Film eveningSun 17th Bingo

AugustSun 7th Open House Mon 8th Committee Meeting Sat 13th Valhalla Working Bee Sat 13th Winter-Warm-Up, Folkdancers

Sun 14th Mothers’ Group Mid-Winter Xmas Sat 27th Dinner-Party (not smœrrebrœd)SeptemberSun 4th Open House Sat 10th Valhalla Working Bee Mon 12th Committee MeetingSun 25th Young Over 60’s LunchOctoberSun 2nd Open House Sat 8th Valhalla Working Bee Mon 10th Committee Meeting

Committee Contact Working Group Convenor PhoneCultural Card Players Oluf Basse 534 2798 Danish lessons Connie Kristensen 0274 757 565 Danish Mothers’ group Christina Bengtson 021 161 3159 Films Kurt Marquart 476 0244 Folk dancing Finn Nielsen 625 5533 Library / Videos Helle Gilderdale 478 7016 Society history Karen Yates 524 6016 Welfare (Cards & Flowers) Vibeke Courtney 576 3150Danish House Bookings Antony Barrett 444 0939 Maintenance Kim Basse 473 6455 Members Membership Kurt Marquart 476 0244 email: [email protected] Editor John Stewart 480 8282 Webmaster Gitte Abildgaard Nielsen 360 1110 email: [email protected] Bar Finn Nielsen, 625 5533 Socials Annette Jorna 630 8722 email: [email protected] Bookings & Maintenance Marion Stewart 480 8282 Working Bees Palle Olsen 09 426 6840

Committee Contacts & Convenors for Working Groups

Danish House Hall Hire RatesMembers rates for hiring the hall for the whole day at the Danish House, Penrose.Sunday to Friday inclusive $110Saturday: $165Half a day is $27 less. Funerals – no charge.

The bond is $150.00 per booking. The booking/holding fee of $50.00 is deducted

from the total cost.

Call the Booking Officer: Antony Barrett, Phone 444 0939

RATES FOR VALHALLA Peak Members Guests Adults $18 $30Children $9 $20Off-Peak Adults $12 $30Children $6 $20Whole house daily rate Off-peak $120 Peak rate $270 Christmas season $320 Functions $320Off-peak = Mid-week only excluding Christmas season and school holidaysPeak = All school holidays, Christmas season and all weekends.Christmas season = Christmas Eve to the end of Anniversary weekend.The house can only be hired for 7 days at any one time.

Call the Booking Officer: Marion Stewart,88c Coronation Road, Hillcrest, NSC

P: 480 8282 E: [email protected]

Danish ClassesWednesdays

Beginners 6.30-7.30pmIntermediate 7.30-8.30pmPrivate lessons are available on

Saturday mornings. For more information call Connie Kristensen 0274 757 565

July 2011 ● Danish Society News Magazine 3

AGM reminderDear members,

Danish Society AGM is on 27 November. Please start thinking now already about whether you would like to help your club by standing for committee – or would like to nominate someone who you think would be suitable. Up for election or re-election are president and several committee members.

We are also still hoping to set up a sub-committee of people who would like to be responsible to organising

socials. Please feel free to contact any of the members of the committee if you would like more information.

We also welcome you to come along to a committee meeting to see what we do, or to have a chat with us. We meet at 7.30pm on the second Monday of every month in the library.

Med kærlig hilsen, Inger Mortensen

On Saturday 25th June 111 members and guests enjoyed a wonderful evening at the Danish House. None of this could have been achieved without the energy and dedication of Annette Jorna as the organiser of this event and Dorte Soelmark taking on the mammoth task of putting together the food for the evening. Both of these women are to be commended for their contribution to the evening.

Annette and Dorte had many helpers step forward to help with food and room preparation. The two males in amongst 10 women in the kitchen coped well and the six hours just flew past. Over 500 sandwiches were made which is quite an achievement. Meanwhile Finn was busy in the bar chilling the next most important ingredient for the evening. Going by the number of skals throughout the night there was plenty of snaps to go around. Thank you to the members who volunteered to stay after the event and clean up – this is a thankless task after a fun evening but has to be done. From the committee we would like to express a huge thank you for all who helped – we really appreciate it.

