Festinord Forever!

Elder G and I were privileged last week to spend two days at a four-day YSA (Mormon Young Single Adult) conference in Randers, Denmark.  The Randers newspaper said it best with the following humorous headline:  

"Mormone Rhymes with Hormone!"  

And that pretty much tells it like it was.  Of course, the 720 young single adults came together to fellowship with huge numbers of those of the same faith, to take various workshops, and to perform community service; but the bottom line is that most attendees had come with even higher expectations.  

Actually, neither the attendees nor the sponsors made any pretense as to why everyone was there.  When the young men were asked why they came, most replied with something like, “to see the beautiful Scandinavian women!”  And when the young women were asked why they were there, most said, “Because I’m not married yet!”  Furthermore, at almost every group meeting, the adult leaders continually urged the young men to be sure to get their date for the final night’s Gala!  Yes, everyone had love and marriage on their minds!

For members of LDS church, marrying a member of our own faith is strongly encouraged.  However, since the church membership is small in the Nordic countries, finding a spouse of the same faith is quite a challenge.  Many of the young adults aspire to attend the church-run school, Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah, to meet other Mormons.  Once there, it is very likely that they marry an American and, 

most often, remain in America for life. 

Consequently, nearly fifty years ago the older generation of Scandinavians reached the conclusion that giving their children a reason to stay closer to home was imperative.  They envisioned annual events held in Scandinavia in which their young adults could meet (and court) larger numbers of young adults of the same faith.  Hence, in 1966 the first young adult conference was held in Stockholm, Sweden.  

In deciding on a name to title these annual events, the name Festinord was selected, referring to “a festival held in the Nordic countries.” Since then they have been held almost yearly, rotating from one Scandinavian country to another.  This year's theme for the daily devotionals and spiritual workshops was "Seek the Light."  Plans are already underway to celebrate next year's 50th anniversary in Stockholm, Sweden.

The conference was held in two locations:  a high school furnished the space for the young adults to sleep on the floor as well as to have a continental breakfast.  Then they walked a half mile or so to a nearby Event Center, where the remainder of events and meals took place.  First came a morning devotional, followed by the day's scheduled activities--games, workshops, and community service.  

Lunch, dinner, and three dances were also held there..

 On a serious note, the festival actually included much more than just match-making.  The first day’s event, emphasizing teamwork, was spent playing a six-hour game in which the young adults competed as teams to accomplish various challenges. Throughout the week there were also various sporting activities.  Two of the four days concentrated on a vast variety of morning and afternoon workshops.  Topics ranged from numerous ones of a spiritual nature to musical (participating in a band or a choir) to social media to photography to, of course, successful dating practices to doodling & coloring to release stress.  (I learned that adult coloring books are in the top-five best-selling-books category!)

The entire third day was devoted to performing humanitarian service to the Randers community.  Dressed in yellow Mormon Helping Hands (MHH) vests, the young adults either walked or were bused to over 65 different venues where they were able to give back to the community.  

A variety of services were available: numerous opportunities for gardening and yard clean-up, trail maintenance, painting fences and sheds, distributing business flyers, singing at a home for the elderly, just to name a few.  

They had run out of paint by the time we got here; but more was delivered, 

and they were able to finish the job.

This group cleared a bike trail and a neighborhood park.

There were additional opportunities which involved helping two other churches with their own service projects:  sewing school bags for Kenyan children or making baby clothes for Bulgarian refugees.  

This day of service culminated on a spiritual note with a two-and-a-half hour evening testimony meeting in which the young adults expressed their faith in Jesus Christ and their commitment to follow Him.

Three of the evenings were highlighted with late-night dances.  Tuesday’s theme was Hawaiian

and Wednesday’s was Bedouin.  

No expense was spared in decorating the dance floor to create the intended mood!  Surprisingly, with limited belongings many were able to fashion some sort of costume or accessory to go along with that night’s theme.  Friday’s final Gala included a formal dinner and dance. 

It has been said that occasionally the older generation objects to the music being played at the dances and wonders if Festinord shouldn’t be discontinued.  However, as soon as they are reminded that these young adults may then migrate to America where young members of their faith are greater in number, the discussion comes to a halt.  So, for now, Festinord is here to stay, and so are the hormones!

Getting acquainted with these young adults from any different countries as well as with the many YSA senior missionaries who attended was really a joy.  We met a young man from Hawaii who attended the same ward we did 38 years ago.  We met our Denmark contact, the  National Director of Public Affairs (NDPA), and his wife and two daughters; and we met the daughter of our Finnish NDPA headed to Tokyo in four weeks on her mission.  We met a handsome YSA senior missionary couple whose parents started the whole "Festinord thing" almost 50 years ago.  And we met many, many fine people who tried very hard to help us in any way possible.  It was a great experience, and we're excitedly looking forward to next year's celebration in Stockholm!!!