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PLEASE NOTE: Your free event news can be posted on the Ely Echo newspaper’s Community Calendar. Send your info to: [email protected].
At the Ely Public Library on Monday, Feb. 3 at 1:30 p.m. there will be a Curiosity Cohort: Ancient Beauty Tips. Join the curiosity cohort and find out a little this month about what Caesar’s wife might have used as part of her skin care regime.
The St. Olaf Band will perform in Ely on Monday, Feb. 3 at 7 p.m. at Washington Auditorium. The concert will include music by Tchaikovsky, former St. Olaf Band conductor Timothy Mahr, Henry Dorn, Sergei Prokofiev, Johannes Hanssen, and more. The program will also feature student soloists and conductors. Tickets for the concerts are $10 for adults and free for students of all ages. Tickets may be reserved at stolaf.edu/tickets/band or at the door.
On Friday, Feb. 7 there will be a meat raffle at Zaverl’s Bar benefitting Ely’s Historic Pioneer Mine Museum and Complex. Come have fun while supporting this Ely treasure and potentially win some great prizes.
On Feb. 7-8, Ely’s Historic State Theater will be the site of Ely’s Great Nordic BeardFest, launched 10 years ago by Shaun Chosa. Friday night is the heavyweight championship, a BeardFest tradition, and Saturday night is the main competition. Tickets are $20 per night, available online or at the door. Competitors should register at www.greatnordicbeardfest. com. There will be live bands both nights.
The Vermilion Gear Exchange raises money for the Vermilion Outdoor Endeavors Club by selling and trading outdoor gear in Ely. The goal is to get unused or neglected gear to a home where it can be put to good use and get more people outside. They will have a pop-up shop at the Ely Winter Festival on Feb. 8-9. If you are interested in used camping gear, clothes, boots, fishing gear, and much more, or think you have something to trade or donate, check out the pop-up. For more information, email [email protected].
Are you looking for a way to enjoy the Ely Winter Festival indoors this year? Join the Ely Winton Historical Society for a Zoom meet-and-greet with Bois Forte Anishinaabe and Finnish artist Carl Gawboy and his editor, Rain Newcomb of the Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College. The visual presentation will detail Carl’s process in writing and illustrating his latest book, “Fur Trade Nation: An Ojibwe’s Graphic History.” History Night with Carl Gawboy and Rain Newcomb will be held on Feb. 10 from 5-6 p.m. at MN North-Vermilion Campus Theater.
The Ely Winter Festival will be held Feb. 6-16. The Bois Forte Heritage Center and the 1854 Treaty Authority are helping to host the Moccasin Game and Hand Games as led by Terry Goodsky to take part in the Ely Winter Festival. They are being held at the Ely Folk School on Wednesday, Feb. 12, from 8-10:30 a.m. Moccasin Games are intended only for men to play but the Hand Games are open to all. Gii comma giizhi dah omah “Let’s have fun here!”
The Bois Forte Heritage Center and the 1854 Treaty Authority are helping to host Ojibwe Snow Snake Games led by Rick Anderson to take part in the Ely Winter Festival. They are being held at Whiteside Park on Thursday, Feb. 13 at 1 p.m. The game is played by setting up a track in the snow where participants slide large sticks to see whose can go the farthest to win.
There will be a Community Kitchen on Feb. 15 at LedgeRock Community Church, 1515 E. Camp Street. These are held on the Saturday of the month, 5-6:30 p.m. Come anytime during those hours. There is no cost for the meal.
