…fewer people of Finnish ancestry want to celebrate St. Urho’s Day

Letter to the Editor: RE: Editorial, 9 March 2024 It seems I hear comments like this every year; fewer and fewer people of Finnish ancestry want to celebrate St. Urho’s Day.

Back a few years ago I told Anne about the reason I think that Finns in Finland (the Country, not the City) don’t know about this Ranger celebration; because that’s all it is.

If you greet anyone in Finland (the Country) on 28 Helmikuu (February): Hyvää Kalevalanpäivä; they will smile and reply with gratitude. Why? Because that’s the day that Finnish people celebrate their cultural ethnicity. You know: K nights of Kaleva, and that sort of thing. A nyone w ho h as travelled over there to Suomi, and visited the many museums in the cities of Finland understands the deep cultural pride that Finns have in their heritage. (As I humbly have) It’s my conjecture (and that of my Finnish cousins) that Finns in Minnesota don’t know of Kalevalanpäivä because almost all of our ancestors came to northern Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and southwestern Ontario when Finland was a Duchy of Russia, and most before it gained its independence from Russia on 6 December 1917. So when those European Finns in their newly free Country started openly celebrating their cultural days and observances, they were doing so only in Finland. And unless they had continued contact with their relatives here on this ‘side of the pond,’ the Rangers wouldn’t be aware of those celebrations. Hence comes the need for a couple of isolated Finns needing to make up a holiday.

This same thing can be said of the very honorable tradition of celebrating Finnish Independence Day. They do up that holiday like we do ours. We would do well to celebrate with them.

And by the way, Friday, 29 March is Vietnam War Veterans Day; as it is every year on that date. We honor our brothers and sisters who served ‘in country.’ I served during that time in the continental United States and helped many Marines in their transition back at Camp Pendleton.

Thank you for your time. Anne Koskinen (proud Finn and Marine) Ely, MN