Membership Communication

Email campaings May 20, 2020 -

Want to speak like they do at 59° North?

SentAugust 13th 2020 at 9:39 am EDT

And 18° East?

The Club has found a unique online course for training Swedish pronunciation for non-Swedes. You do it through muscular awareness, mostly of your tongue and lips. It sounds technical, but it’s a fantastic tool for learning to speak with less accent and getting all those Swedish vowels and consonants spot on.The people behind the course, Swedish Made Easy, are offering a free, one-hour webinar on Thursday August 20 at 1:00PM EST. Check it out. You sign up by clicking the link below.Back in 1817, the Swedish poet Esaias Tegnér called it The Language of Glory and Heroes (Ärans och Hjältarnas Språk). Go on, be a hero!

Corona calamities

Sent September 17th 2020 at 5:39 pm EDT

Don’t get locked out because you’re locked up somewhere

This is a heads-up for permanent residents (green card holders) and conditional permanent residents stuck outside the United States because of the Corona pandemic. Count the days you’ve been out of the country and check the expiration date on your card. They may be important for your ability to return. Plus, other things may also be affected. It’s all spelled out in the legal alert you access by clicking the link below, a memo written by people who know the issues inside out. Stay safe. Stay healthy. But watch so you don’t stay away too long.

Fall Program

Sent September 28th 2020 at 11:23 am EDT

It ain’t over till the fat lady sings

The Metropolitan Opera in New York just cancelled all performances for its 2020-21 season, so that won’t happen until next fall. We don’t want to wait that long, but the Club has decided to cancel our planned events for the next couple of months, fat lady or not. We feel it’s the responsible thing to do, despite our good governor throwing Florida’s doors wide open the other day. (Not every Club member is in the so-called high-risk group for Covid-19, but many feel they are.) Now, this doesn’t mean we’re not going to do something. On the contrary, there are a number of virtual happenings in the hopper—if you can’t do IRL, there’s always VR, right? Stay safe and stay tuned.

PS. In case you wondered, the fat-lady adage was minted by San Antonio sportscaster Dan Cook during the 1978 NBA playoffs. And he, of course, paraphrased Yogi Berra’s 1973 classic, the game ain’t over till it’s over.

Luke 2:7 revised

Sent October 5th 2020 at 11:22 pm EDT

Yes, there IS room at the Inn.

At the Home2 Suites and Hilton Garden Inn in Sarasota and Bradenton, to be specific.

And we’re happy to pass along their special deal to you. Inn sales manager (and Club member), Nina Stenberg offers the Swedish American Club of Sarasota a 10% rebate on their best available rates at the time of reservation. “Perhaps sometimes even a little more,” says Nina.

Who knows, you may need a room to evacuate during a hurricane. Or a place to stay while you’re remodeling your home or looking for a new one. Or for a business partner visiting you. Or for family or friends. Whatever it may be, contact Nina directly on her mobile, (941)-203-9891, and she promises to take good care of you. (She also has meeting spaces that can be used for Celebrations of Life, rehearsal dinners, product shows, business meetings, seminars and more.)

And when you talk to Nina, congratulate her on winning the Green Card lottery! That was the impetus that brought her and her family here from Norrköping.

For more information on Nina Stenberg’s properties, click the link below.

There's a New Sheriff in Town - Meet Kurt Hoffman, Sheriff-elect

Sent October 19th 2020 at 3:11 pm EDT

We Shot the Sheriff

…but we didn’t shoot the deputy, as Bob Marley sings. And we shot him with a DVC digital video camera.

Actually, we did shoot the deputy. Colonel Kurt Hoffman will be inaugurated and assume the duties of Sarasota County Sheriff come January. Until then, he is Chief Deputy and Sheriff-elect and second in command of the agency. He is also its General Counsel.

Col. Hoffman is as tough as they come. He has spent more than thirty years in the criminal justice system. He has a B.A. and an M.S. in Criminal Justice and a Juris Doctorate degree. He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy. He has worked as State Prosecutor and is a member of the Florida Bar. Not someone you want to mess with.

