With a shirt saying "Some of us will have to set up front with the Lutefisk," Ernest Wilkins fits right in at the Swedish Supper in the Olsburg grade school Dec. 5. The annual supper draws more then 350 to the school as a fundraiser dinner for the Olsburg Evangelical Lutheran Church.
Co-pastors Gordon and Sonja Sandquist greet church members following services.
Gordon Sandquist distributes communion to worshippers. The church offers communion twice a month.
Sonja Sandquist leads the children's church time during the regular church services. Swedish Supper unites church and community
By Paula Glover
OLSBURG – Even the Christmas tree was decorated with the Swedish flag at the Olsburg Evangelical Lutheran Church’s 53rd annual Swedish Supper, Dec. 5. The celebration of Swedish heritage continued with the table blessing being said in Swedish and the Swedish decorations inside the Olsburg Grade School. Swedish or not, many people attended the event, which unites the church and the community.
The annual tradition kicks off the Christmas season for many in the town and region. Olsburg residents join in by decorating their homes. Becky Avery isn’t Lutheran, but she lives in Olsburg and loves the town and on Dec. 5, she was in the kitchen helping make lut fisk, the rather aromatic cooked fish stew Swedes are known for. She was joined in the kitchen by other volunteers, including Joan Schweer, a former church member who has moved away, but returns each year to volunteer. “It is a social event, and a tradition,” Schweer said.
Everyone is in their places to make the dinner work. “We are the desserts,” said Mary Rosell. The volume of food produced by the small church and volunteers is rather astounding, with 25 gallons of raw milk used for the Ost Kaka (rennet pudding), and volunteers making 800 Spritz, or butter cookies, 475 Rosettes, a deep fried cookie, and 650 Pepparkakor, or ginger cookies. The large volume of food continues, with 20 loaves of rye bread and 16 of white donated. All the cooking is done by church and community volunteers according to the Swedish Supper Recipe book, which is also for sale to the general public.
Coordinator Luellen Kasselman said that around 320 tickets were sold for this year’s event. The money raised is used for scholarships for young people in the church, and now, also to assist the pastor in completing his training for full ordination.
There are many traditions in how the supper is run. Among them, the men serve as dishwashers. Children are involved at a young age, with 4th graders working as runner for messages and such, and older students are allowed to carry food. Shelby Peter, age 12, said she helps out because “its fun and I get to be with my friends.”
The roots of the church go deep into the community. Rosell said her great-grandmother was the first child of Swedish descent born in Riley County. Laurine Catt worked on placing cookies on trays, and recalled that in bygone days, it was less popular to speak Swedish. “My parents spoke Swedish when they didn’t want us to know what they were saying,” she recalled. But later, her parents taught Swedish to her children. While the Swedish traditions and heritage are important, the women told co-pastor Sonja Sandquist that they consider one of the church's strengths to be its openness to anyone who wants to join the church, or come and help.
The Olsburg Evangelical Lutheran Church was established in 1881, with services being held in a frame schoolhouse, until the wind blew it down. A wood frame church with a steeple was finished in 1886 and dedicated the following year. At first, the pews on the left were for the women, those on the right, for the men. Originally lit by coal lamps, the lighting was modernized with the advent of electricity in 1919. As early as 1915, the congregation began considering a new building and they worked for 25 years, raising funds, and the new brick church was dedicated in 1939. The old church was torn down, but the bell, added to the original church in 1898, was kept.
Gordon and Sonja Sandquist are joint pastoral leaders for the Olsburg Lutheran Church.
“One of the things that make the church work well is that they are unapologetically Lutheran,” Gordon said, “but at the same time, there is not a strong delineation between church and community.” The church works on projects with the local Methodist church, for example, and welcomes volunteers from the community for the Swedish Supper. The Lutheran church and the Methodists have come into full communion with one another.
The Sandquists have been ministering in Olsburg for 18 months. “There is a lot of history here,” Gordon said, “it is important to listen to the stories of the families and acknowledge the history.” Sonja commented that “it seems that everyone is related.” Gordon noted that funerals are a significant part of the couple’s ministry, and it has been a way for them to also learn about, and honor, the close family connection.
It is unusual to have a couple who both work as licensed pastoral leaders in the same congregation.
