Annual Luncheon & Ice Cream Social

Sunday, July 16th from 12:00 to 3:00 pm
Once again we are thrilled that the Smisek Brothers
will be adding to our fun-filled afternoon with their
special brand of music and singing!
Bring your appetite — hot dogs, sloppy joes, potato salad, pie and ice cream will be available for purchase.
And then bring home some tasty treats from the Bake Sale table!
Syttende Mai Celebration & Annual Meeting

Sunday, May 21st at 2:00 pm
Join us for an afternoon of special music and a lively sing-along,
featuring Karla Wiese Miller as pianist and leader.
During intermission we’ll have a brief meeting, then after the program beverages and Scandinavian treats will be served.
Feel free to bring your own favorite homemade goodies to share
2022 Christmas Eve Worship

December 24, 2022 10:00PM
Trondhjem Lutheran Church will celebrate Christmas Eve
at this beautiful, historic church with an 10:00pm worship service.
There will be special music, singing of carols, traditional candle lights and Holy Communion.
Trondhjem Lutheran Church warmly invites you to share
Christmas with them at this special worship service.
- Rosemaling Class in Trondelag Style – 10:00 a.m. to noon
- Taught by Louise Bath, Gold Medal Rosemaler
- Paint a 4″ wooden circle, all materials & brushes provided
- Limited to 25 pre-registered participants, $25.00 per person
- appropriate for older children and adults
- Lunch included!
- Information and registration: historictcps@gmail.com or call 612-965-3005
- 1:30 p.m. Presentation: Rosemaling Traditions in Trondelag
- slide show presentation by Louise Bath, Gold Medal Rosemaler
- Learn about rosemaling from the Trondheim region of Norway
- view the new commissioned pieces created for the Historic Trondhjem Church
- Free and open to the Public – Please Join Us!
Louise Bath, Vesterheim Gold Medal Rosemaler, has created several unique pieces of rosemaled folk art for the Museum at the Historic Trondhjem Church. This commission as well as the events above, are all made possible by a grant from Partners for Sacred Places, Nordic Churches Project (https://sacredplaces.org/our-work/projects/nordic-churches/).
Pie & Ice Cream Social

Historic Trondhjem’s Old Fashioned
PIE & ICE CREAM SOCIAL & ANNUAL FUNDRAISER
on the lawn of the Historic Trondhjem Church
8501 Garfield Avenue – Lonsdale
“You can see the steeple from the highway”
Sunday, July 18th, 2021
12:00 to 3:00 pm
Pie, Ice Cream, Hot Dogs, Sloppy Joes, Potato Salad,
Coffee, Lemonade, Root Beer Floats
Bake sale with home-baked goods
including Norwegian Ethnic Specialties
Music by “The Smisek Brothers”
A fundraiser sponsored by
TRONDHJEM COMMUNITY PRESERVATION SOCIETY
Restoring and Preserving the Century-old Trondhjem Church
Building
Christmas Eve Service online

“Do not be afraid; for see-I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the City of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.” -Luke 1:10 Dear Friends of the Historic Trondhjem Church, There is much that is happening in the world that may cause us to be afraid. The angels sent from God with the good news of Jesus’ birth reminds us that we need not fear anything – for God has come to live among us as one of us. There is nothing we face, nothing we can experience, and nothing so great that the love of Jesus cannot overcome. May the birth of Jesus replace any fears, doubts, worries, or grief with the great joy only He can offer. Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas! Peace, Pastor Sue Christmas Eve Worship 12/24/2020 – YouTube |
Thanks for Supporting TCPS!

Your financial gifts are always appreciated but they are especially appreciated at this time as we’ve lost income opportunities. Due to Corvid 19 we have had rental cancellations and are uncertain what the Ice Cream Social holds.
Please consider sending a donation to:
TCPS
PO Box 259
Lonsdale, MN 55046
Thank you to those who are donated from October 2019-April 2020.
Well Done, Good and Faithful Servant!