The Club got a rare chance to sit down with Col. Hoffman. He told us what the Sarasota Sheriff’s department does in general. But more interesting, we learned how the agency solved a recent homicide with the help of digital forensics. And who the inmates are in Sarasota’s 1,000-person jail. And what is being done to the homeless situation in our city. And child abductions. And much, much more.

It is all caught on tape, and you can see it by clicking on the link below.

You asked, here is the answer

Sent October 30th 2020 at 9:48 am EDT

…Member question to the Club:

We’re Swedish residents with a vacation home in Florida. We’re not US citizens or Green Card holders. Is it at all possible to plan a trip over this fall?

Answer from Roxanne Levine, US Immigration lawyer: Don’t bother. Individuals not holding Green Cards or US citizenship need a “national interest exception” granted by a US Consulate or by US Customs and Border Protection in order to enter the United. States (if they are coming on a B visitor visa or ESTA, for example).

The travel ban ends on December 31st—at least that is the hope for now. Can you wait? I am securing exceptions for our bankers and financial services clients, and others who qualify, but I don’t think that returning to a vacation home will qualify you, sadly.

One exception, though—if you have children (under 21) who are US citizens or permanent residents, you may return with proof of your relationship to the child.

Club comment: We know of one Swede who was exempted because he was seeing his US doctor.

It is not the Mexican border, but…

Sent November 10th 2020 at 6:38 pm EST

Thinking about maybe moving back to the Old Country?

Did you know that your family then could—by law—be split up if you are a Swedish citizen and your partner or children are not EU citizens? It is true. And it is crazy. And it doesn’t end there. Other hardships may befall you as well.

The Swedish interest and lobbying organization Swedes Abroad (Svenskar i Världen) are on a mission to change this. (They are non-profit and non-political.) And they need your help in the form of a petition signature. Deadline for the organization to file a consultative response to the Swedish government is December 7, so please act now. Even if the situation doesn’t apply directly to you, it does to an awful lot of worried Swedes with non-EU (read: American) spouses and children.

Click the link below to learn more and add your name to the list. Your Club board already did.

Ingrid Bergman; Swedes in America,

Sent November 17th 2020 at 4:15 pm EST

The First Lady of the White House of Morocco

The Second World War was the backdrop of two b/w films starring 28-year-old Ingrid Bergman from Sweden. We have all probably seen “Casablanca,” released by Warner Brothers in 1943. (With the movie world’s most misquoted line: “Play it, Sam.” There is no “again” in it, but there is in the title of a Woody Allen comedy from 1972.) Now, what about her second film, “Swedes in America,” released the same year by the U.S. Office of War Information? Didn’t think so. But, here it is (click the link), 17 Bergman minutes for “educational, non-theatrical use within the United States.” Hey, who knew two of the fifty-six signatures on the American Declaration of Independence in 1776 were by Swedish hands? Enjoy!

Sheriff's Christmas drive

Sent November 27th 2020 at 12:47 am EST

Sheriffs hand out much more than tickets and summons

Christmas presents to brighten children’s holidays, for instance. Our new friend and honorary Club member, Sarasota Sheriff-elect Hoffman, is looking for elves to help fill Santa’s sack. The day before Lucia, please drive over to the Sheriff’s Office at 6010 Cattleridge Boulevard and donate generously to their 2020 Holiday Toy Drive. It’s a drive-by-drop-off event for reasons you know well, and the schedule is Saturday, December 12, from 9:00AM to noon. Click the link below to read a little more about it and watch a short video from last year’s Holiday Toy Drive. Come on, let’s show them Jultomten really comes from Jokkmokk, as Swedish Television says!

Sarasota Real Estate

Sent December 6th 2020 at 11:59 pm EST

The State of Real Estate in our State

You have heard it before: “The Best Investment on Earth is Earth.” “Buy beach, they don’t make it any more.” “Buy low, sell high, in the long run you can’t fail.”

