Michigan's Upper Peninsula can get buried in snow during the winter. Some simply thank Mother Nature. Others use meteorology to explain it all. But to some members of the Finnish-American community in the Hancock area, the snow is because of Heikki Lunta. Legend has it, the mystical man's dancing has the power to summon snowstorms.

Hilary-Joy Virtanen wrote her master's thesis on the the legend of Heikki, his not-so-ancient origins, and his role in preserving Finnish-American culture.

GUEST:

• Hilary-Joy Virtanen, Associate Professor of Finnish & Nordic Studies at Finlandia University, a private Lutheran university in Hancock, Michigan

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