Heritage Renewal

The graphic image of the Center for Heritage Renewal is a spring of rosemary, the herb of remembrance. And tomorrow comes a day of remembrance on the northern plains. 28 July 2014 is the sesquicentennial (150-year anniversary) of the Battle of Killdeer Mountain, a day on which the fates of multiple sovereign nations hung in the balance, on which countless acts of courage and valor took place, but on which ultimately, death laid its merciless hand upon scores of families. We may research and write endlessly of just what happened on and around that day; we may judge or we may forgive; we may fret about the desecration of the historic battlefield; but this is not the day for those things. We of the Center for Heritage Renewal urge all to observe 28 July 2014 with moments of respectful remembrance, calling to mind the men, women, and children whose lives were lost to violence that day. Thank you.

The Center for Heritage Renewal has coordinated the online fundraising campaign for repairs to the Welk Homestead (particularly the barn) prior to its takeover by the State Historical society of North Dakota as a state historic site in 2015. Here's the fundraising page - https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/proving-up-the-welk-homestead/

We've met our initial goal of $4000, the funds received and administered by the Tri-County Tourism Alliance. We still need volunteers to do the physical work, and we still could use funding to finish the job. See the update at the Indiegogo page referenced above.

Want to volunteer for the working party 1-3 August 2014? Call Clarence Herz at 701-799-4081.

We are on the brink of a signal accomplishment in heritage conservation and citizen action. Let's get this thing done.

Let's have three cheers and a tiger for Forum Communications!

". . . a volunteer effort to repair and restore the buildings is underway. Led by the local Tri-County Tourism Alliance, volunteers will converge on the site in early August to fix the barn and make other cosmetic and structural repairs to several buildings. . . .To volunteer, call Clarence Herz at (701) 799-4081."

http://www.inforum.com/content/forum-editorial-go-work-welk-homestead

The Center for Heritage Renewal is providing leadership, volunteers, and resources for restoration work on the Welk Homestead preparatory to its establishment as a state historic site. Details, and the opportunity to contribute via credit card, here - https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/proving-up-the-welk-homestead/

The Ludwig & Christina Welk Homestead will be the historic anchor of German-Russian Country as a heritage region. The center is proud to collaborate with Pioneer Heritage Inc., with the Tri-County Tourism Alliance, and with other individuals and organizations to bring about this development.

For Immediate Release
For more information, contact:
Carmen Rath-Wald: (701) 754-2504
Acacia Stuckle: (701) 254-4811

Proving Up the Welk Homestead
Effort by volunteers, lots of entertainment planned Aug. 1-3

People from around the country are invited to volunteer for the Proving Up the Welk Homestead project scheduled for Aug. 1-3 at the birthplace of Lawrence Welk near Strasburg, N.D.

The second day of the volunteer effort will conclude with a public celebration. Featured with be a German meal and entertainment, starting at 5:30 p.m. on Sat., Aug. 2. Admission to the site is free on Saturday. Volunteers will start working Friday. Saturday hours are 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sunday morning volunteers will clean up and pack up.

Anyone wishing to volunteer may call Clarence Herz at (701) 799-4081.

Purpose of the three-day event is to repair the barn and refurbish other buildings at the Welk site in preparation for the state’s purchase of the site. A condition of the purchase is that the barn must be restored and other maintenance be completed prior to the deal being closed.

Once the purchase is made, the State Historical Society of North Dakota will make the Welk Homestead a state historic site and begin operating it on July 1, 2015. The state will have a historic site for showcasing the history of homesteading, pioneer farming and the Germans from Russia—along with the accomplishments of the state’s famous native son, Lawrence Welk.

It is estimated that the cost of materials will be about $6,000, so a fund-raising campaign has been launched. The website for online donations is: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/proving-up-the-welk-homestead

Donations may be dropped off at the Strasburg State Bank, the Emmons County Record in Linton and First Community Credit Union in Napoleon.

People do not have to participate in the work project to come out for the event, and the public is encouraged to visit the site and enjoy the food and the music.

Coordinating the event are Dr. Tom Isern of North Dakota State University, Adam Baumstarck and Kevin Gabriel of Pioneer Heritage, Inc. and Carmen Rath-Wald of the Tri-County Tourism Alliance. Dr. Isern is Professor of History, University Distinguished Professor and Director of the Center for Heritage Renewal at NDSU. Baumstarck is President of Pioneer Heritage, and Gabriel serves on the board of directors. Pioneer Heritage developed the Welk site over 20 years ago and will operate it through June 30, 2015. The Tri-County Tourism Alliance promotes the area’s German-Russian culture in the counties of Emmons, Logan and McIntosh. Also participating are the NDSU Extension Service and the Germans from Russia Heritage Collection at NDSU.

The homestead

The Ludwig and Christina Welk Homestead is known to the world as the birthplace and boyhood home of Lawrence Welk, America's Music Maker. This farm site in Emmons County, N.D., is much more than that. It is the American homestead of two hard-working immigrant farmers, and it is a place for the celebration of pioneer family farming, as well as the rich heritage of the Germans from Russia, North Dakota's largest ethnocultural group.

In the days of the Homestead Act, settlers had to "prove" up their claims by building a home and making improvements. Today, in the process of making a state historic site, volunteers will be proving up the Welk Homestead once again.

Who Is Doing This?

In the old days, neighbors came together in old-fashioned barn-raisings. Neighbors are coming together again to rehabilitate the barn and buildings on the Welk Homestead. The centerpiece of the homestead is the residence, built in the old-country style of earthen brick, subsequently expanded and sided to accommodate the growing Welk family. The house and most of the outbuildings require only minor and cosmetic repairs. The barn, however, needs major work to make it safe.

The Center for Heritage Renewal provided $2,000 in materials for a service learning project by NDSU students in April. The students completed about 40 percent of the work that needs to be done on the barn.

Donations

Those making a donation of $100 will receive Lawrence Welk 1930, a signed and numbered offset lithograph by artist Gary P. Miller, depicting Lawrence Welk coming home to the Welk Homestead in his new 1930 Cord automobile. Donors of $500 will receive the same litho, mailed flat on a mat, ready for framing.