“We are not a typical pastor team” Sonja said. “Whatever success we have is not due to us, it is what God is doing. We arrived at co-pastoring through divine surprises.” The couple met when they were working in churches in the Denver area.
Gordon has 27 years of pastoral experience in church settings and Sonja has 17. Gordon’s experience is as an associate in ministry, but he is currently preparing for full ordination through distributed learning with the Lutheran Seminary in St. Paul, Minn. In June, Sonja will begin a Masters in Ministry with an emphasis in congregational mission and leadership at the same seminary. Now, in addition to her ministry in the church, she is a life coach and certified spiritual director.
“We always look and ask, ‘what is God up to; what is my call; and what is the Church’s call as community.’” Sonja said. “It isn’t about the answer, it is about asking the right questions. We’re not after a quick fix.”
The couple has two adopted children, Symone, age 11, and Monique, age 12, sisters the couple adopted from foster care.
“The children have been accepted here,” Gordon said, in part because of the area’s history, with the orphan train coming through the area. Between 1854 and 1929 an estimated 200,000 orphaned, abandoned, and homeless children were placed into adoptive families throughout the nation in what is known today as the orphan train movement.
Gordon said the Swedish supper is tradition, but it also helps the people of the congregation open doors to new members and to make new friends. “This time, there were more first-time people from outside the community,” he commented.
By Paula Glover
OLSBURG – Even the Christmas tree was decorated with the Swedish flag at the Olsburg Evangelical Lutheran Church’s 53rd annual Swedish Supper, Dec. 5. The celebration of Swedish heritage continued with the table blessing being said in Swedish and the Swedish decorations inside the Olsburg Grade School. Swedish or not, many people attended the event, which unites the church and the community.
The annual tradition kicks off the Christmas season for many in the town and region. Olsburg residents join in by decorating their homes. Becky Avery isn’t Lutheran, but she lives in Olsburg and loves the town and on Dec. 5, she was in the kitchen helping make lut fisk, the rather aromatic cooked fish stew Swedes are known for. She was joined in the kitchen by other volunteers, including Joan Schweer, a former church member who has moved away, but returns each year to volunteer. “It is a social event, and a tradition,” Schweer said.
Everyone is in their places to make the dinner work. “We are the desserts,” said Mary Rosell. The volume of food produced by the small church and volunteers is rather astounding, with 25 gallons of raw milk used for the Ost Kaka (rennet pudding), and volunteers making 800 Spritz, or butter cookies, 475 Rosettes, a deep fried cookie, and 650 Pepparkakor, or ginger cookies. The large volume of food continues, with 20 loaves of rye bread and 16 of white donated. All the cooking is done by church and community volunteers according to the Swedish Supper Recipe book, which is also for sale to the general public.
Coordinator Luellen Kasselman said that around 320 tickets were sold for this year’s event. The money raised is used for scholarships for young people in the church, and now, also to assist the pastor in completing his training for full ordination.
There are many traditions in how the supper is run. Among them, the men serve as dishwashers. Children are involved at a young age, with 4th graders working as runner for messages and such, and older students are allowed to carry food. Shelby Peter, age 12, said she helps out because “its fun and I get to be with my friends.”
The roots of the church go deep into the community. Rosell said her great-grandmother was the first child of Swedish descent born in Riley County. Laurine Catt worked on placing cookies on trays, and recalled that in bygone days, it was less popular to speak Swedish. “My parents spoke Swedish when they didn’t want us to know what they were saying,” she recalled. But later, her parents taught Swedish to her children. While the Swedish traditions and heritage are important, the women told co-pastor Sonja Sandquist that they consider one of the church's strengths to be its openness to anyone who wants to join the church, or come and help.
The Olsburg Evangelical Lutheran Church was established in 1881, with services being held in a frame schoolhouse, until the wind blew it down. A wood frame church with a steeple was finished in 1886 and dedicated the following year. At first, the pews on the left were for the women, those on the right, for the men. Originally lit by coal lamps, the lighting was modernized with the advent of electricity in 1919. As early as 1915, the congregation began considering a new building and they worked for 25 years, raising funds, and the new brick church was dedicated in 1939. The old church was torn down, but the bell, added to the original church in 1898, was kept.
Gordon and Sonja Sandquist are joint pastoral leaders for the Olsburg Lutheran Church.
