Meland Norway

melandThe Meland Foundation derives its name from a place, a spirit, and a family.

The Place: Meland, hardly a village, but a cluster of houses in the countryside of southern Norway, with small farms, close to the fjords. Here lived hardy, rustic people with a great spirit.

norwaynewja_smallThe Spirit: The spirit of Meland derived from a love of home and family infused with a faith that would reach out to do impossible things on their behalf.  That spirit drove them to work long and hard, to journey long distances, and to face the hazards of land and sea in all kinds of weather sustained by a deeply religious faith.

native dressThe Family: Meland, Norway was the birthplace of Martin Meland Nelson.   In his early days, he lived on the rustic family farm.   His education later consisted of learning the skills of carpentry and cabinet making.   In the decade of the 1910s, Martin immigrated to the United States making his home and establishing a family in Jersey City, NJ.