BUTTE - From singing the Norwegian national anthem to baking traditional cookies and pastries for the community, the women of Butte’s Daughters of Norway are more than happy to share their culture with Butte to celebrate the National Day of Norway.
"Been living in Butte since 1950s so it’s been a few years and I’m just happy to be in the Norwegian community here of course because my parents are both full-blooded Scandinavians and I love it," said Dorothy Honeychurch.
Honeychurch is the oldest member of Butte’s Daughters of Norway chapter. She has been a member for 68 years and says it’s important to share their culture with the community.
"When my dad came to America, he came here to become an American. He didn’t come here to stay as a Norwegian and so they celebrate their history and heritage and that’s what the 17 of May would do," said Honeychurch.
The Daughters of Norway’s Butte lodge known as the Solheim lodge was founded in 1913. Originally, only Norwegian women could join the Daughters of Norway, but the rules were changed to allow women who married a Norwegian to be accepted into the group.
The lodge's name was chosen from Nordic mythology. Solheim, translates roughly, as Home of the Sun. The Sun in Nordic mythology was a female who along with her brother, the Moon, rode on a chariot of gold through the skies.
"They were really about preserving their traditions and heritage of the Norwegian culture which is kind of what you can see today that I think is pretty amazing that today in 2022 they’re still celebrating the Norwegian constitution day and kind of showing off their heritage through their traditional foods and crafts," said Aubrey Jaap, the Butte Archives Director.
