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.
Saturday, February 28, 2026, 11:30 am - 2:30 pm at St. Anthony Park Lutheran Church, 2323 Como Ave., St. Paul
The St. David’s Day Celebration is our main event of the year -- a day to celebrate Wales and all things Welsh, and enjoy each other’s company. One again, we will enjoy homemade Cawl Cennin (leek soup) and sandwiches from D’Amico’s. As always, we will have music and singing, plus the chance to buy arts and craft items brought by our members. Click here to download a copy of the RSVP form for your choice of sandwich or salad.
For our program this year, we are fortunate to have author Sarah Woodbury come to us via Zoom to talk to us about Welsh history. The title of her talk is: "None could go against the King of England: Crouchback and the History of Medieval Wales." After the assassination of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd in 1282, King Edward I of England set about eliminating Welsh language, culture, and history to the best of his ability, even to the point of expunging any mention of the Welsh royal court from public documents and placing himself in the lineage of the great Welsh hero, Arthur. He took the crown, the piece of the true cross, and even the title, Prince of Wales, which from then on would be bestowed on the eldest son of the King of England. This talk places the ambush and murder of Llywelyn ap Gruffydd within the context of Welsh history, traces its origins and consequences, and then asks, “How do those who survive the end of their world keep on living?”
About Sarah Woodbury: With over two million books sold to date, Sarah Woodbury is the author of more than fifty novels, all set in medieval Wales. Although an anthropologist by training, and then a full-time homeschooling mom for twenty years, she began writing fiction when the stories in her head overflowed and demanded that she let them out. While her ancestry is Welsh, she only visited Wales for the first time at university. She has been in love with the country, language, and people ever since. She even convinced her husband to give all four of their children Welsh names.
If people care to read one of her books before the talk, Crouchback, the first book in the Welsh Guard Mysteries, is available in ebook for free at all retailers worldwide. You can also find it in audio and paper. Click here for the links: https://www.sarahwoodbury.com/books/crouchback/
Lecture Series: A Short Journey through Welsh History
Hosted by the Celtic Junction Arts Center, this three-part introductory lecture series offers a concise journey through the history of Cymru (Wales), tracing how a small country developed a strong and lasting national identity. Designed for those new to Welsh history, the series moves briskly across the timeline, highlighting key moments, people, and ideas rather than exploring events in deep detail. Lecturer: Dan Rowbotham. Click here for more information.
Well-Read Dragon's Book Group
Saturday, April 4, 2026, 11:45 am - 1:00 pm on Zoom
How the Irish Saved Civilization, by Thomas Cahill. Doubleday,1995
For this year's "one book from another UK country that's not England," the recommender notes that the prose of this historiography is a little thick because it predates the stylistic - more readable and concise -- change of contemporary historiography, but that the fascinating history from the 5th century fall of Rome to the early 8th century Middle Ages, makes for a reading that is worth pushing through. A must-read for anyone interested in the histories of Ireland, Great Britain, or Western Europe.
The other books for 2025-26, also chosen by members:
June 6: The Ladies, by Doris Grumbach. Harper Collins,1984
Aug. 1: Welsh [Plural]: Essays on the Future of Wales, edited by Darren Chetty, Grug Muse, Hanan Issa, and Iestyn Tyne. Repeater Press, 2022
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
