Journal & Topics Media Group

Norwegians Return May 19 For Annual Parade In Park Ridge


Members of the Bjornson Male Chorus of Chicago march flying the Norwegian and American flags high. (Journal file photo)

The Norwegian National League returns to Park Ridge on Sunday, May 19, to celebrate Norway’s Constitution Day with its annual parade and an evening banquet.

The parade moved to Park Ridge more than four decades ago, and attracts those of Norwegian heritage from across Illinois and several other nearby states.

Hodges Park, at Courtland and Prospect, across from City Hall, will have activities starting at noon Sunday, along with booths to buy souvenirs, books, garb, and special Norwegian taste treats.

The parade will step off at 1 p.m. from Talcott and Cumberland, heading north to Main Street and east to the reviewing stand on the steps of City Hall.

Norway’s Ambassador to the United States, Kaare Aas, will be the special guest of honor at Sunday events here.

Highlights of the parade are the floats, local dance groups in colorful bunads (folk costumes) and a few local Vikings and smoking dragon ships.

The banquet, previously held on Saturdays, will move to the Park Ridge Country Club on Sunday, with social hour starting at 5 p.m. and dinner at 6 p.m. Tickets are $75; contact Carol Hoidahl at 847-358-1527.

The weekend also includes a 7:30 p.m. concert on Friday at the Norwegian Memorial Lutheran Church in Chicago’s Logan Square, and a Saturday luncheon with the Norwegian American Chamber of Commerce at Willis Tower.

Syttende Mai (the 17th of May) is the equivalent of the United States’ July 4. It dates to the end of the Napoleonic wars, when Sweden decided to take Norway from the Danish crown, and the Norwegians wrote their own terms. Later, when Sweden did not comply, Norway declared its independence.

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