Volunteer at Gammelgården Museum of Scandia! There are many ways to share your talents:

Become a Tour Guide. Our tour guides are trained and scheduled at their convenience to lead groups, school children, or individuals through our historic buildings.

Assist with Children’s Programs and Activities. Help or teach children simple art projects, crafts, and other activities at public events and camp programs.

Be a Greeter. Welcome visitors to Gammelgården and answer their questions.

Help in the Butik. Arrange and style merchandise; assist customers in finding just the right item to remember their time at Gammelgården; and complete transactions. Contact Linnea in the Butik for more information at 651-433-5053.

Be on the Gammelgården Garden Team. Prepare, plant, and weed the museum’s vegetable, fruit, and herb garden; medicinal garden; and dye garden. Contact Ann for more information at media@gammelgardenmuseum.org.

Assist with events such as the Open House, Memorial Day Program, Midsommardagen, Spelmansstämman, Taco Daze, Running of the Meatballs, Annie’s Coffee Parties, and Luciadagen. Help with set-up and take-down, food, and activities.

To help with the demonstrations and children’s activities, see the “Assist with Children’s Programs” sign-up above.

Help with building and grounds maintenance. Please contact Gammelgården Caretaker, Erin Swanson, at 651-433-5053 or via email at erineswanson@hotmail.com if you are interested in helping with special projects.

Questions? Contact us today! Call 651-433-5053 or email Lynne at director@gammelgardenmuseum.org

Stay Informed

We would love to have you part of our mailing list.  Much of what we produce in way of communication will be sent by email (such as Kul News or event invites), but we also have a physical mailing list for our Tidskrift newsletter.

Fill out the forms below to be added to our mailing lists.

Subscribe to Kul News

Subscribe to Tidskrift

Opportunities for Artists and Students

2023 has many opportunities for artists (professional and hobbyists) and students (public, private, charter, and homeschool). See below for more information.

Artists & Crafters Fair and Demonstration Area at Major Events 

Gammelgården Museum of Scandia would like to extend an invitation to individuals who would like to be demonstrators, sell their products, and/or have an information table for two of Gammelgården’s major events this summer:

–        Midsommardagen (June 24th)

–        Spelmansstämman (August 19th)

You are welcome to do demonstrations, hands-on activities with guests, and/or sell items that are in the Swedish/Scandinavian folk traditions (e.g., blacksmithing, folk painting, weaving, spinning, embroidery, knitting, crocheting, candlemaking, coopering, tinwork, hide tanning, pottery, copperwork, woodworking, chip carving, sewing, quilting) or related to heirloom gardening and nature.

All the proceeds you make at the event are yours to keep…Gammelgården does not take a percentage of what you earn.

All participants bring their own tables, chairs, tent, and other supplies. Gammelgården provides the space.

Although there is no fee for being at any of the event(s), we appreciate it if you consider becoming a member of the museum.

Gammelgården Guidelines for Event Demonstrators and Vendors

Artists and Crafters Application Form

2024 Spring/Summer Internship

If you are a high school senior or college student looking to explore the field of non-profit management or work in a history museum setting, Gammelgården’s internship program may be worth exploring! Gammelgården selects one student each year to provide a workplace-based guided learning opportunity that gives a student hands-on experience in a wide range of fields.

Visit this link for more information: Gammelgarden Intern Job Description

If the internship sounds like a good fit, email Gammelgården’s Director, Lynne Blomstrand Moratzka, at gammelgardenlynne@frontiernet.net with your resume and letter of interest

2023 Junior Guides

Students who have graduated from 6th grade through college volunteer as assistants and historical characters at the many events at Gammelgården Museum of Scandia during the spring and summer seasons.

At the popular Opening Day Weekend (Saturday, May 6th) and Midsommar Dag (Saturday, June 24), Junior Guides involve visitors with 19th-century immigrant life on this small farm in Scandia. They provide guidance to children who are packing a trunk at the Stuga for their journey to America, assist with “milking” cows at the barn, show children how to make butter, help children carry water at the Immigrant Hus, and guide visitors as they learn how laundry was done at the parsonage. Junior Guides also teach visitors Swedish folk dances and school recess games, plus how to make flower wreaths.

