Trachtengruppe Gohl at Cheese Days
Trachtengruppe Gohl will perform at 2:30 Friday, Sept. 16 and at 2:15 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 17 on the Main Stage at Cheese Days. The group will also perform at 6 p.m. Saturday in the Hospitality Tent.
Find them on Facebook by searching: Trachtengruppe Gohl.
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Look for a 24-page preview in the Saturday, Sept. 10 edition of The Monroe Times.
MONROE - A big opportunity for both entertainment and friendship is coming straight from Switzerland to Monroe for the popular Cheese Days celebration this year.
Those attending will have several opportunities to enjoy folk dancers from the group Trachtengruppe Gohl, founded in 1982 from Langnau, Switzerland - the village that Monroe has an unofficial sisterhood with.
"Trachten," which means traditional costumes, is exactly visitors will see with the "Gruppe," which means group. "Gohl" is a neighborhood less than a mile from Langnau where the original dancers lived, although most of the present dancers live within Langnau and practice at a school there.
The 27-person group, including four musicians, will perform during Cheese Days and will be in the Cheese Days parade with the Swiss Singers. Members have other performances at Turner Hall and also in New Glarus planned.
Their dancing is similar to square dancing, but with accordion music.
The group began as young people from Gohl who wanted to start a dance group to honor folklore and traditional costumes. Therese Schneider, Veronika Haussener, Elisabeth Gerber and Barbara Krahenbuhl were founding members and still perform with the group today.
Monroe residents Hans and Bobbie Bernet, with help from others, have spearheaded organizing the group's visit. They said they are excited about the camaraderie and entertainment they'll bring.
The connection with Langnau was formed before the previous Cheese Days, but wasn't quite enough time to make plans for the group to come for the 100-year celebration in 2014.
Hans runs tourist groups to Switzerland with Turner Hall and last September the group spent the day with people from Trachtengruppe Gohl.
"When we were there in September, several friendships were formed," Hans said.
The group will stay at a local hotel Sept. 14-19, but organizers are still searching for host families to welcome members into their home to stay from Sept. 19-24.
About a third of the group will travel on to see other sites in the United States but several members will stay in Monroe. Following Cheese Days, some Trachtengruppe Gohl members will get a chance to visit a local cheese factory, a family farm and the Historical Cheesemaking Center before enjoying a potluck meal. They will also get to visit the state Capitol and the Mississippi River - something many are looking forward to.
"We want to show them the life and people in our area," Hans said. "We hope that friendships are created that will last for years."
A few years ago, Hans worked on having a sister city relationship with a community in Switzerland and eventually was put in touch with Langnau officials. It turned out to be a perfect fit: Langnau has about 9,500 people and boasts a large cheesemaking center. The cities are similar in population and are both famous for dairy farms and cheese. Numerous Swiss immigrants from the Langnau area of the canton of Bern settled in the Monroe area in the 19th and early 20th Centuries.
The Bernets and former mayor Bill Ross and his wife Marilyn presented the idea to people in Langnau and from there, the unofficial sisterhood was born.
Later on, they realized that Emmi-Roth, a Swiss company with a location in Monroe, has one of their main plants in Langnau.
Those coming to Monroe are a cross-section of real people - farmers, teachers, cheese makers and truck drivers are among them, Hans said. For many, it is likely their first time on an airplane.
"Switzerland has a high standard of living," Hans said. "They have a very good education system ... they know a lot about the world and have been exposed to different cultures."
Both Bobbie and Hans agree it was so important to work on the Langnau connection and bring this large group to Monroe.
"These intercultural things are lots more valuable than plain old tourism," Hans said. "I think their minds are going to be blown by how Swiss Monroe still is."
To become a host to some of the group members, contact Hans and Bobbie Bernet at 608-325-4914. They are also looking for people to be a resource and show them around. There will be a welcome lunch for the group at Turner Hall Sept. 15. The public is invited but reservations are required.
