Swiss Cultural Society of Calgary
History
Since our inception 1960, the Swiss Cultural Society of Calgary has embraced a long and colourful history of landmark events within a growing Calgary. Over these years, our Swiss community has grown in many ways, including the diversity of groups and how we express our proud Swiss Culture through the countless activities and events over these 60 years and beyond. We continue to celebrate our place in Calgary’s history. Read on to learn more…
Nearly 60 years ago, a number of Swiss citizens living in Calgary decided that instead of their traditional get together for a Jass at the Calgary Press Club near the old Herald building downtown, it was decided that the formation of a Club to represent the Swiss community as a whole should be further considered and acted upon. According to the records, the first meeting took place on
The Minutes of the second meeting indicated that the name “Matterhorn” was chosen and the annual membership was established at $5 per couple and $3 for single members. It was noted then at recruitment for membership and participation of Swiss community activities was as difficult a task then as it is now.
In the 1960’s, there was a reasonable influx of new young Swiss immigrants into the Calgary area. A lonely immigrant would often find his way to the Noble Hotel and was bound to run into a few Swiss compatriots there. One of these established old-timers was a gentleman by the name of Ernie Brunner, who was one of the foremost gardeners for Calgary’s elite. Ernie Brunner was known to initiate these young Swiss newcomers with a carefully established dose of whiskey, the potency of which unfortunately was unknown to these greenhorns. Once the poor newbie got over the next few days of “Canada hospitality”, Ernie would open his heart in true Swiss fashion and offer the newcomer a good job at fair wages. Starting in the late 1950’s, the house of Arnold and Rosa Rutzer was always open to new Swiss boarders. Most Swiss newcomers were welcome to stay at their place and, over the years, represented approximately thirty-five boarders they hosted.
In March of 1964, the Scotch Cup, the men’s world curling championship, was held in Calgary at the Stampede Corral. It was a special moment for the Swiss Club when a Switzerland Curling Team was there to participate in the Scotch Cup. The team was, of course, properly welcomed by our Club.
In July of 1964 under the presidency of Arnold
In 1965 the Club had the honor of entertaining the Swiss Ambassador to Canada and the Swiss Consul from Winnipeg with a cocktail party arranged at the Summit Hotel and attended but approximately 100 people.
In 1967, Canada’s Centennial Year, another substantial project was undertaken where the Calgary Stampede Board asked our Swiss Club to enter a float in the annual Calgary Stampede Parade. Indeed, the momentous task was tackled with typical Swiss tenacity and we proudly entered our float depicting the Matterhorn, with alphorn players and musical groups. During that same Stampede, there were also Air Balloon Races and two teams from Switzerland entered the competition and did very well. It must have been some sight for the Swiss to see a balloon with the name of the Circus Knie, the largest circus of Switzerland, over the skies of Calgary.
Over the years, the club stayed active with bowling, curling, August 1st celebrations, Landsgemeinde, socials with tea and Swiss cookies, attendance of the annual Food Fair, showing of films and slides, and many more activities.
The next big highlight was the 1988 Winter Olympics. For the first time, the Winter Olympics were extended to 16 days, including three weekends. The Alpine events were expanded from three to five events, with the inclusion of the Super Giant Slalom and the Alpine Combined. Team events were added in Nordic Combined and Ski Jumping. We were extremely proud to celebrate our athletes here in Calgary as the Swiss Olympic Team netted 5 Gold, 5 Silver, and 5 Bronze, beating out the Canadians who earned 2 Silver and 2 Bronze.
Gold: Pirmin Zurbriggen for men’s downhill, Vreni Schneider for women’s GS & slalom, Switzerland 1 for 4-man bobsleigh & Hippolyt Kempf for individual men’s Nordic combined. Silver: Brigitte Oertli for women’s alpine combined & women’s downhill, Peter Müller for men’s downhill, Michela Figini for women’s super-G and men’s team Switzerland for
The spirit of volunteerism displayed by the Swiss community during the Olympic Games in February 1988 was extended all the way into the summer months, when members of the SCM were front and center, pitching in wherever they were needed during Festival 88, the song festival of the North American Swiss Singing Alliance. The JK Heimattreu, as a member society of
In June/July 1997, the Club also supported our Swiss competitors in the World Police & Fire Games. R. Bertschi, P. Burkhard
Starting in 1976, Spruce Meadows Equestrian Park was opened and our Swiss Club was right there. From its infancy, extensive involvement was made by Fritz Gosteli, who worked closely with the founders, Ron and Marg Southern, in the evolution of the Spruce Meadows Festival of Nations. Each year, Swiss volunteers came together to help host a pavilion where visitors could walk through our Swiss tent, learn some interesting facts about Switzerland and our culture, as well as view some Swiss items up close, such as a traditional Swiss Armbrust and bolt, as well as large
Over the years to follow, the Swiss Cultural Society of Calgary continued to stay active with numerous events, such as our August 1st celebrations, Dance Group, Yodel Choir performances, a Theater Group, and a Volleyball group.
In 2013, as a way of attracting more members, as well as the interests of younger Swiss members, the Club introduced such annual events as a hands-on Swiss Cuisine evening to help maintain our culinary heritage and to pass along such recipes to our younger generations, as well as revitalizing the Outdoor group, and our Swiss community’s stewardship within the City of Calgary’s annual Pathway & River Clean-up.
In 2018, the Club Executive was represented collectively by the youngest executive team, including Micaela Widmer (31 yrs), our retired Swiss National Skeleton Athlete who was living and trained here at Calgary’s Canada Olympic facilities. Additionally, this particular year also marked the introduction of a new role of ‘Assistant to the Editor’, a tertiary but valuable position in both providing help to fold and pack our quarterly Newsletters for mailing to our members and in allowing one elected youth from our Swiss member community to be mentored as well as to be a mentor to other youth. Often this might be their first work experience – an experience that they can take with them as they go towards their future developments. The very first person to hold this position with great eagerness was 9-year-old Emma-Lee Reist, daughter of Sandra Reist, whose desire it was to be a writer when she grows up.
The Swiss Cultural Society of Calgary could not exist without the incredible amount of time and financial support from our members and business partners. We truly app everyone’s involvement and ask that our members and visitors to continue to support our partners with