Fellow Danebodians!

Please join us for the annual Danebod Camps Meeting, Saturday October 15 at the Danish American Center*.

Please note the time shift- we are hoping it allows more people to attend the meeting and social activities while also giving time for camps and special committees to plan.

Board Meeting & Lunch-  Noon-3pm

3-Camp Committee Meetings-  3pm

Tea-  4pm

Singing 4:30pm

Pot Luck Supper- 5:30pm

Social Hour- 6:30-8pm

(June/July finance meetings and June Planning meeting in the morning)

Blue Skies,

Tina Maynor, President

Alex Legeros, Vice President

Janis Weikle, Treasurer

Richard Nielsen, Secretary

*3030 West River Parkway, Minneapolis, MN 55406

Greetings Danebodians!

One sure sign that spring is on its way is that Family Camp Registration Forms for the 2016 June and July camps are now available on our website.  Be sure to note early-bird deadlines.  We hope to see you at camp this year!

Here are a few updates from Danebod Camps Committees, all of which are made-up of members from June, July, & August camps.  Please address any questions or concerns to your camp’s representatives:

Food Committee- Thank you for your feedback!

We are so grateful for your participation in last year’s Food Committee work!  Your input helped us establish a great working relationship with cook Bronwyn Goehle.  Surveys from all three camps revealed three main points: Danish food traditions are important to us, we value including people who have food allergies and sensitivities, and we are seeking a balance between healthy and sweet for snacks and treats. Moving forward, the Food Committee will dissolve and every camp will collect feedback and share it with Bronwyn directly. Then, she will make any necessary tweaks in collaboration with the camp directors.

Accessible Housing Committee- Responding to Feedback!

Since October, the Accessible Housing committee has been busy responding to your feedback from the camps survey!

Here are three additional updates: 

1. The Accessible Housing Committee went to the Folk School Committee meeting in Tyler on Monday, November 2, 2015. They presented the alternate ‘Cottage’ location for consideration and shared the results from summer camper survey. The Folk School Board subsequently voted unanimously to NOT recommend the alternate ‘Cottage’ location for consideration by the church. Therefore, the original ‘Swan Lake’ location will be the site for the building.

2. The committee is thrilled to be working with Poul Bertelsen, Architect of the renovation at the Danish American Center in Minneapolis. With Poul’s help, the committee plans to take camper feedback from this summer’s survey and present complete plans to campers this summer!

3. The Danebod Camps Board and the Accessible Housing Committee invite you to join us for a brainstorming meeting to kick-start the Fundraising Committee! Do you have expertise in development, capital campaigns, or fundraising? Are you passionate about camp and want to see a strong and sustainable future for generations to come? Then we want YOU! Join us at the Danish American Center* on Monday March 21^st from 6-8pm. Beverages and light refreshments served. We can’t wait to see you there! RSVP tina.maynor@gmail.com

Questions?  See these committee members:

June- Dave Lessleur and John Nielsen

July- Glen Olsen, Carla Mortensen

August- Alex Legeros, Ted Brady, John Bornhoft, Svend Petersen

Folk School Liaison- Margie Bornhoft

Chair- Linda Jacobson

NEW Committee- Folk School Centennial

Our beloved brick folk school building turns 100 in 2017! To plan celebrations, we are assembling a three-camp committee. Maybe we could have a unified theme with a t-shirt design contest? Maybe we could collect some Folk School stories and memories from the last 100 years in a Danebod Story Corps? Or a folk school building art show? If you have ideas to share, contact Katie Seaburg, the committee chair at khmseaburg@gmail.com or contact one of your camp Folk School centennial Committee members. We are planning meeting before June camp.

June- Katie Seaburg & John Nielsen

July- Rus Weikle & Carla Mortensen

August- Alex Legeros & Erik Juhl

Chair- Katie Seaburg

Executive Committee- Annual Meeting Updates

It was another collaborative and enjoyable Annual Board Meeting for 2015! Please see the minutes, posted on the Family Camp website for full details. Here are a few action highlights:

We voted in an overwhelming majority to eliminate the Category I and II distinctions and therefore the point system. All three camps expressed that they continue to value new and veteran voices on the board and that each camp should be free to implement this as they see fit. A related motion to reduce the number of representatives from 6 per camp to 3 was presented but did not pass.

