5th Finglish trip July 2007 #18
Ella Iivonen came to Virginia Minnesota in 1953 to spend a year with her grandfather Frank Rantanen. In Virginia she met her future husband, moved to Hancock Michigan to study at the Suomi College, moved back to Virginia, got eventually married. Eila is a trained nurse. She has a strong interest in Finnish national costumes. She also is active in Ladies of Kaleva.
Kaleva Hall, formerly known as Temperance Hall was a Virginia Finntown landmark back in the early 1900’s. The Virginia Temperance Society used the hall to provide newly arrived immigrants from Finland an uplifting social outlet. The hall was later sold to the Ladies and Knights of Kaleva, but it still stands as a memorial to the Finnish Temperance Society’s part in history.
Next Eileen and Kenneth Huhta Bruce Crossing Minnesota USA