Washington Island Scandinavian Dancers To Visit Norway

Photo from Washington Island Scandinavian Fest Dancers’ Facebook page.

The Washington Island Scandinavian Fest Dancers have received a $30,000 grant from the American-Scandinavian Foundation (ASF) to help fund their 75th anniversary trip to Valdres, Norway. 

It was one of nine non-profit organizations to receive ASF’s public program grant this year. ASF began its Scandinavian Folk Arts and Cultural Traditions program in 2017 to nurture Scandinavian folk-art traditions in the upper Midwest.

Since 1949, Washington Island Scandinavian Fest Dancers have given community members from preschoolers to elders an opportunity to celebrate Scandinavian heritage via dance. Thirty adult and teen dancers from the organization will visit Norway June 21-28 to experience the cultural context of folk dancing. Upon their return, they will perform at the island’s Trueblood Performing Arts Center.