We are deeply saddened to share the news that our dear friend and stalwart member of the society, Dr Ken Davies, has passed away. We know you will want to join us in sending heartfelt condolences to Ken’s surviving sons Robert and Gareth. Another son, Hwyel, predeceased him. Ken’s beloved wife Signe died in 2021.
Ken was a man of many talents and broad interests. Born in 1940 in Ffynnongroyw in north Wales, he left school at sixteen to go to sea. On his travels he met and married Signe, a Norwegian, and they spent time in Norway before settling in north Wales. Ken returned, aged 36, to college to get the further education he had missed two decades earlier. He studied psychology, sociology, history and linguistics, and also developed his interest in economics, industrial relations, politics, philosophy and literature. He studied further in Swansea, Birmingham and the Open University as well as teaching himself and spending many years working with disadvantaged people.
Ken wrote many academic papers and articles, firstly on his professional interest, but later broadening into maritime and local history. He wrote books on his beloved home town of Ffynnongroyw and the north Wales coal trade. He published a ‘fascinating and compelling’ novel, ‘Chasing the Tide’, in 2016, which was followed by an anthology of short stories and a collection of poetry.
Ken never lost his fondness for his wife’s native land, and was a stalwart member of the Welsh Norwegian Society. We recently made him an honorary member in recognition of his tireless efforts. He will be most fondly remembered and sorely missed. We will find a way to remember him properly in due course.
Ken’s cremation will take place on Friday 26th April at the Croesyceiliog Crematorium, Cwmbran at 1:30pm. Afterwards there will be a reception at the Ashbridge Hotel, Cwmbran. Everyone who knew Ken is invited.
Tyra Oseng-Rees is no stranger to the hot seat at WNS meetings. As chair, she led the successful campaign to restore the Norwegian Church to community control. She also steered the society through the difficult years of the pandemic. Not surprisingly, last year Tyra stepped down as chair to spend more time with her family and her growing business.
Now WNS has invited her back to talk about that work. She’ll be our guest at our monthly meeting at the Norwegian Church in Cardiff Bay, at 2pm on Sunday 24 March.
Tyra is a glass artist who makes art and architectural pieces from recycled materials. She recently made a plaque which hangs in the Norwegian Church to remember Karen Allen, a former manager of the church and active member of WNS.
Karen Allen’s mother Mary and Torill Heavens of WNS unveil the memorial plaque that Tyra made from recycled glass to hang in the gallery at the Norwegian Church
Tyra says that as a designer in the creative industry, she feels there needs to be an emphasis on sustainability and the circular economy. Using waste glass as a raw material in her creations saves resources and energy, and is a contribution to reducing carbon emissions and tackling global warming. Tyra aims to break down the silo mentality between different disciplines by integrating the business into various sectors such as arts, education, construction, architecture, and the public and private sectors.
Tyra originates from Saltdal in Nordland, northern Norway. She came to Wales to study product design 20 years ago, and never left. She is now married with two children and firmly settled in Swansea. In 2017 she founded Oseng-Rees Reflection Ltd, which is the sole UK producer of architectural panels made from 100% waste glass, with notable installations at Cornell University and the Turner Museum of Glass. She has since gained a PhD in fused recycled glass material, and has been recognized as Bespoke Artist of the Year for 2023/24 and with the Female Entrepreneur Award for Swansea and West Wales in 2022.
Some of Tyra’s work
Tyra’s talk will take place in the function room at the Norwegian Church. Coffee and other refreshments will be available from the cafe before and throughout the afternoon. Guests are welcome.
Your committee met and agreed the following dates for 2024. Note that some events take place on a Saturday, and others on a Sunday, to ensure meetings are available to people who have regular commitments on one or other day. Dates and times are always subject to change, so please check in here or on our Facebook page for the latest information about each event.
Sunday 24 March
We welcome former society chair Tyra Oseng-Rees who will tell us about her business making art and architectural pieces from recycled glass. Tyra made the memorial plaque to Karen Allen that now hangs in the gallery.
Saturday 20 April
It’s been suggested that we meet at the Norwegian-run Emmeline’s tea room in Abergavenny: emmelinestearoom.com
Friday 17 May – Norwegian National Day, of course.
We will hold the usual procession from the Millennium Centre to the Church, with music, a service and speeches inside.