Brent D. Christianson
September 12, 1951- May 13, 2020
Rev. Brent Christianson passed away on May 13, 2020. He was the last pastor to serve the Trondhjem congregation in our historic building.
Brent served at Trondhjem from 1984-1989. His leadership was crucial as the new church was built and this historic building was placed in our care.
His faith and heart was crucial as he preached the gospel and cared for our congregation through life’s celebrations and challenges.
Well done, good and faithful servant!
Pastoral Timeline at the Historic Trondhjem

The following pastors have served at our Historic Church. If you have biographical information or photos to share on any of them, please contact Ann Pocker. We’d like to include additional details in future newsletters, and on our website.
N. E. Wikre 1876-1881
Rasmus Anderson 1881-1883
C. I. Wold 1883-1888
E. L. Aas 1889-1904
E. M. Hanson 1905-1911
G. M. Oftedal 1912-1913
B. L. Sundal 1913-1940
A. E. Windahl 1940-1941
E. A. Evenson 1941-1948
Dr. M A Helland 1943-1949
Norman Nelson 1948-1949
Maruis Haakenstad 1949-1957
Morris Vaagenes, Jr 1957-1961
Paul Ronning 1961-1965
Carl Lorenz 1965-1968
James Almquist 1969-1972
Gerald Melby 1972-1976
Ronald Schornhorst 1976-1984
Brent Christianson 1984-1989
Norwegian Wedding Traditions

Our annual Syttende Mai celebration with our traditional Norwegian treats had to be cancelled for this year, but for our readers who are fans of history and traditions from the “old world” we are sharing a story from Orkdal, Norway (just outside of Trondheim, and home of the Fossum family ancestors). This is taken from a little book called “Mat og Skikkar”, which translates to “Food and Customs”.
The Wedding Celebration
“Preparations started well in advance. The storehouse (“stabbur”) and the baking house had to be clean and tidy; they set the table and made up as many beds as possible. Sometimes the bench was made up in the kitchen so they could bed down a heap of kids there, up to six.
Stable room for horses was necessary as guests arrived by horse with the intention of staying 2-3 days. It was customary for neighbors to assist with finding extra room, for people and horses.
Then to the preparatory work of the food and drink. The ale from the corn had to be brewed, in both a strong ale and a lighter brew. Then they baked the crispy flatbread. Animals had to be slaughtered. The day after slaughtering, two cooks arrived, the head cook and an assistant. They ground enough meat for meatballs, meatcakes and sausages. The women of the house made cheese and butter in decorative forms, baked cakes and biscuits.
For the feast itself, two “food mothers” oversaw the serving, and two toastmasters took care of seating and overseeing the ceremonies. These were honorable tasks, often given to two couples in the neighborhood, or to kinfolk.
On the “night previous” – the night before the wedding – the “food mothers” were to receive the guests and “beinings”, gifts of cream cakes, homemade breads, fruitcakes, coffee bread rings, rice or egg porridge. Close kinfolk often brought trunks full of food.
Also on the “night previous” the milkmaids would arrive. These were young girls from nearby farms who brought milk to the farm hosting the feast, and they were treated handsomely. The amount of milk they brought was typically in proportion to the size of the farm they came from. Food served to guests on the “night previous” usually consisted of a warm meal of fish, meatcakes, rice and milk.
The first day of the wedding, the breakfast was a solemn event. Guests were seated as the bridal couple entered dressed in their finery. The decorative butter forms were put on the table and the porridges and cheeses were passed around. The “beinings” from nearest of kin were offered first.
After the wedding when everyone was back from church, dinner would be served, “sodd” (stew/soup) and dessert porridges with both prunes and apricots. Then there was coffee and cakes, and later there was supper
On the second day the bride and groom would get up early and perform their first task together, which was to serve coffee to guests. On this day the couple also received milk and often cream from neighbors, and ate rommegrot (sourcream porridge) and either meatcakes or stew. Before the porridge was served a fiddler would play a march, with the bride and groom following him. The groom carried the bowl of porridge and the bride – wearing a bonnet to signify she was now a mistress — carried the ladle. Guests followed in pairs; this procession was one of the highlights of the wedding.
In the afternoon there was typically a “chopping block” dance. A chopping block was placed in the middle of the floor. This had to be climbed by the bridal couple first, then the cooks and the toastmasters and thereafter all the others young and fit enough.”