Easter brings us beauty, life, and hope

A message from your editor

Dear readers and friends,

“Jeg giver mitt digt til våren—“I Give My Poem to Springtime”—is a beautiful poem written by Bjørnsterne Bjørnson in 1868 and set to music by Edvard Grieg four years later (see story with a translation on page S4). Its message is timeless.

This poem conjures up beautiful images for me, and in many ways, it served as a metaphor for this special Spring issue and every issue of The Norwegian American our team puts together. It is always our effort to create a beautiful gift to you.

Perhaps the most important word here is “gift.” I would underline it, because it is important to remember that a very highly qualified team of professionals works on this newspaper, many as dedicated unpaid volunteers, and certainly everyone at a compensation rate well below what we could earn on the open market. We do this out of a commitment to what we love and the community we serve. It certainly is a very beautiful thing.

And you, too, are a part of this as the subscribers and donors to the newspaper. We could not exist without you. And when things may seem to go wrong, with a late or lost delivery, we ask you to be patient.

Why we want your email address

Recently, there have been a number of issues with the U.S. Postal Service, and some of you have not received your papers or gotten them very late, and we are doing our best to mitigate these issues. One of the most important changes we made starting last year was our online e-issues. All subscribers can go to our website norwegianamerican.com and read the entire print issue in a facsimile format as they wait to receive their print edition in the mail. So, if you haven’t sent us your email address, remember that it is what will give you access to our online resources, including our archive of over 6,000 articles.

Having your email helps us in other ways, too. We can better keep in touch with you. We’ve also made other changes to reduce our overhead, including the implementation of more automation in our renewal process. Now all subscribers with email, can be notified online about their renewals before any print renewal notification is mailed out. When you renew online, it saves us a significant amount of overhead, all of which matters with the tight margins we operate within. And when your account is set to auto-renewal, the savings is even greater. It ensures us a steady stream of revenue, and it guarantees that your account will not lapse. Of course, you can cancel at any time. For your convenience, we accept all major credit cards. If for some reason, you are not comfortable setting things up or need assistance, you can call us at the office—but I will have to ask you to be patient again. Since the pandemic, we have operated a fully virtual office. We have limited staff to answer and return phone calls, so it make take a while before you hear back from us.

Share the love

Some of you have asked how you can help us beyond your subscription and donations. The answer is simple: tell people about us. We need more subscribers to sustain our operations.

A great way to introduce someone to the paper is to send them a gift subscription. Most people get hooked on our paper quickly. There are many options for sending a gift, and we will be running special promotions throughout the year.

We would also like to see our paper in every Sons of Norway lodge, every consular office, and at every Scandinavian organization in North America. If you notice that The Norwegian American is missing somewhere, you can use your influence to change that—or even offer them an introductory gift.

Embracing Easter

At at time when our society is in a state of upheaval—some even speak of a cultural revolution—we are embracing our heritage and all the good that it has given us. The message it positive, and we can share it with others, too. It is about bringing people together during one of the most hopeful times of the year, a time when springtime brings us new beauty and life. I must add that this is not by any means an attempt to minimize the injustices and struggles that many people face but rather our way of lifting everyone up in the spirit of Easter.

Again, I would like to thank you for your ongoing support. I hope you will enjoy this special issue—our poem to springtime—and wish you joy and happiness during this very special time of the year.

This article originally appeared in the March 2023 issue of The Norwegian American. To subscribe, visit SUBSCRIBE or call us at (206) 784-4617.