Saturday 8 June
Once again, we’ve kindly been offered the use of a family garden in south-west Gower for a summer barbeque and party. This was well attended and much enjoyed last year, despite an extended dry spell putting paid to our plans for a bonfire.
We are very keen to gauge interest of members in attending an event this year, as there are both costs and effort involved in putting it on, which the committee will gladly do if there is sufficient demand for it. We make a small charge per head to cover the cost of firewood, light refreshments and insurance. It is possible to camp onsite or, of course, in many other locations nearby. Please let us know at contact@welshnorwegian.org, on Facebook or via any member of the committee if you’d like to attend or perhaps even help with the organising.
July, August – no planned events.
Sunday 22 September
Our Annual General Meeting.
Saturday 19 October – a ‘show and tell’ of the bunad, the Norwegian national dress which varies according to the locality. All who have their own dress are invited to drag them out of the wardrobe and come dressed up and show off!
Saturday 23 November – decorating the Christmas tree in the church hall.
Sunday 1 December
Come and celebrate Christmas at our annual Festival of Light and Friendship.
We look forward to meeting you at one or all of our socials. If you have any requests, suggestions or comments, please share them with us. We are always looking for new ideas and new excuses to celebrate!
Our February social at the Norwegian Church, Sunday 11 February 2024
Our first social of 2024 will be dedicated to a subject close to many of your hearts – learning Norwegian.
Whether you’re in a relationship with a Norwegian, have kids of dual heritage, or would just like to immerse yourself more deeply in the culture and traditions of Norway, learning at least a little of the language is often at the top of the list of things to do. But how to begin – or carry on – when you’re not surrounded by Norwegian speakers?
Come and chat with several members who’ve learned in a variety of ways – through online apps like DuoLingo to fully-fledged undergraduate university degrees. Find out how hard it is to learn Norwegian – and why you have a choice of two written forms! Yes, if two Norwegians are going to argue about anything, it will as likely as anything be about the language!
Language is a source of pride and identity — and getting a little acquainted with Norwegian makes Norway a whole lot more accessible, even if every one you ever meet seems to speak English as well as you do!
As usual, there’ll be coffee and cakes – and you will be welcome to chat, whether it be in English, Welsh or Norwegian.
It was FANTASTISK to see so many members at our annual Festival of Light and Friendship at the Norwegian Church on Sunday 10 December.
It was standing room only for the first religious service to be held in the church in many years, led by the Revd Ingrid Ims.
The Salvation Band played, carols were sung, and the tree was lit.
And we remembered our former driving light, Karen Allen, with the unveiling of a plaque in her memory in the gallery.
The Festival of Light and Friendship is becoming the cornerstone of our calendar, and really helps to cement the bonds between Wales and Norway. Thanks to all who came and those who made it happen.
Our 10-foot tall Nordman fir was delivered from the Gower last week and installed in the church. A dugnad was held and the tree was decorated. Christmas is coming!
Around ten members gathered upstairs in the gallery at the Norwegian Church to enjoy a presentation about trolls from the society’s own Thomas. Thom led us through a whistle-stop tour of the background of these mysterious creatures including their history, the different types of trolls one may encounter, their appearance in folklore and literature and and their portrayal in recent film and television. Refreshments were available via the Norsk cafe and Tyra kindly made a chocolate cake for all to enjoy. Thank you Tyra!
In addition, our member Mary brought archival items and documents gathered by herself and her family related to the Church such as newspaper clippings and original photographic negatives from the church re-opening. We are very grateful to have received such a special and important collection of items and are certain that these will be of value to the preservation of the Church’s history.
As always, there was plenty of time to catch up and mingle following the talk.
It’s that time of year again… when we ask for your money.
Actually, we’re a little late this year – but invoices are now being sent out for the 2023-24 membership year, which began on 1 October and runs through to the same time next year.
Membership is £10 and buys you the comforting knowledge that you’ve helped keep Norwegian culture and heritage alive in Wales. It helps us to continue putting on events such as the National Day celebrations, the Festival of Light and Friendship at Christmas, and talks and exhibitions celebrating Norwegian culture in Wales. It pays for the cost of maintaining this website and being active on social media channels. It also gives you access to members-only events, including our monthly meetings with chat, coffee and cake.
