From the President

Godt nytår! As I write this, I’m celebrating the holidays with my family, and reflecting on the events of the past year. We celebrated a wonderful Julefrokost in December. As is tradition, the food was excellent, and the program was fun and happy. So wonderful to see so many delighted faces enjoying this traditional gathering. Many thanks all much appreciated. to the volunteers who prepared the food, organized the program, and performed countless tasks behind the scenes. You are We received an unexpected and very welcome gift from the City of Minneapolis last month. Shortly before the Julefrokost, the City of Minneapolis notified us that the city liquor laws have been amended. The new amendment allows nonprofit organizations like ours to apply for temporary liquor permits without needing a sponsoring partner organization to fulfill the insurance requirement. As it stands now, we are able to apply for our own liquor permits (up to 12 days per year), with some enhanced requirements. For example, we are required to purchase a temporary liquor liability insurance policy for each event at which we wish to serve alcohol. Among other requirements, we must also use trained serving staff (many of our DAC volunteers already have this service training). This is a very positive step forward for our DAC events where we want to offer alcohol drink service. So, what does this mean going forward? We are again free to schedule many of the traditional events that involve alcohol service. Danish Day and Julefrokost are among these events. This change in the city’s amendments also allows us to consider holding the Aquavit pairing meal again. I am grateful that the city changed this rule for nonprofits, and I am grateful for all of you for making 2025 a wonderful year of celebration and happiness at DAC.

Pete Gantriis