April Reunion Update

Plans for the Elmquist family and extended family member reunion are nearly complete with just a few odds and ends remaining to care for---such as food for Saturday, but please read this update carefully as there are two significant changes emphasized by "Noted Change:".

The festivities begin with a 'Dutch Treat' dinner, Friday evening, June 11, at Trapper's Family Restaurant in the heart of Chisago City, located at 10356 South Ave., just west of the old creamery building and the intersection of HWY 8 and Bennet Rd. (Co. Rd. 77). All family members who can make it are encouraged to join in for the kick off dinner. We will look for you beginning at 5:00 PM and will close out the restaurant that evening at 9:30 PM (or later) so come early, come late, but come on out; we will be there!

Saturday, June 12th, we will gather at the front steps of Zion Church located on Old Town Road at 9:30 AM for our featured event that include tours of the John William Elmquist and Ida Amanda (Hult) Elmquist farm and the Carl August Johansson Hult farm followed by a walk-about of the nearby old South Green Lake Cemetery where the remains of many of our ancestors now rest. We will continue with a picnic on Saturday afternoon on the grounds of Zion Church. Note Change: We have reserved the church social hall for the afternoon just in case of bad weather.  Please note: This is a change from the original plan necessitated by the availability and user condition of park facilities.

Baptismal and confirmation historical information will be available for those who are interested in investigating your Chisago City and Zion Church heritage.  The church archivist is working to make copies of the relevant pages of the church record books.  These copies will be available during our Saturday afternoon picnic. Note Change: Because the condition of the older record books is so delicate direct personal view of the pages will not be possible. In addition, the church archivist will NOT be able to be present as previously planned. So, Please make your special requests for information and copies of pages known to Jeff Elmquist or myself as soon as possible so that we can work with the church archivist to fulfill your needs and requests.

We are also working to build an exhaustive family genealogical history of the family and family relationships that will include pictures of our fathers, mothers, aunts and uncles, and extended family members.  If you have pictures of yourself, your kids, grand kids, and parents and grandparents, please consider loaning these photos to us so that we can scan them during the reunion weekend or soon there after, or provide us with scans in J-peg format at 300 ppi, resolution, best quality output.  Anything you can do will be greatly appreciated.  Copies of the genealogical history on DVD will be made available for the cost of production; a sign-up sheet will be available during Saturday afternoon for your convenience.  The genealogical history on DVD should be of significant value to anyone wanting to look into their family history and family relationships.

Sunday, June 13th, opens with 9:30 AM services at Zion Church (for those who wish to attend services) followed with a tour of the historic church building and property.  Zion Church was founded in part by our Hult and Leaf ancestors.  As noted previously, many of out parents were members of Zion and were confirmed at Zion Lutheran Church.  Sunday afternoon continues with a tour of the grounds of Ojiketa Regional Park, the former Ojiketa Campfire Girl Scouts camp on the south shores of Big Green Lake.  It is the property deeded to the Girl Scouts by our ancestors.  Finally, our reunion event will close Sunday afternoon with a lunch again at Trapper's Family Restaurant.

We hope to see as many of you again as possible during the three day family reunion event.  I know and understand that not every family member is able to attend this or any family reunion for a variety of reasons. But, for those who care able to be part of this family reunion, we look forward to meeting you again, and for some, for the very first time!  This event is the only one of its kind to our knowledge, though local family members have surly gathered for other occasions at other times.  We trust that this event will be worth your personal time and effort to attend!