Many thanks if you choose to join us for another year, despite all the other demands on your cash. If you’re not a member and would like to join, just drop a line to contact@welshnorwegian.org and we’ll add you to our list – and ask you for a tenner!
If, on the other hand, you’d prefer us to stop bothering you, just let us know and we’ll take you off our lists.
A religious service in Norwegian and English will be held in the Norwegian Church in Cardiff Bay this Christmas for the first time in decades. Rev Ingrid Ims of the Norwegian Seamen’s Mission in London will lead the service in a new addition to the Festival of Light of Friendship.
Ingrid Ims speaking at our Constitution Day event earlier this year. Rev Ims is based at the Norwegian Church Abroad (Sjømannskirken) where she is the pastor to Norwegian students in the UK.
The Festival has become a popular event in the society’s calendar, and celebrates the friendships forged over generations between Wales and Norway. We welcome visitors from Norway, usually including representatives of Vestland Council in Bergen, with whom the society and the church have long-standing links. The Salvation Army band plays, carols are sung, and the Christmas trees inside and outside the church are lit. Traditional Norwegian Christmas food and drink including hot dogs, waffles, pepperkaker (like gingerbread) and gløgg (mulled wine) are consumed.
All are welcome.
Programme for the Festival of Light and Friendship Sunday 10 December 2023
3 pm – Christmas service, led by Revd Ims of the Norwegian Church Abroad
3.45 pm – Unveiling of the memorial plaque to Karen Allen, former member of WNS and manager of the Norwegian Church
4 pm – Salvation Army Band playing carols in the marquee
4.30 pm – Lighting of the Christmas trees
Please note that we will be decorating the indoor tree in typical Norwegian fashion at 2 pm on Sunday 26 November. Volunteers are again warmly welcomed!
In the absence of an elected chair of the society, Torill Heavens took the chair for the meeting. She welcomed those attending and gave apologies from those unable to attend.
Minutes of the last AGM were circulated and agreed as accurate.
Committee members then reported on various areas of activity.
Membership – Johan Butenschøn Skre
Johan reported that there are currently 65 paid-up members. The number is fairly stable, albeit somewhat lower than during the days of active campaigning to return the church to community control.
There are 135 in a wider contact group who receive newsletters and other information.
Newsletters are read by 60 to 70 percent of those who receive them.
The society’s social activities and presence on social media are key to attracting to new members.
Finances – Kevin Burden
Kevin took over as treasurer mid-year. He described the difficulties experienced in trying to gain access to the bank account at Lloyds and the online account with PayPal. Part of this is because banks require several signatories from a membership body that is constantly changing. Many are making it more difficult for unincorporated societies (as WNS is) to maintain ‘treasurer’s accounts’ and some are actively closing such accounts. For this reason we have not attempted to move the account from Lloyds, as we had planned to do. However, Kevin has now been accepted as a signatory. We have access to online banking, which makes paying bills easier.
The Lloyds account holds £2,622, very close to the balance at the end of last year.
Despite submitting a request in January to authorise Kevin to access the PayPal (online bank) account, he had not been able to gain access by the time of the AGM. (However, following the meeting, Kevin and former account holders Thomas and Tyra managed to reset the authorisation protocol and regain control of the account. We confirmed that it holds £508.)
The society holds £111.50 in petty cash.
Kevin regretted that it had not been possible to present a full set of accounts in time for the meeting, due to the difficulties in gaining access to the bank accounts. These will be prepared as soon as possible and reported to the committee. The overall picture is, however, that receipts from subscriptions and ticket income from events is in line with spending on the events themselves and the cost of the Christmas tree.
Kevin told the meeting that using digital systems such as PayPal (used to manage subscriptions and one-off payments) and EventBrite (used to manage bookings for paid events such as the St Hans barbecue) significantly reduces the workload for committee members, albeit at a small cost, and makes communication with society members much easier. However the committee recognises the difficulty posed to members who do not use digital devices, and it was agreed that ways would always be found to accept cash or cheques where this is more convenient for members.
In December we held the Festival of Light and Friendship in grimly inclement weather conditions. The Lord Mayor of Cardiff attended, as did visitors from Vestland. The Salvation Army band played.
In January, Thomas Alexander Husøy-Ciaccia talked about the project he has led to collate the history and heritage of the church and the Norwegian community in Wales.
