SFHS Annual Meeting was held In Seattle on March 21, 2026
This was our once-a-year opportunity to meet in person, enjoy coffee and pastries, connect with other members, hear about SFHS’s past year and our upcoming events. Members joined us in Seattle and via Zoom.
When: Saturday, March 21, 2026 10 PDT
Where: The Swedish Club NW, 1920 Dexter Avenue North, Seattle, Washington
This year, we featured a presentation focusing on Order of Runeberg lodges in the Central District of the US Upper Midwest. Joanna Chopp, the archivist at the Finnish American Heritage Center (FAHC) in Hancock, Michigan at the former Finlandia University. She discussed and showed many archival materials about Finnish culture that are located there. She emphasized that you don’t have to be Finnish to use the FAHC archives.
Following the business meeting Kristiina Hiukka, Finnish Honorary Vice Consul for Washington State, spoke about Finland, “Happiest Country in the World (Again)!” This has been true for the past year and nine years in a row. The USA moved up from 24th to 23rd. There is no English-speaking country in the top ten.
Next year’s annual meeting will be held in April in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Program
- Swedish Club NW Doors open for check-in
- Zoom session opens for virtual participants
- Fika service begins (beverages and pastries)
- Power Point presentation loop shown on Zoom and in-person
- Meeting welcome
- SFHS business meeting (30 minutes)
- Video and live presentations
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The archive at the Finnish American Heritage Center in Hancock, Michigan has something to interest everyone: genealogy, immigration history, sports history, Finnish American music, oral history interviews, newspapers, photos, folk instruments, gorgeous textiles, and so much more! Archivist Joanna Chopp discussed the importance of the collections and highlight some interesting examples from the FAHC.
Joanna Chopp is the archivist at Finlandia Foundation’s Finnish American Heritage Center, a position she has held since 2012. She studied History at Northern Michigan University and Archival Studies at UW-Milwaukee. Joanna is a 3rd generation Finnish American, born and raised in the Copper Country. Her Finnish and Sámi heritage have always been a central part of her life, and she enjoys helping visitors and researchers at the FAHC explore their own heritage.
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Kristiina Hiukka addressed the meeting on what the world is learning about Finnish happiness. Finland has won the top spot of the Happiness Report for 9 years.
Kristiina is a professional leadership coach, consultant, trainer and author. She has coached and trained executives in Europe, the U.S., and Canada. Since 2009 she has served as the Honorary Vice Consul of Finland for Washington State. In this capacity she recently assisted in the production of a documentary about Finland, “Happiest Country in the World” to explore the reasons why Finland has been named the happiest country in the world for seven consecutive years. The documentary has been presented on PBS channels in the US and on Finnair’s international flights and can be found on YouTube. Kristiina was knighted for her service to Finland in the Order of the White Rose.
- Meeting concludes
- Social time continues