The next morning we received some lovely comments none that stands out more than the one below from one of our members:

“I would like to record my appreciation of the Smorrebrods Fest last evening. I must say it was a most professional presentation of typical Danish open sandwiches also but perhaps more importantly it was enjoyed extremely well by club members and visitors.

The construction of the whole evening lived up to the highest standards that have in my opinion been presented at any Danish Society function.

The food, music, camaraderie was noticeably enjoyed by all.”

Another was from an Icelandic guest whose eyes watered up when he saw the sild, he savoured every moment of the evening and is now considering joining the Danish Society.

As well as the favourites we were treated to some new flavours one of which was smoked Eel, which was thoroughly enjoyed by many.

The musician catered to the audience and we were kept entertained as he wondered around the tables while singing and inviting some of our members and guests to join in – it appears we have some hidden talent amongst us. He also tried some snaps that did cause his voice to waver for a second or two but he recovered well.

Our members certainly seemed to enjoy catching up with each other once again as there was much laughter and conversation all night long. We look forward to seeing you all again at our next function.Venlig hilsen, Marion Stewart, vice-President

Mid-Winter Smørrebrøds Party a success!

From the President’s Desk - June 2011

Danish Society News Magazine ● July 20114

On Sunday 19th June, we held our Skt Hans celebration. Most of the day, it had been pouring with rain, but magically (possibly pure witchery) the rain stopped at about 5pm. The witch went off on her usual journey to Bloksbjerg, and we hope she could find her way all the way from Penrose – I wonder if witches’ brooms come with GPS these days? Sara Jaeger held a fine båltale (fireside speech) in which she explained a bit more about the traditions behind Skt Hans. Afterwards, we had Danish style hotdogs – as the saying goes, the Americans may have invented the hotdogs, but the Danes perfected them! The children cooked snobrød and marshmallows over the embers of the fire, and everyone had a lovely evening.

Med kaerlig hilsenInger Mortensen

Skt HansSunday, 19th June, at the Danish House

Film Review

July 2011 ● Danish Society News Magazine 5

Ambassador visitThe Royal Danish Government’s Ambassador to Australia

and New Zealand, Her Excellency Susanne Shine has accepted our invitation to come from Canberra to launch the Monrad commemorative book on the evening of Wednesday the 21st of September.

The launch will be held 5.30 for 6 pm at St Pauls Lutheran Church, King Street (off Adelaide Road) in Wellington.

The Exhibition of Selected Etchings from the Monrad Collection opens next morning, Thursday the 22nd, at The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa and that evening a concert titled: ‘The Gospel according to...’ is planned. Included in the programme will be works by Martin Luther and by Bishop Monrad.

Denmark and the North PoleDenmark plans to lay claim to the North Pole and other

areas in the Arctic, where melting ice is creating new shipping routes, fishing grounds and drilling opportunities for oil and gas, according to a leaked government document. To be successful, the Danes will have to present evidence proving that the North Pole is geologically linked to Greenland - which has been part of Denmark for more than 600 years

Other countries such as Russia, Norway, Canada and the US also have claims. The region is believed to have as much as 25 per cent of the world’s undiscovered oil and gas. (Source: The Telegraph 26 June 2011. Sent in by Pam Logan.)

Greetings from a former member Viggo Andersen, who now resides in Denmark, sends

greetings to his friends in the Danish Club. His children and 10 grandchildren live in Australia (Byron Bay and Perth) and he plans to make another trip there in October. He is still reading the Danish Society magazine.

