Sons of Norway marks 100
When Reba Haugen Jewell’s mother died, she left behind a special pin for her daughter. The pin featured a blue shield set atop a flower frame encrusted with tiny diamonds.
“That’s the only one like that,” Jewell said about the pin’s flower design. On the shield is the image of a Viking ship in sea waters with the sun peeking out behind the horizon, and the letters “S,” and “N,” at the top.
For Jewell, the pin represents a community she has identified with for most of her life, the local Tordenskjold Lodge of the Sons of Norway, a fraternal benefit society that is celebrating 100 years in Spokane. On Sept. 8, the lodge will host a dinner with speakers, Norwegian music, and food in honor of its milestone.
“A hundred years of an organization like this existing is stability,” said Jewell, who said she was raised in the lodge and is currently its vice president.
The shield is recognizable to any of the lodge’s members, who enjoy the lodge’s dedication to Norwegian heritage and culture.
“It gives you a real sense of belonging and insight into the culture,” said Thora Stupin, who began her Sons of Norway membership 10 years ago while she was living in Southern California. Originally from Davenport, Stupin joined the Tordenskjold Lodge two years ago when she moved back to the area. Her grandparents immigrated from Norway to Spokane 100 years ago.
As the lodge gets ready for its anniversary, it also recognizes its dwindling membership, a result of younger people not joining and older members passing away. At its peak, the lodge had more than 4,000 members. Today, it has 300.
“The Masons, the Elks … if you have any fraternal group anywhere, it’s shrinking in membership,” Jewell said. “The young people in this day and age don’t have time, mostly because the children are so active. You have soccer mom and polo dad.”
Stupin agrees. At age 63, she is one of the lodge’s youngest members. She didn’t join until she was older because she couldn’t find the time. The case is the same for her own daughter, who had her wedding reception in the lodge.
“There was really a need before for a society where people helped each other. Sons of Norway formed from some of those needs,” said Stupin.
When the Sons of Norway started in 1895, its mission was to provide insurance to its members. Started by 18 immigrants who didn’t qualify for insurance in the United States because they had not gone through naturalization yet, the organization is now one of the largest insurance providers in the country.
The fifth lodge to be established in the United States, the Tordenskjold Lodge also strives to preserve the Norwegian culture by teaching members about traditional arts and crafts, cooking, activities, holidays and the language. Although you don’t have to be of Norwegian ancestry to join, the lodge also helps members trace their lineage.
“Not too many places can say they’ve been around for 100 years,” said Magne Wick, 62, the lodge’s social director. A full-blooded Norwegian, Wick is somewhat of an anomaly at the lodge. He’s young, and he’s one of the only members who were actually born in Norway. His family immigrated to the United States in 1949.
Fewer members means less member dues to help pay for the mammoth building that houses the lodge.
“We’re working hard trying to keep it together and keep the building going,” said Evelyn Lund, the lodge’s office manager. She keeps track of the hall and kitchen rentals at the lodge. The money helps cover the lodge’s expenses.
The building is not even 30 years old, yet it is filled with old photos of past events; a 1948 convention at the Davenport and portraits of women who have been lodge queens since the tradition started nearly 60 years ago. The old building was located downtown, but the group grew too big for it.
Besides Lund and the janitorial staff, the lodge is run by volunteers. One Thursday, several members gathered to make lefse, a traditional potato flatbread, to sell and serve at the dinner.
“I’m 42 and a half at heart, so that’s how old I am,” Jewell said.
She wore a beaded cap and a red vest, all a part of her traditional dress, or bunad. It was decorated with several gold and silver pins in addition to her mother’s Sons of Norway shield.
Jewell talked about the passing of members. It is something they are accustomed to dealing with.
“We were raised that that’s the way life is,” she said as she descended a flight of stairs to a room filled with trophies of past bowling teams and ski groups that were once apart of the lodge. The lodge queens photos hang nearby. Jewell scans the wall.
“There. That one,” she said, pointing to a photo of a queen who reined from 1959 to 1960. The girl was wearing the crown girls still wear today.
“I was beautiful,” she said. Part of a queen’s duty is to greet members, a task Jewell will be doing at the anniversary dinner.
“If you come to the front door for dinner Saturday night, I’ll be there,” she said.