Serving older adults through healthcare, housing, and community-based services.
12/08/2025
Many donors who have given a gift to the Lights of Lyngblomsten campaign—which supports programming and services for our older adults—have chosen to honor or memorialize someone special. For each person being memorialized, a tealight will be lit and their name displayed in the lobbies on the Como Park and Lino Lakes campuses. If you'd like to designate a tribute gift to the Lights of Lyngblomsten campaign, please visit www.Lyngblomsten.org/Lights to give online by December 31.
12/06/2025
Earlier this week, residents from The Heritage at Lyngblomsten focused on the beautiful holiday cactus during a session of Art with Heart. In addition to learning how to tell the difference between Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Easter varieties, class participants heard folklore about how these flowering cacti came to be.
The class project focused on close observation of each plant’s unique structure and blossoms. Along with the holiday cactus, artists also studied Red Fame (St. John’s Wort) and fresh holly branches. Using acrylic and watercolor paints, participants created stunning works on paper.
12/05/2025
12/03/2025
Be a light to an older adult by giving to the Lights of Lyngblomsten campaign. Your gift supports services like chaplaincy, arts programming, The Gathering respite, and more. Donate online by midnight on December 31 at www.Lyngblomsten.org/LightsDonation.
12/02/2025
What a magical evening at our Lights of Lyngblomsten Tree Lighting Celebration! Hosted by the Lyngblomsten Foundation, the celebration featured joyful carols sung by The Merrie Olde Christmas Carolers, festive refreshments prepared by our culinary services team, and the lighting of a beautiful Christmas tree in our central courtyard, a moment that was paired with a Scriptural reflection on the reason for the season. The night overflowed with warmth, community, and Christmas spirit. Thank you to everyone who joined us in welcoming the season together!
As we celebrate this season of light, consider being the light for a Lyngblomsten resident or participant by giving to our year-end fundraising appeal. Your gift to Lights of Lyngblomsten supports Spiritual Care, Community Services, the Good Samaritan Fund, Lifelong Learning & the Arts, and more.
Donate at www.Lyngblomsten.org/Lights.
12/01/2025
Nothing says Thanksgiving like a slice of pie! Our Lyngblomsten Apartments residents celebrated "Pie Day" the day before Thanksgiving with sweet treats and warm smiles. A perfect way to kick off the holiday season!
11/27/2025
Happy Thanksgiving from all of us with Lyngblomsten!
11/26/2025
Deaf residents of our Como Park campus have been hard at work in recent weeks, embroidering and sewing squares for an American Sign Language alphabet quilt. It's currently with Twin Cities Quilting, where they will add the batting and backing and quilt stitch the entire piece. It will be ready to decorate a campus wall early next year. Many thanks to all the crafters for sharing their skills!
11/25/2025
Gobble gobble! This afternoon, Lyngblomsten staff on the Como Park campus were invited to the annual Thanksgiving meal giveaway! Employees chose a lollipop with a color on the stick that indicated what part of their Thanksgiving meal they won: turkey, pie, cranberry sauce, potatoes, dinner rolls, and more. This is one of the many fun activities that employees can take part in at Lyngblomsten.
11/24/2025
As National Family Caregivers Month comes to a close and you gather with family and friends for the holidays, you may notice changes in the health or cognition of the older adults in your life. If you’re wondering what to do next, consider reaching out to the Lyngblomsten Community Services team. They’re here to support you on your caregiving journey—listening, providing guidance, and connecting you with resources and information. Call us at (651) 632-5320, email caregiving@lyngblomsten.org, or learn more about caregiver resources and support at
Are you looking for resources or support for your caregiver role? You are not alone! We're here to guide you on your caregiving journey.
11/22/2025
Are you looking for a welcoming place with quality care to call home for yourself or a loved one? The Lyngblomsten Care Center has openings! Experience the difference of our person-centered approach and commitment to enhancing the quality of life for all those we serve. For more information, contact our admissions team at (651) 632-5301 or admissions@lyngblomsten.org or visit www.Lyngblomsten.org/CareCenter.
Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Lyngblomsten posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
In 1903, Anna Quale Fergstad gathered together several Norwegian women to form a literary club. Near the end of that year, Mrs. Fergstad expressed her desire for the club to take up charitable work of some sort. Thinking of a vivid picture of the snug little huts along the coast of Norway that sheltered the wives of fishermen who had lost their lives at sea, she realized that, in America, there were many older people without family or friends to care for them. They were in need of some shelter and care. How splendid and useful an undertaking for their club to give at least a few of these deserving kinsfolk a home in which they could spend their last years.
The idea took form on October 19, 1903, when the group formed an organization, the Lyngblomsten Society, dedicated toward that goal. Mrs. Fergstad was named president. The group selected the name Lyngblomsten to commemorate the national flower of Norway, the lyng.
The organization began to grow by establishing "branches" around the Upper Midwest. On February 17, 1906, they incorporated and began fund raising. In 1911 they bought land midway between Minneapolis and St. Paul. In 1912 construction of the home began at Midway Parkway and Pascal Avenue. The home opened in December of that year with 34 older Norwegians moving in.
The home operated on the concept of residents helping with chores as they were able, and receiving help at the level each person needed—very similar to how our continuing care campus works today. It is important to note, then, that Lyngblomsten did not begin as a “nursing home,” but rather as “assisted living”—a term that didn’t exist until decades later.
The Winds of Change
For several decades, the women, their daughters and granddaughters ran the Lyngblomsten Home through the sponsorship of member branches. But as women entered the workforce and had less time for volunteer work, along with increasing government regulations for board and care being established, it was no longer a feasible method.
In 1960, Lyngblomsten was reincorporated and its grounds and assets were gifted to what was then the St. Paul Conference of the American Lutheran Church. The members of the Board of Directors began coming from the churches (instead of from the branches) and staff were hired to handle the day-to-day operations. The branches were transitioned into the new Lyngblomsten Auxiliary.
Today Lyngblomsten is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and partnered in ministry with Twin Cities-area Christian churches. Lyngblomsten welcomes older adults of all faiths and nationalities.
Growing & Changing
In the early 1960s, the skilled nursing facility was added (a requirement given by the churches as a condition of forming the partnership). The next decade saw the addition of the Lyngblomsten Apartments and the Lyngblomsten Community Senior Center (known today as 2nd Half with Lyngblomsten). With heavy hearts, in 1993 the original building that housed the Lyngblomsten Home for the Aged was demolished to make way for the Heritage Apartments (market rate).
In the 1990s Lyngblomsten began developing community outreach programs (Care Team Ministry and Parish Nurse Ministry, specifically), known today as Home- and Community-Based Services. Work also began on adopting the Swedish model of care, known as “service houses,” a concept that would be modified a decade later, ushering in the neighborhood model of person-centered care. Superior Street Cottages located off campus opened in 1999.
In the early 2000s, major fundraising made way for the massive remodeling of the care center, readying the facility for “neighborhoods” and person-centered care. The shift in how care was provided took several years to fully integrate, but as an early adopter and embracing our call to innovation, Lyngblomsten soon became known as a leader in the Culture Change movement—the terminology used to describe a new era in skilled nursing care.
In 2005, our first transitional care unit opened, serving those who needed a place to recuperate between hospital and home. On the community side, our outreach programs were expanded to help support the growing number of older adults, including the launch of The Gathering. In 2006, with much fanfare, Lyngblomsten celebrated the 100th anniversary of its incorporation.
