Please be sure to click on the images below to see the larger photograph . The thumbnails below (100 x 133 pixels) are purposely made low resolution to make this page load quickly so they might appear grainy and lack the detail of the larger image. The larger picture is at 800 x 600 resolution. All images were taken with a Nikon Coolpix 800 digital camera at 1600 x 1200 pixel resolution. Photograph of photographer at left courtesy Gus Stangeland @ Photosbygus.com

After being elected a delegate from the Dallas, Texas Nordtex Lodge 1-594; I was off to my first Sons of Norway district convention. These photographs are the visual documentary of my trip. I will briefly describe the events so you may follow the the photos.

I left the DFW Airport on Northwest Airlines which went through Minneapolis, MN in route to Cedar Rapids. I arrived at the convention Wednesday night to serve District 1 as a member of the resolution committee Thursday morning. Other resolution committee members were Angeline Hoffman, Johnanne Moe, Rogert Ostby, Sylvia Pridal and Marvin Wicks.

After the Thursday morning committee meetings the first day of the 50th Biennial Convention Celebration there was a children's leikarringen group performance along with other entertainment and the evening ended with a bunad parade, which several delegates and many Sons of Norway members participated in the showing of their Norwegian bunader.

The delegation from Texas (sub-district 8) quickly became known as the "The Texas Posse". The formation of the this first Texas Posse in Cedar Rapids was a result of the small size of the delegation (only 5 delegates attending), the geographic remoteness of Texas from the rest of the district and our equal pride and enthusiasm in all things Texan and Norwegian. During the convention the posse was together, whether it was for the sub-district caucus meetings, meals or general convention sessions. Members of the first 2000 Cedar Rapids Texas Posse were: Gus "Slim" Stangeland; Dianne "Talker" Sawyer; myself, John "Trigger" Eberly; Gus "Gusto" Melendez; and our "Marshal", Sub-district Director Philmon Erickson.