THE CROW’S
NEST------------------August
7, 2008
We just returned from a week
at Horseshoe Lake near
Brainerd, MN. My plan was
to read books and get a
beautiful tan. I
accomplished goal number 1,
but as for the tan----it
just didn’t happen. Not
that I didn’t try! Every
year I think this will be
the summer I get a tan to
challenge sister Ruth’s dark
skin. I remember grandma
Sorbo telling Ruth she had
Norwegian Indian blood
running in her veins because
of her olive skin. Grandma
Sorbo also was dark
skinned. After my feeble
attempt at tanning this past
week, I decided to do some
research. I plugged in
“olive skinned Norwegians”
into a search engine. Wow!
I found lots and lots of
information regarding fair
skinned vs. dark skinned
Norwegians. Grandma Sorbo
wasn’t too far off track.
There are lots of theories
and I thought most of them
were plausible. So for now
I guess I will be content to
have skin the color of
all-purpose flour. I’ll
just make sure I have a good
book nearby.
Before coming home we went
to Hudson, WI to help my
cousin and his wife, Keith
and Marlys Sorbo celebrate
their 50th
wedding anniversary.
David and Loretta, Ruth and
Greg and Allen and Judy
Sorbo along with Terry and
LuAnn Thorvilson were there
also. We had
such a good time. One of
the guests there was a man
named John Stone. I visited
with him and reminded him
that in 1960 his band (John
Stone and the Pebbles)
played for our prom. I do
believe that was the first
year we had a prom in
Edinburg. Dad and Lloyd Gire sang “Younger Than
Springtime” at the prom
also. Of course, John
didn’t remember this at all,
but I did, as it was a big
deal to have a friend of
Keith’s (and UND buddy) on
stage in Edinburg, North
Dakota.
Katie and Scott Knoblach’s
wedding was beautiful.
Loretta made all the floral
arrangements and they were
gorgeous. She used flowers
and greenery from her
garden. The Community Center
was transformed in to a real
“garden party”. Loretta
even painted a garden mural
that was situated right
behind the bridal table. It
was a fabulous day weather
wise and so much fun to have
all of the “Monson” family
home. The cousins had a
great, great time being
together. The gal cousins,
Kris, Jodi, Katie and Katie
decided they would start
training for the Fargo
Marathon next spring.
The cross at the site of
Odalen is up. The first
time I saw it standing
absolutely took my breath
away and made my stomach do
flip-flops. It stands so
majestic where Odalen once
stood. It is an awesome and
powerful sight. Loretta
said there have been lots of
people who have come to look
at it. Last night a family
from Grand Forks came to
look and brought a picnic
lunch with them. I was not
there when it was put in
place, but I understand
Pastor Rebecca led the group
there watching in the
singing of “Lift High The
Cross”. What an appropriate
hymn.
Our next goal is to raise
approximately $26,000 to
illuminate the cross. It is
a costly undertaking, but we
feel something so beautiful
and meaningful needs to be
lit. An architectural firm
in Grand Forks did lots of
research and came up with an
illumination plan. Odalen’s
steeple was always a beacon
and a point of reference for
people coming to this area.
We want that heritage to
continue. I am hoping those
who had ties of some sort
with Odalen will consider
helping us with this project
with monetary gifts. This
cross was erected as a way
to honor God as He watched
over and protected the
people of Odalen from the
earliest settlers until the
present time.
I receive requests and
ideas from different people
about the website. I wish I
could honor all the
requests. Some things I
just can not do with the
website, but rest assured I
do take every idea
seriously. This is a
volunteer position that I do
from home so often times I
need to work around other
things that need attention.
If something asked for is a
possibility, I promise to
explore the idea.
I received a very nice note
from Curtis Mecham a few
days ago. It is emails like
yours Curt that make the
hours I spend updating all
worthwhile. It is nice to
have Richard (Curt’s
brother) in Edinburg for the
summer.
Our hearts go out to Muriel
Paulson on the death of
Harlan on Tuesday. Harlan
will be missed in Edinburg
and the surrounding
communities. His funeral is
Friday morning at Trinity
Lutheran Church in Edinburg.
Hope everyone is enjoying
all the fresh produce that
is available this time of
the year. Have a great day
and we will visit later.
I
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