A letter from Kaarina Langeland, President of Finlandia Foundation, Florida Chapter:
It Was a Very Good Year! The 2011-2012 year was a rewarding one for FFFC, as we worked to fullfill our goal of supporting and preserving Finnish language and culture in the US. The main event of the year was our Annual Charity Gala held in November at the Hilton Hotel to benefit educational activities and progra
ms. The generous support of our donors and almost 200 attendees enabled us to reach our fundraising goals. The Gala proceeds enabled us to give three scholarships to three young Finnish-Americans Teo Kyotikki, Kim Mustonen and Justin Weir. Our other activities for the year included two issues of the Finlandia Foundation Florida News and five cultural evening meetings. Each issue of the Newsletter had its own theme. The September issue, as well as the first meeting in October, dealt with Visions of Finland. The President of Finlandia Foundation National, Anita Smiley presented her visions with many beautiful pictures of Finland. The sizeable audience also had the opportunity to share their personal visions of Finland. The theme in the January Newsletter was Finland in the European context. We were fortunate to get articles from Finland's Minister for European Affairs and Foreign Trade, Alexander Stubb, who wrote about the unprecedented challenges Finland is facing, Dr. Paivi Lipponen, member of the Finnish Parliament, who wrote about Finnish identity in the European context, and former tourist pastor in Florida, Pekka Aukia, who wrote about his views on the significance of the European Union. In our January meeting, we learned how to conduct genealogical research of our own. The genealogist Matti Korpinen gave us insightful information about the necessary documents in Finland and how to find them on the internet or in other ways. In February we organized the Finnish-American Authors' Forum. At this event, author Dr. Steve Lehto discussed his book Shortcut, which is about Michigan Copper Country's mining history. In the lively panel discussion that followed, five other authors--Frank Antilla, Liisa Pasila, Mauno Laurila and John Johnson--presented their memoir books of life in America. The Finlandia Foundation Performer of the Year Maria Kizirian's concert in March was a highlight of the spring program. Her impressive repertoire included music from folksongs and pop music to Sibelius' Finlandia. Finally, the annual meeting, held in April, was a little different this year, as we had the young and talented Finnish-American musician Mikko Manninen performing a surprise program for us. His Caribbean-style reggae music as well as some Finnish songs enlivened the otherwise official meeting, and provided an enjoyable ending to this year's activities. With best wishes for the summer,
Kaarina Langeland
President, Finlandia Foundation Florida Chapter