In addition to festivals, Junior Guides participate in Girls & Dolls Tea Parties, Dalapalooza, and day camps during the summer. They can learn gardening skills by working in Gammelgarden’s many gardens, maintain the bluebird house trail, and help create videos for TikTok and Facebook.

For those wanting to volunteer during the school year, there are weekend events throughout the fall and winter including craft workshops, gingerbread house decorating, Annie’s Coffee Parties, and Lucia Dagen.

If this sounds like something you would enjoy, email Gammelgården’s Associate Director, Ann Rinkenberger, at media@gammelgardenmuseum.org to sign up as a Junior Guide and get more information.

Membership Options

Since 1972, members of the Gammelgården Museum of Scandia have provided support to help bring our mission alive. Through the generosity of our members, Gammelgården can honor the Swedish immigrants who founded the community.

Member support helps make the events, programs, and classes offered by the museum accessible and affordable to all. If you are not a member, please consider becoming a member today! As a member, you receive benefits all year long, including free guided tours, 10% discount at the Gammelgården Museum of Scandia Butik, special pricing for select events and classes, and more depending on your membership level.

Supporter

$45 – Individual

$60 – Family

 10% discount at Scandia Batik
•  Free guided tours of museum
 Member pricing for select events/classes/workshops
 Membership Appreciation Day
Access to the Time Travelers Network

Sponsor

$90 – Individual

$120 – Family

•  10% discount at Scandia Butik
•  Free guided tours of museum
•  
Member pricing for select events/classes/workshops
•  
Membership Appreciation Day
•  
Two free guest passes per year
•  Access to the Time Travelers Network

Advocate

$130 – Individual

$170 – Family

•  10% discount at Scandia Butik
•  Free guided tours of museum
•  
Member pricing for select events/classes/workshops
•  
Membership Appreciation Day
•  
Four free guest passes per year
•  
One free individual Supporter membership, per year, for family member or friend
 Access to the Time Travelers Network

Life

$850 – Individual

$1100 – Family

•  10% discount at Scandia Butik
•  Free guided tours of museum
•  
Member pricing for select events/classes/workshops
•  
Membership Appreciation Day
•  
Eight free guest passes per year
•  
Annual Gammelgarden Christmas ornament
•  
Annual Director’s Gathering
•  
Two additional free individual Supporter membership, redeemable within first year of membership in the Life category
 Access to the Time Travelers Network

Artifact Donations

Gammelgården Museum of Scandia welcomes donations and appreciates your willingness to share artifacts and their stories. There are guidelines that help you (the donor) and Gammelgården in making the decision to donate. The artifacts we accept need to tell the story of Swedish Immigration to Minnesota, especially relating to the years 1850–1880 as that is our focus.

Often, artifacts are presented to us as gifts of love because they represent family members now departed, but much loved and revered. We always are honored to receive the artifact and the story.

Artifacts become the property of Gammelgården, and Gammelgården reserves the right to display and preserve them to the benefit of our mission.

When accepted, the artifacts are carefully described, catalogued, and marked. Donors receive a receipt letter of thanks and a record of items donated with their catalog numbers. Gammelgården does not attach a monetary value to artifact gifts.

The first step to donating an artifact to the museum is to call Lynne at Gammelgården at 651-433-5053 to discuss the item(s).

Monetary Donations

When you support Gammelgården Museum, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, you make inspiration and discovery happen. You ensure that the stories of the past are preserved and accessible for generations to come.

Making a monetary gift to the Museum gives vital support where it is needed the most – enhancing programming for the public, preserving our collection, and making our historical resources accessible to all. To do this work, we rely on the support of generous donors like you. Please make a gift today.

