Sons of Norway Leadership
Pictured from left to right: Dennis Rusinko, Mary B. Andersen, Luella Grangaard, Mervin Eriksson, Christopher Jenkins, Chris Hicks, Claudia Berg, Kathy Dollymore, Dan Seyfried.
Not pictured: Andrew Mathisen & Duane Kittleson
Executive Committee
Luella Grangaard, International Chair
Ms. Grangaard holds extensive leadership experience in the medical industry spanning four decades across multiple roles within the field of occupational therapy. She has held leadership roles responsible for managing within the federal and state guidelines for staffing and hospital program management. Duties included adhering to regulations for staff licensing, training and patient care as required by guidelines set by insurers. Luella has held various leadership roles for both the State and National Occupational Therapy Association including both president and secretary. She was honored to be appointed by the Governor of California to serve on the first California Board of Occupational Therapy, responsible for the drafting of state regulations and hearings to set future policy. Her skills include but are not limited to strategic planning, governance, budgeting, legal, ethics and communications.
Luella received her B.S. degree from Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO.
Luella Grangaard
International Chair
Chris Hicks, International Vice Chair
Ms. Hicks has enjoyed a long and dedicated career in the medical field as a quality assurance professional with Phillips Healthcare. Her experience with process and improvement and handling of complaint processing has been leveraged across multiple departments. She has served as a subject matter expert for audits of complaint files and creating or improving processes for customer satisfaction. Chris has a depth in creating training programs for various staff to ensure quality control across the organization. She has also held the position of Director for Camp Normanna, managing registration, budgeting and programming for the youth camps.
Chris completed her education at Inglemoor High School in Bothell, WA
Chris Hicks
International Vice Chair
Kathy Dollymore, International Secretary
Ms. Dollymore has in-depth experience managing and providing leadership in a fast-paced environment within the medical community of Haskins, Pennsylvania. She held leadership roles in food service for the Haskins Nursing Home licensed by the Association of Nutrition and Foodservice Professionals (ANFP). Prior to working as a dietetic professional, Kathy held a position at the Upper Darby Public Library as a librarian. These roles allowed her to maximize her communication skills and people management ability. Her duties included cost management for projects, budgeting and human resources responsibilities.
Kathy received her associates degree from Hillsborough College in Hillsborough, PA and her Dietetics degree from Immaculata College, Malvern, PA.
Kathy Dollymore
International Secretary
Mary B. Andersen, International Treasurer
Ms. Andersen’s dynamic leadership in the employee benefits industry spans three decades across multiple disciplines including consulting, business strategy, financial performance, risk management, legal and accounting. She served as President of ERISAdiagnostics, Inc., an employee benefits consulting firm specializing in compliance, consulting and special projects. Prior to that role she was a principal for Vanguard, a leading mutual fund company. Mary currently serves on the Board of Directors of Sons of Norway as Treasurer and is Chair of its finance and audit committees. While leading teams of actuaries and attorneys, she has learned how to effectively work with others and position teams for success. As a leader in District Three Mary has served in many leadership roles including District President, Vice-President, Publicity Director and Counselor. As District President, Mary served as President of the District President’s Council and was a member of the governance and leadership committee.
She received her B.S. in Mathematics from Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, MI
Mary B. Andersen
International Treasurer
International Directors
Dennis Rusinko, International Director
Mr. Rusinko is a successful business owner who handles all day-to-day functions to ensure his business is solvent and in good standing. Prior to establishing his business, he taught drafting at the Architectural Drafting School of Fort Belvoir, Virginia., where he also attended.
Dennis served as a squad leader in basic training at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, part of the 1st Signal Brigade responsible for all communications systems in Southeast Asia. He has also leveraged his leadership skills in multiple lodge and district positions for District One with Sons of Norway.
Dennis received his degree from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis and attended the Minneapolis School of Drafting.
Dennis Rusinko
International Director
Mervin Eriksson, International Director
Mr. Eriksson has led multiple engineering and volunteer organizations during difficult and challenging times. He has worked at the lodge and national level and has a thorough understanding of the fraternal side of Sons of Norway. Merv has served on a Thrivent board and understands the function and operation of a not-for-profit company.
Merv served on the Foundation Board of Governors for six years and has a good understanding of the Foundation’s investments and investment policy. He has managed an LLC Partnership and as well as a significant family investment portfolio. Merv earned his Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of North Dakota.
