Touchstone Energy Highlights at Norsk Hostfest

Hostfest! (Clap clap clap) Hostfest! (Clap clap clap)
Joy is found in many forms at the Norsk Hostfest in Minot, North Dakota.
Nay, nay, nay. Nay, nay, nay.
From the Dance of the Sweaters to socks spun so soft, the source can only be angora rabbit.
Down at Copenhagen Hall, the lefse is served by a co-op member
Thank you!
and the cookies are served with a Touchstone Energy smile.
But if you want the Touchstone Energy cookies, you gotta be quick. Sure, theyre gonna give away 14,688 of them, but they only give away so many in a day.
Just got them out of the oven
(Michael Riedman/Member relations, BEPC): It takes about eight minutes to cook. And so, theyll put them out and theyre gone as soon as they come out. And its like, Where are the cookies? And its like, Theyll be here in eight minutes. And so theyll go around to the other side to get the cookies that have come out over there. And then theyll come back.
Michael Riedman says the Touchstone Energy booths cookies draw a crowd,
So do the buttons. They give away 4,000-of these a day, and theyre gone by noon. People can win prizes with them. But people can also get co-op information.
We tell them that Touchstone is a branding of all the rural electric cooperatives, just so that you can go from state to state and if you see the Touchstone Energy sign and the Three Amigos, you know youre going to get a square deal.
Rick Drown is a Great Plains Synfuels Plant retiree, and has volunteered here for eleven years.
(Rick Drown/GPSP retiree, Hostfest volunteer): We got a tremendous group of people we work with up here. Theyre all nice people.
But the Touchstone Energy sponsorship doesnt just help get the word out about co-ops. Its good for the Norsk Hostfest, too.
(Karen Krebsbach/Norsk Hostfest): Hostfest would not exist today the way it is without the sponsorships.
Karen Krebsbach with Hostfest says more than 65,000 people come to Hostfest from every state in the nation, and all over Scandinavia.
(Michael Riedman): They belong to a co-op in South Dakota or Minnesota or Montana, and theyre here and they see it and theyre kinda like, Oh, youre here.
Spreading the word about Touchstone Energy is a perk. And learning all about Scandinavia is another.
(Tracie Bettenhausen): One particular perk of the Touchstone Energy sponsorship is a chance to get special backstage passes. That means a very lucky few get their chance to have their photo taken with a celebrity.
(Wayne Backman): It was an opportunity to participate in Hostfest and the entertainment that is so appreciated and brought every year. (Tracie): How was Reba? (Wayne): Good. She was up there singing, she was singing one toe over the line, or one foot over the line, she was kinda warming up to the people taking the pictures. (Tracie): She was friendly? (Wayne): Yup, very much so.
(Helen Risan): Oh, shes very cordial, very kind. She really makes you feel comfortable.
(Cliff Gjellstad: Shes shorter than I thought.
Celebrity meet-and-greets, tapestries, and great food. All made possible in part by Touchstone Energy.

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• Basin
• Electric
• Power
• Cooperative
• Norsk
• Hostfest
• Touchstone
• Energy
• Reba
• McEntire
• angora
• rabbit

[2Zemog]

Høst is Autumn.

Host is cough.

Norwegian coughing party.

[multemusic]

This dance the kids are performing is a version or "Klappdans (Clap Dance)". At 1:13, you can see traditional Norwegian dancer Mikkel Thompson. At 1:51 you can see Troll performer David Braddock. Kudos to these performers who preserve Nordic and Scandinavian culture.