Many, many people have been involved in this project beginning with Maria Enckell who saw the painting in 1988, recognized it's value and began a crusade for its restoration. Over the long years of effort, Maria has been assisted in Alaska by Sitkans Dorothy Breedlove, Harvey Brandt, Jack Navitsky, and Pastor James Drury, in addition to the members of the Sitka Lutheran Church Historical Preservation Committee.

Others in the lower 48 states who were of enormous help include former Sitka Lutheran Pastor, the Rev. Michael Meier, now working for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in American out of the churchwide headquarters in Chicago, Professor Brian Magnusson, and Norman Westerberg, Honorary Finnish Consul Emeritus at Seattle.

In Finland, we owe a great debt to Professor Tannar Ruuben of the EVTEK Institute of Art and Design, in Vantaa, along with the Institute's students and other staff--talented and gifted hands,  skilled and careful workers dedicated to restoring The Transfiguration to give us a sense of its original beauty.

Professor Heikki Hanka, of Jyväskylä University, who's scholarship on the painter is unquestioned and led him to us as a wonderful resource.

Others in Finland we mention are: Professor Berndt Godenhjelm, Marjatta Levanto, Curator of Education at Finland's National Gallery, Piryo Vuorinen, Museum Curator, Jyväskylä University Museum, and Tappani Seppälä, President of Elimäki School board.

Agencies and institutions in Finland that helped with finances and with the painting's subsequent exhibitions include: Amos Anderson Art Museum, Helsinki; Mikkeli Art Museum, Mikkeli; SAMPO BANK, Helsinki; St. Maria Church, St. Petersburg, Russia; Jyväskylä University, Jyväskylä; Lovisa Seafaring Museum, Mäntyharju Parish.

In the United States we had the help of the good folks from Finn Fest 2004, Lake Worth, Florida; the Finnish-American Heritage Center, Finlandia University, Hancock, Michigan; the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, National Offices in Chicago, Illinois; the American Swedish Institute, Minneapolis, Minnesota; Karpeles Manuscript Museum, Tacoma, Washington; the Nordic Museum, Seattle, Washington; Professor David A. Hales, Margarita Nikamo Coquette, Trudy Schenk, Salt Lake City, Utah.

Sitka Lutheran Church  •  224 Lincoln St.  •  PO Box 598  •  Sitka AK 99835
Office phone: 907.747.3338  Office E-mail  •  Last updated: 04/02/2008

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