“One of the things that make the church work well is that they are unapologetically Lutheran,” Gordon said, “but at the same time, there is not a strong delineation between church and community.” The church works on projects with the local Methodist church, for example, and welcomes volunteers from the community for the Swedish Supper. The Lutheran church and the Methodists have come into full communion with one another.
The Sandquists have been ministering in Olsburg for 18 months. “There is a lot of history here,” Gordon said, “it is important to listen to the stories of the families and acknowledge the history.” Sonja commented that “it seems that everyone is related.” Gordon noted that funerals are a significant part of the couple’s ministry, and it has been a way for them to also learn about, and honor, the close family connection.
It is unusual to have a couple who both work as licensed pastoral leaders in the same congregation.
“We are not a typical pastor team” Sonja said. “Whatever success we have is not due to us, it is what God is doing. We arrived at co-pastoring through divine surprises.” The couple met when they were working in churches in the Denver area.
Gordon has 27 years of pastoral experience in church settings and Sonja has 17. Gordon’s experience is as an associate in ministry, but he is currently preparing for full ordination through distributed learning with the Lutheran Seminary in St. Paul, Minn. In June, Sonja will begin a Masters in Ministry with an emphasis in congregational mission and leadership at the same seminary. Now, in addition to her ministry in the church, she is a life coach and certified spiritual director.
“We always look and ask, ‘what is God up to; what is my call; and what is the Church’s call as community.’” Sonja said. “It isn’t about the answer, it is about asking the right questions. We’re not after a quick fix.”
The couple has two adopted children, Symone, age 11, and Monique, age 12, sisters the couple adopted from foster care.
“The children have been accepted here,” Gordon said, in part because of the area’s history, with the orphan train coming through the area. Between 1854 and 1929 an estimated 200,000 orphaned, abandoned, and homeless children were placed into adoptive families throughout the nation in what is known today as the orphan train movement.
Gordon said the Swedish supper is tradition, but it also helps the people of the congregation open doors to new members and to make new friends. “This time, there were more first-time people from outside the community,” he commented.
Article appeared in Manhattan Mercury, Dec. 11.
Swedish Supper Recipes
Cookbook published by the Anna Group of the Oldsburg Lutheran Church. Call 785-468-3500 for information on purchasing the book.
Sill Sallad – Herring Salad
1 cup pickled herring
6 medium potatoes cooked in jackets and diced
6 apples, diced
½ t. pepper
1 ½ T. vinegar
½ pound beef roast, ground
2 cups beets, diced
2 T. dill pickles
1 small onion, chopped fine
1 T. sugar
Mix all together, mold and chill. Serve chilled.
Kottbullar – Swedish Meat Balls
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
2 cups bread crumbs
1 to 1 ½ cup milk, depending on how bread absorbs the milk
1 t. salt
¼ t. allspice
¼ t. cloves
2 eggs
Soak bread in milk. Beat eggs slightly and add to milk and bread. Combine all other ingredients with above, mix well. A ¼ measuring cup works well to get a nice size meatball. Put in refrigerator until chilled, then reshape balls. Brown in skillet, if making large quantity, brown in oven. After browning, pt into roaster and bake at 325 degrees for half hour.
Cookbook published by the Anna Group of the Oldsburg Lutheran Church. Call 785-468-3500 for information on purchasing the book.
Sill Sallad – Herring Salad
1 cup pickled herring
6 medium potatoes cooked in jackets and diced
6 apples, diced
½ t. pepper
1 ½ T. vinegar
½ pound beef roast, ground
2 cups beets, diced
2 T. dill pickles
1 small onion, chopped fine
1 T. sugar
Mix all together, mold and chill. Serve chilled.
Kottbullar – Swedish Meat Balls
1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
2 cups bread crumbs
1 to 1 ½ cup milk, depending on how bread absorbs the milk
1 t. salt
¼ t. allspice
¼ t. cloves
2 eggs
Soak bread in milk. Beat eggs slightly and add to milk and bread. Combine all other ingredients with above, mix well. A ¼ measuring cup works well to get a nice size meatball. Put in refrigerator until chilled, then reshape balls. Brown in skillet, if making large quantity, brown in oven. After browning, pt into roaster and bake at 325 degrees for half hour.