This year’s representatives are as follows:

2015-2016 Board Members

June

3 years – Michael Schwartz

2 years – Alex Dixon

1 year – Kathy Van Eyck

3 years – Gerry Werth

2 years – Nan Miller

1 year – Maggie Miller

July

3 years – Bill Coalson

2 years – Anika Kildegaard

1 year – Rus Weikle

3 years – Joel Mortensen

2 years – Dennis Spader

1 year – Curt Petersen

August

3 years – Andrea Juhl

2 years – Chris Kehew

1 year – Linda Jacobsen

3 years – Jim Quartemont

2 years – Karri Brady

1 year – Laura Bernard

Executive Committee

Tina Maynor (President)

Alex Legeros (Vice President)

Richard Nielsen (Secretary)

Janis Weikle (Treasurer)

Blue Skies!

*3030 West River Parkway, Minneapolis, MN 55406

Want to see what goes on at Danebod? Check out these links to view photos from June and July 2015!

JUNE

JULY

The Danebod Family Camps annual meeting will be held on October 24th, 2015. More details will come regarding the actual itinerary, but you can expect a lot of conversation, laughs, singing, dancing, and food!

SUMMARY

• We received 82 responses to the food survey
• Of those, 37 had at least one family member with restrictions, with the top 3 categories being:
  • Vegetarian 37% (14)
  • Other restriction 35% (13)
  • Lactose intolerant 24% (9)
• 68% of respondents support healthier food options at camp
• The top 3 food changes are:
  • Fresh seasonal fruit 59% (72)
  • Fresh seasonal vegetables 57% (70)
  • Beans 28% (34)
• The top 3 foods that you would like to see less of:
  • Refined sugar 46% (35)
  • No change 34% (26)
  • Other (with less potatoes being an ongoing theme) 24% (18)
• 50% of you told us that dessert is not important after every meal
• 84% of you told us that it is important to keep the traditional Danish meals
• 84% of you are supportive of small tuition increase for healthier meals

CONCLUSIONS

• We are very attached to the traditional Danish foods; they are an integral part of camp for us. We have no plans to change those items, such as medisterpølse, frikadeller, rabarbergrød, and rødkål.
• We need to take small, thoughtful steps with any changes to the menu. Our plan is to pilot a few menu changes during the 2015 summer camps and collect more feedback before making large scale change

Our new cook, Bronwyn, has many years of experience creating great meals for large groups and is ready to learn about our favorite recipes and propose some small healthful additions

When: Saturday October 25th, 2014

Where: Danish American Center, 3030 West River Parkway, Minneapolis, MN 55406 Get a map here: http://goo.gl/jmBlBt

Who: This is an open meeting. All are welcome!

Tentative Schedule:

9:30 a.m. Coffee and Name Tags
10:00 a.m. Danebod Board Meeting
12:00 a.m. Break for Lunch
12:30 p.m. Meeting Resumes
3:30 p.m. Individual Camp Meetings
5:30 p.m. Pot-luck Supper
6:30 p.m. Singing (and perhaps some dancing)

Board members (whether elected, permanent or this year’s camp directors) should arrive by 9:30 a.m. to receive name tags that identify them as voting members of the board.

Reminder: Only board members may vote or suggest motions but all interested parties may attend and participate in discussions. We will do our best to accommodate all who wish to participate in this year’s annual board meeting.

Danish American Center: (612) 729-3800

On behalf of the Danebod Family Camps, we would like to extend a warm welcome to you on our new website! Feel free to explore and learn about Danebod Family Camps as well as the Folk School traditions that have been passed down from generation to generation. You can also watch for upcoming events as well as posts and emails from our organizational committee. If you have any questions about the camp or about this website, feel free to email us at the link below and we will respond promptly. Otherwise enjoy your time on our website and have a pleasant day!