Friday, July 15th at 7.30pmWe will be showing

The ExperimentOriginal title: Eksperimentet(a movie based on a true story in

Greenland 1951)Synopsis (2010 drama):

It’s the story of the nurse Gert, who is appointed as headmistress of a special

children’s home, owned by the Danish state in Greenland, 1951. The children’s home is

intended to accommodate 16 carefully selected Greenlandic children, who have just come home

after a year of civilization in Denmark. Now they are to be introduced into the Greenlandic

community as role models. Gert is idealistic and ambitious and feels passionate about

saving Greenland from destitution. Her goal is to educate and civilize the 16 children in

the Danish language and culture, so they can spearhead Greenland’s transformation from being a poor hunter society to being an equal

part of Denmark. Due to her blind faith in the experiment, Gert underestimates the obvious

personal costs to the children.Director; Louise Friedberg

Danish Society News Magazine ● July 20116

Valhalla and RecreationWhen I got involved again in Valhalla in 2003 we

were on the threshold of change. Back in 1977 when we bought the property I had been involved in a bit of tree planting and was on the roster for mowing the lawns which members took turns to come up and do so the place looked tidy. Nevertheless, back in the beginning, it was no more than a house in a paddock. Members worked hard and over the years Valhalla facilities became better and better.

In 2003 there was a desire amongst members to drive forward once again with a bit of a surge. After much organizing, three diggers, a bobcat and a tractor arrived along with manpower and materials. Valhalla was taken from a house on a 18 acre farm to a house in a park.

I had an interesting discussion back then with a farmer friend, Dick Lancaster, over how many paddocks we might need to run our cattle through to successfully manage the pasture. Richard Logan had already suggested that maybe we shouldn’t have any stock on the property but we would be faced with a funding issue as the cattle earned $2,000 per year and mowing the new lawn areas would cost $4,000 per year a deficit of $6,000! During my cattle conversation with Dick he asked one simple question “What is the primary purpose of the property?” to which I answered “recreation”. Dick then stated that all our decisions should reflect the primary purpose, recreation. The cattle decision became simple. Open lawns that our members could use reflected our primary purpose far better than muddy paddocks that

were sending sediment into Leigh Harbour at the rate of knots during winter rains. It soon became evident that, as we were providing what the users wanted, occupancy went up and therefore funding the decision was no longer an issue.

Since then anything we have done at working bees is to make the members recreational use of Valhalla as good an experience as possible. We are constantly trying to improve the place for our users, both members and their friends.

At the June working bee we can thank Birgitte, Steve, Dylan, Mia, Tove, Neil, Graham, Antony and John for their efforts.

The July working bee is fully booked out, not only with members but also their friends who have enjoyed the facilities and want to give something back for the many wonderful times they have had at Valhalla. In this way we will be able to spread the working bee load and still keep Valhalla properly maintained and also have manpower to improve facilities for future enjoyment.

If you are a user of Valhalla and haven’t as yet booked into either the August, September or October working bee please send me an email or give me a call. There is no doubt you will have a great time working with others on Valhalla.

Palle OlsenPhone: 09 426 6840Email: [email protected]

Mothers’ Group children enjoying snobrøds-making at Valhalla during autumn school holidays.

July 2011 ● Danish Society News Magazine 7

We need your help!at the next Valhalla Working Bees8th-10th July12th-14th AugustWe are seeking your support to carry out a whole range of jobs, both indoors and outdoors. There is always house-cleaning to do as well as weeding etc. Any help is welcome. Lunch is supplied by the society, therefore we need to know the number of participants by Wednesday 6th July.

If you are able to help in any way, please contact Palle Olsen on 09 426 6840, 021 255 0911 or [email protected]

Valhalla Sub-Committee ReportNew Arrival and Departure form

Thank you to all occupants who have filled out the Arrival and Departure sheet, this is already proving invaluable to the Sub-committee for planning maintenance work and informing occupants of relevant matters relating to the house.

FireplaceI received a complaint that the fireplace was smoking

badly and filling the house up with smoke. I did book the Chimney sweep surmising that could be the problem only to discover that the grate had been pulled towards the front of the fireplace. In order for it to draw properly it must be pushed right to the back before lighting the fire. When the grate is at the back of the fireplace no smoke what-so-ever will blow back into the house.

