The program will include reading the poetry of the Kalevala, singing songs, storytelling and discussion. I will show my short animated tale, written with the idea to bring our ancestral saga-singing and storytelling to the present day.

Tulepas! Tulepas tänne! Come round here! Let’s tell stories from the Kalevala. In this program we will learn from “The Kalevala, a Study Guide” by Viola Jarvenpaa Brown, read aloud from the Kalevala itself and sing songs associated with the Kalevala. The fantastical Kalevala sagas were passed on in oral tradition, centering around Finnish folk mythology and creation. In our current times, people are looking to past history and legends to interpret the future. Why not look into the Kalevala for inspiration? Lisa will share her new animated short story with an unexpected hero, bringing sisu and hope to our unprecedented times. People will leave this program singing and inspired.

PRESENTER:

Growing up in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and the country of Finland, I bring strong bonds with nature and sisu. While tramping through the bogs with my family, a baby turtle clambered into my red rubber boot! This little turtle instilled in me a lifelong joy in nature. I was also steeped in the lore of the Kalevala from my mother and aunties, who recited and sang the runos. We even performed “Louhi, Witch of North Farm” in our small traveling puppet show.

I recently retired early from work as the technology-based futurist Lab Director at the University of Minnesota, Duluth, to focus on our greatest future and current challenge: the climate crisis. I believe we can move together for good as artists and poets, creating new stories and sagas for our times.

Education and awards

Lisa Fitzpatrick received a BS in Russian with a business minor from Georgetown University, Washington, DC; an associate degree in graphic design from Massachusetts College of Art & Design in Boston; and a Masters of Science in rhetoric and technical communication from Michigan Tech in Houghton, Michigan. Lisa was the director of two emerging technology labs (Viz Lab and MMAD Lab) at the University of Minnesota Duluth; additionally she is an experienced Russian, Spanish and French translator, and also speaks Finnish. She wrote two guides for Boston medical staff about Haitian and Hispanic cultural beliefs. Lisa Fitzpatrick was the recipient of the 2016 University of Minnesota President’s Award for Outstanding Service.

Lisa has been a member of the Ladies of Kaleva for over 25 years. She has received two grants from the Finlandia Foundation: “Luovia Malleja: Centennial Celebrations of Creative Designs From Finland to Minnesota” 2017 and “Auntie Sal and the Bear” 2008. At FinnFest 2008, Lisa Fitzpatrick presented her digital children’s story, “Auntie Sal and the Bear,” of Finnish stories, songs, and riddles. Additionally, she and professor Alison Aune presented the interactive digital story to local school children, as well as making Finnish crafts.

Lisa founded Duluth Climate Mobilization, which influenced the city of Duluth to declare a climate emergency and implement a climate action plan in 2021. She was a speaker about climate communication at Aspen Ideas: Climate in Miami 2022. She received the UMD Staff Sustainability Inspiration Award on April 12, 2024. Lisa recently completed “Oak Grove Blessings” twelve Sumi ink scrolls for the Institute on the Environment grant-funded project “Climate Art—Forest Assisted Migration” in spring 2025. Lisa is currently showing her art at FinnFest Muuttoliike! A TINY ART EXHIBITION.