Mervin Eriksson
International Director
Claudia Berg, International Director
Ms. Berg is a strategic business leader skilled in developing leaders and business operations. She served as Chief Administrative and Executive Officer for the State Historical Society of North Dakota. In her role, she was responsible for managing resources, leading the executive team and ensuring state and federal guidelines were followed. She has extensive experience with annual audits, financial reporting, donor collections and communication for the organization. Many projects included interactions with North Dakota governors, state legislators and congressional delegates. She has a proven track record of partnership, communication and team building.
Claudia received her B.A. and M.F.A. degrees from the University of North Dakota and her Museum Management degree from the University of California Berkeley.
Claudia Berg
International Director
Andrew Mathisen, International Director
Mr. Mathisen is an accomplished professional with 30+ years of telecommunications industry experience. Throughout his career he demonstrated success in collaborating with cross-functional teams to drive projects to completion. In addition, Andy has served the Sons of Norway District 3 Board over the past eight years as Sports and Cultural Director. He also held the following leadership positions at his Noreg Lodge 3-466 over the years: President, Vice President, Treasurer, Social Director, Sports Director, Cultural Director and Counselor.
Andy has a desire to leverage his expertise in finding cost-cutting measures thereby improving profitability for Sons of Norway. Andy has traveled extensively within the U.S. and Brazil designing, planning and constructing telecommunications networks. In addition, he has served his Sons of Norway lodge as both a sports and cultural director. Andy holds both a Bachelor of Arts degree from Richmond College, NY and a Master of Science from Lesley College, MA.
Andrew Mathisen
International Director
Christopher Jenkins, International Director
Chris Jenkins is a senior learning and marketing professional with experience in creating and implementing culture change management from the ground up. Cutting edge industry visionary and leader with a passion for developing team strengths resulting in bottom-line growth. Excellent interpersonal communication skills cultivated from an extensive history of directing learning cultures, performance management, sales and marketing, training, research and public presentation. Coach/mentor to financial advisors and growing leaders. Practice management programs geared to growth and effective teaming.
Christopher Jenkins
International Director
Duane Kittleson, International Director
Mr. Kittleson has served as a leader in the life insurance industry with a focus on accounting and business management. He has extensive experience working with state departments and the necessary audit reporting necessary for product filings, as well as NAIC annual reporting. Duane has worked closely in his career with actuaries to ensure data was provided for pricing and product design prior to filing.
Duane worked for a commercial real estate as their controller, giving him great insight into the finance side of a major business. As a leader for the organization, he interacted and negotiated with regional banks and commercial load providers.
Mr. Kittleson received his education from the Madison Business College in Madison, Wisconsin.
Duane Kittleson
International Director
Daniel Seyfried, Sons of Norway CEO
As CEO, Dan leads a fraternal insurance organization with more than $365 million in assets that operates in 38 states in the United States as well as lodges in Norway and Canada. His primary responsibilities include strategic management of the fraternal, charitable foundation, business and insurance operations of the organization, including sales and marketing, customer service and underwriting, finance, actuarial, human resources, administration and information technology.
Dan has devoted his career to fraternal insurance carriers for nearly three decades. He joined Sons of Norway in 2020 as Chief Information Officer. In 2021, he added member and insurance operation responsibilities to his duties. In 2022, product management was added to Dan’s team. Dan has greatly impacted the organization and in March 2024 was named Chief Operating Officer. In June 2024, the International Board of Directors elected Mr. Seyfried as the new Chief Executive Officer of Sons of Norway.
Prior to joining the organization, Dan served in various roles within Thrivent Financial advancing the use of technology. He also worked as an independent consultant helping establish Conventus Now, a subsidiary of Catholic Financial Life and Catholic United Financial. Outside of Sons of Norway, Dan also provides technology support to a nationwide nonprofit and is involved in his local parish community.
Dan earned a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from the University of Minnesota, Morris. He holds a Master of Science in Software Engineering from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. He is a Fellow of the Life Management Institute (FLMI).
Dan and his wife Ashley reside in Lino Lakes, Minnesota. They love to spend time outdoors, camping, boating, and hiking with their dog, Micah.
Daniel Seyfried
Sons of Norway CEO
District Presidents
District 1 – Mark Haugen
District 2 – Joanne Gray
District 3 – Stephen Helmold
District 4 – Jerry Saude
District 5 – Cheryl Wille-Schlesser
District 6 – Lis A. Barca
District 7 – Gloria Benazic
District 8 – Ole Hillestad