It seems many of our occupants do not know how to reset a fire correctly in order that it will ignite easily. A pile of newspaper and two big logs will not create a good fire. Please ensure you have sufficient kindling/small twigs/branches on the paper. Do not put large logs on the setting; leave them in a pile on the side. Please ensure you restack the wood in the house so those arriving after dark do not have to try to get wood from the tank outside in the pitch dark.

MaintenanceOur projects for the year are now complete with

general maintenance and planning for 2012 now being our focus for the next four working bees. Currently our focus for 2012 is the foyer and courtyard upgrade.

Please ensure when you have cleaned the BBQ that you re-oil the plates, as they are sure to rust if this is not done.

The name plaques for the steps are still not completed however we have now found a member who is willing to complete this project that Erik Nissen started a few years ago. Unfortunately we need power to the site to operate a router and that means we are weather dependant of when it can be done. Over many working bees the job was deferred due to wet weather, which is why it is taking so long. Some of the names already need replacing and cleaning, which we will address at the same time to get this project completed once and for all.Thank youMarion Stewart and the Valhalla sub-committee

Danish Society News Magazine ● July 20118

ForeningsnytCongratulations to all the members

who have birthdays in July especiallyBente Winter

som fylder 75 år d. 1.7.2011Lynette Bentley

som fylder 93 år d. 8.7.2011Folmer Laustsen

som fylder 75 år d. 13.7.2011Carlo Emil Mikkelsen

som fylder 70 år d. 27.7.2011Mary Christiansen

som fylder 70 år d. 28.7.2011

Thank You LettersTo the Danish Society:Thank you for the lovely flowers you sent to me.Kind regards, Lillian Thomsen

Thank you to the Danish Society Inc. for the beautiful flowers on the occasion of my 60th birthday.Best regards, Penny Jorgensen

Til den danske forening:Tak for blomsterne til min fødselsdag – de er meget - meget smukke og dejlige!!Venlig hilsen fra, Sys Hansen

Til den danske forening:Tusinde tak for de flotte blomster jeg fik på min 65 års fødselsdag. Efter 25 års medlemskab og nu næsten ved at tage afsked fra arbejde, håber jeg at involvere mig lidt mere med Foreningen!Venlig hilsen, Annelie Suckling

To The Danish Society:Thank you so much for the beautiful flowers I received for my birthday, what a lovely surprise. They are very much appreciated.Best wishes, Asta Kraack

To the Committee and members of The Danish Society:Thank you very much for the lovely floral arrangement that I received for my 65th birthday. It is lasting very well and still looks good.Kind regards, Neil Treadaway

Tak for venlig opmærksomhed ved Benjamins påbegyndte cancer-behandling. Vi glæder os til han får det bedre. Med kærlig hilsen, Susanne Fisher og familie

The next magazine deadline is July 18All contributions welcome – in English or Danish (with a short summary in English). The magazine can also be read (in full colour) online at www.danishsocietynz.com.Note: ads for events must be in a calendar month before the event. John Stewart (Editor) [email protected]

Aalborg Akvavit Snaps

Scenic Cellars in Taupo have the Aalborg Akvavit in stock now and will

import as required.Contact is:

Floris Heijdenrijk, Sales ManagerScenic Cellars, 32 Roberts St, Taupo 3330

Phone: 07 378 5704Email: f [email protected]

To The Danish Society:Thank you for the lovely surprise of beautiful flowers which arrived for my 65 birthday, and consequently exactly 60 years after arriving in NZ with my parents Svend and Betty Nielsen and brother Freddie, who has continued the building tradition after our father, who built many houses on the North Shore and Auckland.Regards, Annie Andrewes, Warkworth

To the Danish Society:THANK YOU – Your donation in memory of Erik Gabriel Nissen is a very positive and lasting way of honouring his life. Your support will help ensure that Mercy Hospice Auckland can continue to deliver care and support to patients and their families with compassion, dignity and respect and to build on our service to others who will face the positive hospice experience. We thank you for your gift in memory of Erik.Yours sincerely,Jan Nichols, CEO, Mercy Hospice Auckland

Thank you for the beautiful flowers for Niels’ birthday. He enjoyed his birthday at Valhalla with his family.Mary & Niels Gade