All true. But what exactly is the real estate situation—right now—in our neck of the woods? What has happened in the Sarasota market during these "unprecedented times" (the cliché of the year)? And what does it look like in a crystal ball? Should we buy? Should we sell? Should we worry? Should we break out the Veuve Clicquot?

We took these questions and a video camera to Drayton Saunders, President of Michael Sunders and Company downtown Sarasota. With twentyfour offices up and down our coast, from Anna Maria Island to Punta Gorda, we figured he had answers. And he did. Click the link and watch. (We think you may consider bubbly with dinner tonight.)

Season’s Greetings

Sent December 13th 2020 at 1:00 am EST

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.

(Yeah, right.)

Okay, in these "unprecedented times" (there was that cliché again) let’s be politically correct. We won’t wish you a Merry Christmas, because everybody does not observe Christ’s Mass. And we won’t say Happy Holidays, because these are not everybody’s Holy Days. So, we’ll go with a simple, secular Season’s Greetings. (Snow or no snow.) Or how about just good old God Jul. Anyway, who better to help us close this year than the man who helped us open it. Enjoy!

Welcome to a New Year with SACS

Sent January 12, 2020 at 7:49pm (EST)

Word of the week: inoculation

Happy New Year! Hope annus horribilis 2020 becomes annus mirabilis 2021. It is not fun to announce a spring without live Club events, but our podcasts and other virtual happenings will continue until it is safe to get together again.

Which brings us over to Covid-19 vaccination. Questions abound. How much good does it do? And how safe is it? Is it true that people with shellfish allergies should avoid one of the vaccines? On and on. (Conspiracy theories don’t help.)

We went to Dr. Manuel Gordillo, infectious diseases specialist at Sarasota Memorial for some straight answers. Call him our local Dr. Fauci, if you like. And he generously shared his time and expertise with the Club. Click the link below and meet someone who actually knows what he is talking about in these unprecedented times (there was that cliché again; oh, well).

Stay safe. Stay tuned.

Return to USA 2

Sent January 14th 2021 at 6:00 am EST

The door is still shut

For how long is anybody’s guess.

President Trump’s freeze on certain visa categories has just been extended to March 31 of this year. And the general entry ban to the United States for travelers from the European Union and Schengen countries remains in effect with no formal end date. Sad but true for many Club members who are not US citizens or Permanent Residents.

The question is whether President Biden will lift the travel ban after taking office on January 20, and whether the incoming administration will let the visa ban expire on March 31. We will just have to wait and see and hope for the best.

Click the link below for more information in a Legal Alert from our immigration experts.

Dues are not Due

Sent January 18th 2021 at 6:00 am EST

A Word from the Board,

Many of you have asked about the membership invoice for 2021. Due to Covid-19, which continues to limit our activities and only allows us to host virtual events, the Board made the decision already in May last year to change our fiscal year from July 1st to June 30th. Consequently, you will receive your next invoice by the end of June 2021, - giving you six bonus months!

We are also proud and happy to report that we have - in spite of these troublesome times - increased our membership by 80% during last year.

Let us therefore thank you for your continued support and encouragement. Your input and feedback is much appreciated.

On behalf of all of us on the Board/

Renee Lundholm

Who Owns the Beaches?

Sent January 29th 2021 at 6:00 am EST

Whose beach is it anyway?

Do you sometimes pick pretty shells on the beach? Careful, if you do it above the mean high water line (which frequently lies under the sea), you may be charged with stealing private property. The fact is, only twenty percent of Sarasota’s beaches are public, the rest private. Which means it is very easy to trespass on private land without knowing it. And if someone is at home in the house, that is a first degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in prison. Didn’t know that? Well, neither did we, until we read the attached article about that line in the sand. Needless to say, it is a political and judicial mess—click the link and “enjoy.”

Who Owns the Beaches?

Sent January 29th 2021 at 6:00 am EST

Whose beach is it anyway?

