Activities
Annual Gala Awards Dinner Dance. All the net proceeds for this event benefit the foundation’s scholarship fund. A partial listing of past recipients of the foundation’s Arts and Letters Award include the late Senator J. William Fulbright, orchestra conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen, soprano Karita Mattila, former New York Times journalist and author Werner Wiskari, and composer Charles Wuorinen. The annual awards dinner dance, a black tie event, is usually held in March in New York City.
Full List of previous honorees
Artist Debut Series.(currently on hiatus) The purpose for this activity is to sponsor young Finnish artists and provide them with a New York recital debut. Past debut artists include, among others, mezzo-soprano Monica Groop, baritone Jaakko Kortikangas, soprano Helena Juntunen, pianist Tuija Hakkila, cellist Anssi Karttunen, and pianist Laura Mikkola. The event is regularly scheduled during the fall season.
Scholarship Awards. The awarding of scholarships to American and Finnish students for study and research abroad is awarded annually. Individual grants may range from $500. to $5,000. There are six separate funds, and the total scholarship money given comes to about $30,000 per year. Awardees are chosen by a committee from a list of candidates during May.
Finnish Independence Day Commemoration. On a Sunday closest to December 6 th the foundation takes the occasion to commemorate Finnish independence. The annual program includes an invocation, a speaker from Finland, greetings from the Consul General, and performances of music and poetry. Recognition is given to Finnish war veterans in attendance.
Membership Meetings. Besides the above mentioned events, there are four membership meetings held on November, December (Christmas party), April, and May (Annual Meeting). Each contains a program of a type described earlier, followed by a social hour with refreshments. It is also an opportunity to renew acquaintances kept over the years and to form new ones.
Other activities during the year include special events sponsored in conjunction with other New York based groups such as the Sibelius Society, the American Scandinavian Foundation, Finnish American Women’s Network (FAWN), and the American Scandinavian Society. Any written inquiries to the foundation may be addressed to: Finlandia Foundation, New York Metropolitan Chapter, Box 2590 Grand Central Station, New York, NY 10163.