Meeting more than just restaurant and hotel employees has been a mantra for the Bernets - they know first-hand how much more you can take away from a trip when you interact with the local residents.
"The people they meet will be the most important thing (to experience)," Bobbie said. "But Monroe is such a pretty town - there aren't many places as beautiful as Green County in September."
Those attending will have several opportunities to enjoy folk dancers from the group Trachtengruppe Gohl, founded in 1982 from Langnau, Switzerland - the village that Monroe has an unofficial sisterhood with.
"Trachten," which means traditional costumes, is exactly visitors will see with the "Gruppe," which means group. "Gohl" is a neighborhood less than a mile from Langnau where the original dancers lived, although most of the present dancers live within Langnau and practice at a school there.
The 27-person group, including four musicians, will perform during Cheese Days and will be in the Cheese Days parade with the Swiss Singers. Members have other performances at Turner Hall and also in New Glarus planned.
Their dancing is similar to square dancing, but with accordion music.
The group began as young people from Gohl who wanted to start a dance group to honor folklore and traditional costumes. Therese Schneider, Veronika Haussener, Elisabeth Gerber and Barbara Krahenbuhl were founding members and still perform with the group today.
Monroe residents Hans and Bobbie Bernet, with help from others, have spearheaded organizing the group's visit. They said they are excited about the camaraderie and entertainment they'll bring.
The connection with Langnau was formed before the previous Cheese Days, but wasn't quite enough time to make plans for the group to come for the 100-year celebration in 2014.
Hans runs tourist groups to Switzerland with Turner Hall and last September the group spent the day with people from Trachtengruppe Gohl.
"When we were there in September, several friendships were formed," Hans said.
The group will stay at a local hotel Sept. 14-19, but organizers are still searching for host families to welcome members into their home to stay from Sept. 19-24.
About a third of the group will travel on to see other sites in the United States but several members will stay in Monroe. Following Cheese Days, some Trachtengruppe Gohl members will get a chance to visit a local cheese factory, a family farm and the Historical Cheesemaking Center before enjoying a potluck meal. They will also get to visit the state Capitol and the Mississippi River - something many are looking forward to.
"We want to show them the life and people in our area," Hans said. "We hope that friendships are created that will last for years."
A few years ago, Hans worked on having a sister city relationship with a community in Switzerland and eventually was put in touch with Langnau officials. It turned out to be a perfect fit: Langnau has about 9,500 people and boasts a large cheesemaking center. The cities are similar in population and are both famous for dairy farms and cheese. Numerous Swiss immigrants from the Langnau area of the canton of Bern settled in the Monroe area in the 19th and early 20th Centuries.
The Bernets and former mayor Bill Ross and his wife Marilyn presented the idea to people in Langnau and from there, the unofficial sisterhood was born.
Later on, they realized that Emmi-Roth, a Swiss company with a location in Monroe, has one of their main plants in Langnau.
Those coming to Monroe are a cross-section of real people - farmers, teachers, cheese makers and truck drivers are among them, Hans said. For many, it is likely their first time on an airplane.
"Switzerland has a high standard of living," Hans said. "They have a very good education system ... they know a lot about the world and have been exposed to different cultures."
Both Bobbie and Hans agree it was so important to work on the Langnau connection and bring this large group to Monroe.
"These intercultural things are lots more valuable than plain old tourism," Hans said. "I think their minds are going to be blown by how Swiss Monroe still is."
To become a host to some of the group members, contact Hans and Bobbie Bernet at 608-325-4914. They are also looking for people to be a resource and show them around. There will be a welcome lunch for the group at Turner Hall Sept. 15. The public is invited but reservations are required.
Meeting more than just restaurant and hotel employees has been a mantra for the Bernets - they know first-hand how much more you can take away from a trip when you interact with the local residents.
"The people they meet will be the most important thing (to experience)," Bobbie said. "But Monroe is such a pretty town - there aren't many places as beautiful as Green County in September."