Suomi Specialties: Finnish Celebrations, Recipes, and Traditions

Sinikka Gronberg Garcia presents the ways and means of Finnish holidays, customs, and celebrations. Told with warm memories, Sinikka lends understanding to what it means to be a Finnish American. Traditional recipes are included, along with a brief history of Finland, travel information, a map, holiday celebrations, special celebrations, festivals in Finland, customs, Finland society information, Medieval churches in the Finnish Southwest, the Evangelical Lutheran church of Finland, a listing of music festivals, the sauna experience, Finland now, and in the twenty-first century.

About the Author

Even after forty years in the United States, Sinikka Garcia still claims to be mostly a Finn. Content in Arizona, she still yearns for Finland, where her Finnish family lives. She has kept her Finnish language fluent by speaking as well as reading and writing in Finnish. She maintains an interest in Finnish folklore, particularly as it appears in the Kalevala, as well as in politics, the people, the changing language, nature, and the environment through frequent trips and keeping in close touch with friends and relatives in Finland. Following World War II, in 1951, Sinikka was a volunteer in the international work camp program initiated by the American Friends Service Committee (Quakers). The purpose of the camps was to foster international understanding as well as to provide physical help in needy areas of the world. Sinikka has a bachelor of arts and a master’s degree in education from the University of Arizona. She has taught for over 25 years. The Garcias have four grown children: twin daughters who are teachers and two sons who are engineers. Her life is enhanced by her twelve grandchildren. In her retirement, she continues to write and translate books.