Attendance at a festival in honour of Hafnarfjörður's 70-year-olds

The year is 1954 – in honour of the 70-year-olds of Hafnarfjörður

Over a hundred seventy-year-olds from Hafnarfjörður gathered in Hásölum, the parish hall of Hafnarfjörður Church, on Thursday and met there old school friends, former classmates and colleagues from various social activities, as well as the mayor, town councillors and town officials. In Hafnarfjörður, a tradition has developed where the mayor invites residents who have turned or will turn 70 during the year to a celebration, this time for the class of 1954. The celebration was held for the tenth time, meaning that over 1,000 people have now celebrated this milestone in their town.

The moment is about being together above all else.

The programme for the celebrations is light-hearted, as the occasion is more about spending time together than anything else. The Mayor of Hafnarfjörður, Rósa Guðbjartsdóttir, welcomed everyone from the anniversary year group to the party, offering her congratulations and thanks for coming.

The group was given an introduction to the services provided by the City of Hafnarfjörður for older people. The City of Hafnarfjörður's Curator of Local History then recalled his birth year in words and pictures, to a very positive reception. Guests enjoyed listening to the sweet tones of the Stefán Ómar Trio at the start of the celebration, between performances, and at the end of the party.

A diverse and proactive health promotion service

The services provided by the City of Hafnarfjörður for older people have, in recent years, been purposefully shaped and developed in line with new and changing times and rising life expectancy. A greater emphasis has been placed on increased preventative and diverse health-promoting services, which aim to promote the well-being and health of older people in Hafnarfjörður, enabling them to better take an active part in society and live in independent accommodation for as long as possible.

Yes, 1954 was an eventful but quiet year, according to the Town Curator.

This happened in 1954

Abroad

• Elvis Presley released the single „That's All Right“, which marked the beginning of his career as a rock star, and Bill Haley released the song „Rock Around the Clock“, which was one of the first rock songs to achieve great popularity and the first single to sell over a million copies in England.
• This year, West Germany became world champions in football after defeating Hungary 3-2 in the final.
• Vladimir Kuts from the Soviet Union was the first man to run 5 km in under 14 minutes, and the Englishman Roger Bannister was the first man to run a mile in under 4 minutes.
• The Supreme Court of the United States ruled this year that segregation in schools was illegal.
• The first nuclear-powered submarine, the USS Nautilus, was launched.
• The first kidney transplant was performed and the first solar battery was unveiled.

Domestic

• In the history of Iceland this year, the main event was the opening of the Fertiliser Factory in Gufunes.
• The first DAS raffle was drawn.
• A monument to Skúli fógeta was unveiled in the old churchyard on Aðalstræti.
• The Reykjavík Museum was founded.
• The first steel ship to be built in this country was launched.
• The restaurant Naustið was opened and the film Salka Valka premiered.
• Before Christmas 1954, mainly two books were advertised as the children's Christmas books. On the one hand, there was The Little Book of Poems, the old, good rhymes that all children enjoy, and on the other, Dimmalimm, Mugg's beautiful fairy tale about the little, beautiful princess who was unlike any other book.

In Hafnarfjörður

• At the Bæjarbíó, the year began with the premiere of the Oscar-winning film „The Quiet Man“, starring John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara, which enjoyed unprecedented popularity.
• Lýsi and flour started operating processing equipment this year to make better use of the raw material.
• Anglers in Hafnarfjörður began stocking in Kleifarvatn this year. Members of the Hafnarfjörður Angling Club released 15,500 fingerlings of Thingvall bleak and 1,500 fingerlings from Laxalón, as well as 100 adult bleak from Hlíðarvatn into the lake.
• The first large oil tanker docked in Hafnarfjörður this year.
• The maternity home at Sólvang in Hafnarfjörður opened in 1954. The first woman to be admitted there was Salvör Sumarliðadóttir, married to Ólafur Sigurgeirsson, and they had twins, two girls.
• The year in Hafnarfjörður ended with the town cinema showing the Italian epic film „The Unforgiven“, which was screened with Danish subtitles, and at Hafnarfjörður Cinema the American comedy „Angels in the Outfield“ was shown.“