March: We had hoped to have a guest talk about learning Norwegian as a second language. Sadly, she had to withdraw due to illness but we nevertheless celebrated Norwegian waffle week with a variety of waffles made by Anne Kirsti, Torill and Tyra.
In April, members gathered for evening drinks before a concert in the church by James Kirby, half-Norwegian by virtue of being Anne Kirsti’s son!
We marked Norwegian Constitution Day on 17 May in much finer weather than last year. Around 130 people processed from the Millennium Centre to the church, including visitors from Norway. The church’s resident Bute Wind Quintet played. Rev Ingrid Ims of the Norwegian Seamen’s Church in London gave a moving speech.
In June, we celebrated the Scandinavian midsummer festival of St Hans at a member’s house on the Gower with a barbecue, music, singing, a quiz and games. It was warm, dry and sunny, but the extended dry period meant we weren’t able to light a bonfire due to the risk of fire. We were pleased to welcome several new members.
The committee aimed to mount a similar programme for the coming year. Suggestions for other activities were always welcome. Running events does place demands on the organisers, and help – even if it is for a single event – is always appreciated.
Heritage – Thomas Alexander Husøy-Ciaccia
During the year, Thomas was appointed by the Norwegian Church Cardiff Bay charity as its heritage officer, with a specific mission to collate information about the history and heritage of the Norwegian communities in south Wales. He visited archives in Glamorgan and the home of the Norwegian Seamen’s Mission in Bergen. He found hundreds of documents, many written by hand in hard-to-read script, telling the story of the establishment of Norwegian churches in Cardiff, Barry, Swansea and Newport – and one in Milford Haven that never saw the light of day. The search uncovered lots of new material as few of the documents had been digitised and many were not even indexed.
Glamorgan Archives had retained some historical documents relating to the church, but were planning to discard some items. Thomas was able to retrieve some, including a piece of embroidery and a Norwegian pennant.
Thomas collated many artefacts for a temporary exhibition in the gallery at the Norwegian Church in Cardiff. It ran for several weeks from May and attracted interest from visitors who provided additional information. Thomas thanked members who had contributed information and loaned items for display.
Much of the content of the exhibition has been loaded onto a touch screen display in the church. It is also accessible online.
His historical research revealed a large number of photographic negatives, but the people in them were unidentified. It was suggested that perhaps the pictures could be displayed at a society meeting or online and people invited to name those they recognised.
Throughout the year, Thomas met a number of individuals and held outreach days for members of local history societies.
Thomas is now coming to the end of his one-year contract. The trustees have submitted an application for further funding from the National Lottery.
Communications – Kevin Burden
Over the new year Kevin moved the society website and its contents to a new host which is both cheaper and easier to manage. He has been reorganising the historical content to make it easier to find, adding other material such as past newsletters and media reports, and adding new content: 14 articles so far this year.
The new site has been visited 1100 times since it was set up. Most of the visitors come from the UK, with smaller numbers from the US and Norway. Most people find the site through search engines such as Google, but other visitors come from Facebook and via press reports such as the article in the Nation. The most popular pages have been the home page, which explains what WNS does; the archives; and the programme for 17th May celebrations this year.
Despite its loss of popularity with younger people, our Facebookpage remains active, mostly as a way of disseminating news quickly and publishing pictures and videos of our social events. It has 762 followers, split evenly between men and women. 60% are in the UK, almost all of them in South Wales. 12% are in Norway and 17% in the US and Canada! Posts typically reach 300-400 people, peaking around the major calendar events. We post more or less as often as other small societies, but our posts generate fewer responses. Attempts to generate discussion about learning the language, travel to Norway, or other talking points have not been successful – apart from a post about the cost of a gent’s haircut! Kevin filmed and uploaded videos from our social events such as the lighting of the Christmas tree, the 17th May procession, and the Salvation Army Band playing Norwegian tunes; but these have not proved popular: perhaps the audience who would appreciate them most are not finding them?
We have a Twitter/X account which has 364 followers. However, since the summer we have not been able to post updates as Mr Musk has introduced a subscription fee of £140 in order to access the software we use to create and schedule posts. It was agreed that we would stop activity on the platform.
The society has a YouTube channel with a handful of older videos. A video interview that Kevin carried out with Thomas about the history of Norwegians in Wales (and which was featured in a news article in the Nation) has been watched 200 times.
