The St. David's Society of Minnesota was formed to celebrate the heritage and culture of the Welsh immigrants to Minnesota. To these ends, St. David's Society members celebrate and cultivate all things Welsh - in literature, history, music, dance, art or ideas, traditional and contemporary.
Sunday, October 18, 2026, 2 - 4 pm, Merlins Rest, 3601 E Lake St., Minneapolis
How has your summer been? What interesting books have you been reading? What have you learned about Wales since we've seen you last? What brings you joy?
Join us this Sunday for scintillating conversation with other Society members, a brew or a cup of tea, and good food.
We've also set some dates going forward. All dates are on Sunday, 2 - 4 pm at Merlins Rest. We hope you can make at least a few of them!
15 November
17 January
21 March
Well-Read Dragon's Book Group
Saturday, December 5, 2026, 11:45 am - 1:00 pm on Zoom
Whale Fall, by Elizabeth O'Connor. Vintage, 2024. $5 - $16 / used and new
A stunning debut from an award-winning writer, about loss, isolation, folklore, and the joy and dissonance of finding oneself by exploring life outside one’s community. In 1938, a dead whale washes up on the shores of remote Welsh island. For Manod, who has spent her whole life on the island, it feels like both a portent of doom and a symbol of what may lie beyond the island's shores. A young woman living with her father and her sister (to whom she has reluctantly but devotedly become a mother following the death of their own mother years prior), Manod can't shake her welling desire to explore life beyond the beautiful yet blisteringly harsh islands that her hardscrabble family has called home for generations. The arrival of two English ethnographers who hope to study the island culture, then, feels like a boon to her—both a glimpse of life outside her community and a means of escape. The longer the ethnographers stay, the more she feels herself pulled towards them, reckoning with a sensual awakening inside herself, despite her misgivings that her community is being misconstrued and exoticized. With shimmering prose tempered by sharp wit, Whale Fall tells the story of what happens when one person's ambitions threaten the fabric of a community, and what can happen when they are realized. O'Connor paints a portrait of a community and a woman on the precipice, forced to confront an outside world that seems to be closing in on them.
Join us to discuss the book and chat with other members. You do not have to have read (or finished) the book to participate. Contact Ilene Alexander at ilene.dawn@gmail.com for more information.
Future discussions:
Feb. 6: Something Wonderful: Stories, by Jo Lloyd
Apr. 3: The Woman Who Helped Win the War: The Welfare Campaigns of Margaret Llord George, 1914-1918, by Richard Rhys O'Brien
St. David’s Day Celebration, Sat., Feb. 27, 11:30 a.m.–3 p.m.
St. Anthony Park Lutheran Church, 2323 Como Ave., St. Paul.
Gymanfa Ganu, Sun., April 4, 2027, 2 p.m. Member Karen Wojahn directing.
St. Anthony Park Lutheran Church, 2323 Como Ave., St. Paul
Sgwrs Cymraeg, Welsh Conversation
Any learners or would-be learners welcome to any or all of these classes. ALL held via Zoom, on the 2nd and 4th Saturdays from 10:30am - 12:30pm. Contact conversation facilitator: Laurel Bradshaw, llawryf@yahoo.com for Zoom link and more information.
Interviews of Society Members
Our First Member Interview: Ellis Jones! On November 1, 2021, one of our board members, Hywel Roberts, interviewed our long-time member and past president, Ellis Jones. Click hereto read the transcript of the interview. We will eventually create a video of excerpts from this and future interviews.
Laurel Bradshaw: in March of 2025, Mary Morris Mergenthal interviewed Laurel about how she learned Welsh and became a Welsh dance instructor. Read her responses here.
Links to Enjoy (Click on the green text)
Find the program from our recent Holiday Tea, including all the readings, here.
Did you know the on-line game Wordle was invented by a Welshman? Read about his story here.
Today's Harlech: Our member Ryan Evans has produced a recording of Welsh-Minnesotans singing the folk song Tros Y Garreg (Over the Stone) set to his original electronic music accompaniment. He has also created a website with this music and stories and poems written by and read by our members about their Welsh heritage. (Click on the title above to get to the website.)
History of Wales links: Scott Lloyd, one of our Welsh speakers over Zoom,has generously shared many links to learn abour Welsh history and ancient sites.
Contact us at mailto:stdavidsofmn@gmail.com or visit and "like" our Facebook page to learn more about the Welsh and Wales at local, national, and international levels: Go to facebook
