May I have this Dance? The story of Ulla & Arne Ganstal’s 43-year adventure from Stockholm, Sweden to Vancouver

Staffan Lindgren was born in Norrköping, Sweden, on July 18, 1950. At age 11 he moved with his parents to Piteå in Norrbotten, where he grew up, and he considers himself a “norrlänning”. He was interested in animals from an early age, particularly insects and spiders, encouraged (or at least not discouraged) by his parents….

My father, Harold Swanson, was born in the family home in Spånga, Hanaskog, Sweden on September 16, 1899. His father had a sawmill business. Eventually the family moved to Agnesberg, also in Hanaskog. His father set up an oak flooring business and raised show horses there. My dad graduated from Malmö Tekniska Läroverk which helped…

Before provincial healthcare, Workers’ Compensation, and Employment Insurance provided relief from illness or accidents, which was especially prevalent among BC’s dangerous manual labour occupations — there was Svea. Svea operated as a sick benefit organization (including accidents and illness), which also helped with funeral costs, and donations to needy Swedes. Active during the years 1908-1968,…

Thora Johnson was a Lady with a vision. She recognized the plight of elderly Swedes, many of whom lived in deplorable conditions. In February 1945, she invited members of the Swedish community to a meeting in her home to discuss building a Rest Home for elderly people of Swedish descent. In the latter part of…

Lund, B.C. is the small picturesque seaside village on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast on the northern terminus of Highway 101, 22 km north of Powell River. It was founded in 1889 by two brothers from the Valdemarsvik area, Charles and Fred Thulin. Charles Thulin (1863-1932), born Carl August Andersson and Fred Thulin, Fredrik Gottfrid Andersson…