Donations should be mailed to:

Gammelgården Museum of Scandia
20880 Olinda Trail North
P.O. Box 62
Scandia, MN 55073

Memorial Donations

Memorial gifts can be designated for specific purposes or added to the Gammelgården Endowment Fund which provides annual income in perpetuity for operation.

Please make checks payable to Gammelgården Museum of Scandia. In the memo line, put the words Endowment Fund. Donations should be mailed to:

Gammelgården Museum of Scandia
20880 Olinda Trail North
P.O. Box 62
Scandia, MN 55073

Each monetary gift is acknowledged with a thank you receipt for your tax records.

Wishlist – Products

Gammelgarden knows how to stretch a dollar and pinch pennies to make things happen, but sometimes the things we need to take it to the next level are just beyond our reach. We’ve made a list of some of the pressing things we need.

Accessibility

Mobility scooter so that all visitors to Gammelgarden can enjoy museum: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PV5NPCY/

ADA-accessible doors


Building & Grounds/Office  

8 ½ X 11 White Copy Paper

8 ½ X 11 Color Copy Paper

Baby wipes

Disinfectant wipes and spray

Gift Cards To:

Wal-Mart
Target
Michaels
Joanns
Amazon.com
Menards
Office Supply Store
Prairie Restorations
Landscape Alternatives
Sherwin Williams

Ice melt

Kleenex

Postage Stamps

Trash Bags (45 Gallon/2 Ml)


Children’s Programming  

Fabric – historic fabric reproductions

Gunny sacks for potato sack races

Items for a nature-theme discovery bin:

  • Animal skulls
  • Animal tracks
  • Magnifying glasses

Items for a quilting camp:

Old children’s games (e.g., marbles,  cup & ball, spinning tops)

Prizes for children (for use at camp programs)

Rope for tug-of-war

Sensory table

Water handpumps (colorful) for a children’s activity

Weaving loom (Need 6) – https://www.amazon.com/Friendly-Loom-Hardwood-Weaving-Crafts/dp/B00000IVAB/


Documentation of Artifacts 

Photo box for photographing artifacts and newspapers without glare

White backdrop for photographing large artifacts – https://www.amazon.com/Kate-Backdrop-Photography-Background-Headshots/dp/B082YY718R/?th=1

Backdrop stand and accessories for photographing large artifacts – https://www.amazon.com/Studio-Adjustable-Background-Backdrop-Support/dp/B00MTF6ZVC/

 

Events

Beeswax pellets – https://www.amazon.com/Howemon-Beeswax-Pellets-Filtered-Supplies/dp/B07YN9TX9W/?th=1

Beeswax sheets and candle wicks for making rolled candles (10 sets) – https://www.amazon.com/Beeswax-Candle-kids-12-Natural-Honeycomb/dp/B0BFGSH48R/?th=1

Historic trunks (in good condition)

Instruments that children could play at Bluegrass & Lemonade in the Shade (e.g., violins, violas)

Large round wooden spools

Jenga (large/yard size)

Oversized lawn games

 

StoryCorps (New Program to Launch in 2023) 

Airstream trailer to launch the museum’s StoryCorps program: https://www.airstream.com/travel-trailers/bambi/

Recording equipment for the StoryCorps program – microphone, etc.

 

Workshops 

Coffee (ground)

100% wool sweaters of any size

Sewing machines in working order

 

 A receipt for tax-deduction purposes will be provided with each donation.

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Wish list – Volunteer 

Handyperson to make and install screens for the old church (a donor will pay for the materials)

Piano tuner to tune the museum’s upright piano

Woodworker to create photo props for public events

Artist/painter to repaint some of the items used in children’s programs

Employment Opportunities

Gammelgården Museum of Scandia has one employment opportunity in 2023:

Please contact Lynne Moratzka at gammelgardenlynne@frontiernet.net for more information about the position and to submit your resume.

For those not seeking employment but are interested in being involved with the museum, Gammelgården also welcomes adult volunteers and Junior Guides (6th graders-college students).