The Astoria Scandinavian Midsummer Festival has been paying homage to the Pacific Northwest’s ties to Nordic culture for 57 years.

Coreen Bergholm has been a part of it for 55 of them.

The longtime performer is being honored this year as the festival’s grand marshal, and will play accordion during each of its three days at the Clatsop County Fairgrounds.

Bergholm first attended the festival in 1968, when her daughter was part of a Nordic dance group. In 1978, she began performing after organizer Maureen Sundstrom formed a group called The Local Yokels, first on piano and later on accordion.

She is one of many entertainers scheduled for this year’s festival, which returns Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

It’s a weekend packed with Scandinavian music, traditions and lots of food — there are even Swedish meatball and ableskiver eating contests.

“It is our 57th year of passing down the heritage of the Nordic countries through music, food and entertainment,” Sirpa Duoos, vice president of the festival, said. “We have so many aspects to it.”

Some dishes to look out for include split pea soup, rice pudding with sweet fruit, Danish ableskiver (round donuts with a jelly filling), and ground pork meatballs paired with red cabbage.

Other returning traditions include a court of junior and senior princesses representing five Nordic countries — Norway, Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Iceland. One will be crowned Miss Scandinavia during a Friday evening ceremony, which is then followed by a traditional bonfire and hex burning.

On Saturday, events start with the Running of the Trolls at 8:30 a.m., where participants can run or walk in 1.5-mile, 3-mile or 5.75-mile races.

Festivities continue Saturday with the Midsummer Pole raising and dancing at 12:30 p.m. and a parade of national folk wear and authentic sweaters at 2:30 p.m.

“There are some beautiful sweaters that have come from Nordic countries,” Duoos said. “I want to showcase those and show people where they come from and how beautiful and colorful the sweaters are.”

Sweaters are common in all Nordic cultures. Specific regions are known for certain patterns, Duoos said, and there will be hand knits featured in the parade. Vendors will have knitwear, too.

“Sometimes you can tell what country it’s from just by the pattern,” she said.

Music continues throughout all three days across two stages of the festival. One group Duoos is looking forward to is the Blum and Haugaard Band, playing six shows on the Arena Stage Friday through Sunday.

“They’re at their peak all over Europe doing Danish folk music,” Duoos said of the band.

Most music is included with festival admission, but separate tickets are needed for a highlighted show at 7:30 p.m. Saturday in the fairgrounds arena. ARRIVAL, a Canadian ABBA cover band, will play with Gaslighter, a tribute to The Chicks.

Sunday events will include raffles, more music and morning and early afternoon access to the booths and vendors. Icelandic horses — a special breed of horse native to Iceland and known for its small stature — will be at the fairgrounds through Sunday.

Through its many events, the festival weaves together pieces of Scandinavian culture and brings history to life. It’s a community event, Duoos said, and it keeps people connected year-to-year.

“The Scandinavian roots in this community are so deep, that this just keeps going,” Duoos said.

The festival typically attracts between 3,000 and 5,000 people. “I think that is a testament to the grit and tenacity the local Scandinavians have in preserving heritage and passing it down,” she said.