By Rich Larson
A golf tournament that began as a way to remember a Northfield native who died 15 years ago will continue that tradition this month, while helping a new generation of Northfield students pursue their own adventures.
The 16th annual Bjorn Norgaard Adventurous Spirit Golf Tournament will be held Friday, September 18 at the Faribault Golf Club. The event begins with a 12:30 p.m. shotgun start and will raise money for the Bjorn Norgaard ’06 Adventurous Spirit Scholarship at Northfield High School.
Norgaard, a 2006 Northfield High School graduate, was killed in a hit-and-run crash in northern Wisconsin in February of 2011. An avid outdoorsman and cross-country skier, Norgaard had traveled to the area to ski the Book Across the Bay race near Ashland as he prepared for the American Birkebeiner. He was struck while skiing back toward Ashland after the event.
His father, Brett Norgaard, said Bjorn loved the outdoors from an early age. He ran cross-country, became an accomplished skier and fly fisherman, and after college worked as a fly-fishing guide in Alaska. Friends later described him as an “old soul” with an adventurous spirit.
Following Bjorn’s death, the family established a scholarship and the Brother Bear Endowment at Northland College, Bjorn’s alma mater. The program eventually helped 37 students participate in outdoor experiences, including skiing the Birkebeiner. After Northland closed, the family decided to bring the scholarship back to Bjorn’s hometown.
The first two Northfield High School scholarships were awarded this spring to Odin Bowen and Rachel Musicant. Brett said recipients do not necessarily have to be top academic students. Instead, the scholarship looks for good young people with an interest in volunteering, an appreciation for the environment and a willingness to explore.
The golf tournament began just months after Bjorn’s death and has developed what Norgaard calls a reunion atmosphere. Although Bjorn himself was not much of a golfer, the tournament proved to be a way to bring friends and family together year after year. Proceeds will now support the scholarship through Northfield Shares.
For Brett Norgaard, the larger purpose is to encourage young people to follow the quality that defined his son: get outside, explore, take a bike ride, go camping, paddle a canoe — and honor their own adventurous spirit.
Rich Larson is the owner and General Manager of KYMN Radio. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