We aim to send out newsletters 8-10 times a year by email, and these are clearly an important source of information to those who are not active on social media. We are no longer sending printed newsletters, due to the cost and effort in producing, printing and posting them.
Relationship with the Norwegian Church Cardiff Bay – Mike Parkinson
As well as being a member of the society, Mike is a trustee of the Norwegian Church Cardiff Bay (NCCB), the new charity set up to manage the church on a long lease from Cardiff Council. Mike recalled that the trustees had been handed the keys to the building only 18 months ago. The building was empty, the kitchen was not in a functional state, and other equipment was missing. The trustees found start-up capital from three charitable foundations which enabled them to recruit a general manager (Gareth Jones) and re-open the building to the public.
The initial aim was just to survive the very difficult trading conditions being experienced by all arts and hospitality venues post-pandemic. In fact, Gareth had been able to put on public music and comedy events once or twice weekly, and attract bookings to use the venue for weddings and private parties, corporate training and awaydays, Senedd meetings, exhibitions and even filming for TV. These events have helped the church to more than break even during its first year of independent operation. Over the Christmas period, a marquee will again be sited on the outdoor terrace, and will be offered for private parties.
Now that the church is on a more secure footing, the trustees hope to increase the number of public events reflecting Norwegian and Scandinavian culture. Further funding is being sought from the National Lottery Heritage Fund which would secure the position of heritage officer and enable an education officer to be recruited. A decision is expected soon.
Martin Price informed the meeting that the church building was given Grade 2 listed status in March, even though the building has moved from its original site and been substantially altered. (Purists might take the view that the building really dates from 1991.) This means that Cardiff Council will have to preserve and maintain it.
On behalf of the society, Torill thanked the trustees and staff for all that they had achieved over the first 18 months of operation.
Anne Kirsti asked that the society be allowed to hang a promotional poster in the church so that visitors could learn of its existence.
Future events
On 21 October Thomas will give a presentation in the gallery on trolls. Those with troll models at home are invited to bring them.
On 26 November we will gather to decorate the Christmas tree inside. There will also be two new live trees outside, to replace the large tree which has died.
We will hold the Festival of Light and Friendship on 10 December. In the afternoon, Ingrid Ims from the Seamen’s Mission in London will lead a bilingual service in the church for the first time in a generation. Members with an interest in the arrangements agreed to meet soon to make plans.
We will take a break in January. There was a suggestion to hold a session on learning Norwegian, which might be suitable for February. Tyra mentioned that she has a collection of books in Norwegian. Unfortunately there is no space in the church to create a library but perhaps members would like to consider a book exchange.
Election of new committee
WNS committee members and trustees of the Norwegian Church Cardiff Bay during the society’s 2023 AGM. From left, Martin Price (NCCB), Shuna Lovering (WNS), Craig Williams (WNS), Johan Butenschøn Skre (WNS), Torill Heavens (WNS), Alex McDonald (WNS), Mike Parkinson (NCCB), Bethan White (WNS), Kevin Burden (WNS).
Nick Webb resigned from the committee during the year as he moved away from Wales. Anne Kirsti Rosnæs Kirby and Thomas Husøy-Ciaccia said they would not be standing for re-election, though remained willing to help with events.
Torill Heavens, Craig Williams and Kevin Burden volunteered to serve another year on the committee and were duly re-elected.
Bethan Winter, Shuna Lovering and Alex McDonald volunteered to join the committee and were elected unanimously.
The new committee will be invited to review the nominations that have been received for honorary membership.
Remembering Karen Allen
At the suggestion of the church trustees, the committee has asked our past chair, Tyra Oseng-Rees, a glass artist, to create a plaque to hang in the church to remember Karen Allen, the former manager of the church arts centre when it was in council control and a leading member of the society. Wording has been agreed in English, Welsh and Norwegian. Tyra brought some samples of the recycled glass tiles she makes for members to indicate their preferences.
Any other business
Mike Parkinson noted that the new intake of eight Norwegian students has arrived at Cardiff and the Vale College. They will be staying in halls rather than with families as in previous years. He proposed that the society might like to welcome them and make themselves available to them. His suggestion was warmly agreed.
All business having been completed, the meeting closed at 16:30.
Welsh Norwegian Society 