Do you sometimes pick pretty shells on the beach? Careful, if you do it above the mean high water line (which frequently lies under the sea), you may be charged with stealing private property. The fact is, only twenty percent of Sarasota’s beaches are public, the rest private. Which means it is very easy to trespass on private land without knowing it. And if someone is at home in the house, that is a first degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to one year in prison. Didn’t know that? Well, neither did we, until we read the attached article about that line in the sand. Needless to say, it is a political and judicial mess—click the link and “enjoy.”

New Swedish Consul in Florida

Sent March 16th 2022 at 7:29 pm EDT

Hälsningar & Greetings,

In Per Olof Lööf's comments on Friday, he remarked on his exciting 16-year journey as the Honorary Consul of Sweden to the State of Florida. As I begin my journey as Honorary Consul, I would like to acknowledge his tireless efforts. Pelle’s vigorous commitment to the Swedish community, his ability to deftly manage all circumstances, and his spirit of collaboration are to be much admired.

Further let me say how much I look forward to working with Anette Lemmel and Carina Holmgren—the Honorary Consulate team. They, along with past colleagues, provide indispensable continuity in a world where every day we experience rapid change. This steadfast approach enables us to provide unwavering assurance to carry out our mission. Being named Honorary Consul for the Consulate of Sweden in the State of Florida also reflects the wonderful path our lives take. Sweden is in my blood. To be able to help my fellow Swedes navigate coming to and live in America—and to assist those who wish to visit, study, and live in Sweden—is a privilege.

I’ve steered such a course myself. The son of a Swedish sea captain, I was drawn to a life aboard ships. Like many others who start their careers at sea and who recognize that saltwater courses through their veins, ultimately, I came ashore to work in this global, unique, maritime industry.

My experience on board with Silverseas Cruises, and time spent with the World of Residensea and MHG Insurance, led me to understand a compelling need for a comprehensive approach to healthcare in the maritime industry. In 2009, I co-founded VIKAND, a company that has matured into its vision: to be the world’s leading expert in maritime health care. The efforts are by many. The VIKAND “family” represents hundreds of team members throughout the world propelled by common purpose. Its very name is from the Swedish, Vi Kan, while emphasizing just how fast: on Demand.

This international perspective and a “culture of caring” is exactly the kind of nurturing environment a foreign Consul represents. In fact, the Consulate now shares offices with VIKAND’s U.S. operations in Dania Beach, Florida, which is adjacent to the Fort Lauderdale International Airport. Long-lasting friendships, great teamwork and shared resources will surely be the result and will further heighten the camaraderie we Swedes have in our relationships with each other.

I believe in giving back. Good fortune and abundance have always buoyed me. It is also my honor to have co-founded—together with Len Quist, Johanna Karlsson, Kerstin Holm, and Jan Norelid—and served as the first President of the Swedish American Chamber of Commerce in Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach which subsequently merged with SACC-Miami to form SACC-Florida. I also co-founded and served as the inaugural Vice Chairman of the Marine Industry Cares Foundation and have been a Board Member of Kids in Distress, Broward County, Florida.

As we look forward to our work together, we will continue to provide the essential services of the Consulate of Sweden to the State of Florida, to support the great work of Swedish organizations such as SWEA (Swedish Women’s’ Educational Association), the Swedish Church in Florida, The Swedish School in Fort Lauderdale, The Swedish American Club of Sarasota, and all other groups, societies, institutions, clubs, and concerns that sustain and expand our Swedish community.

Above all this, there is my most beautiful family. Susan, my wife and Hudson, my son, teach me of love.

Know that my door is always open.

Kindly,

Peter Hult

Honorary Consul

Sweden Ukraine History

Sent April 13th 2022 at 5:50 pm EDT

A Blue-and-Yellow Bond Between Two Nations

Did you know that historical connections between Sweden and Ukraine go back two thousand years? (There’s even a southern Ukrainian village by the name Gammalsvenskby with 2,400 inhabitants today.) We didn’t, until we came upon this video on YouTube and decided it was worth sharing. Click the link below and enjoy!

Best Place to Retire In

Sent April 20th 2022

But You Already Knew This

Once again, Sarasota, FL, topped the list of Best Places to Retire in the U.S., according to U.S. News and World Report's 2021-2022 data.