FALL/WINTER 2011 1

Published Quarterly by the American Council for Polish CultureFall/Winter 2011 Vol. 62 No. 2

Deborah M. Majka,President, opened

the 63rd Annual Conven-tion of the AmericanCouncil for Polish Cul-ture and introduced Mr.Ben Stefanski, PresidentPolish American CulturalCenter, John Paul II ofCleveland, which hostedthe convention. Mr.Stefanski welcomed thedelegates warmly andpromised an exciting four days of culturalactivities, filled with tours, concerts, andpresentations by authors, etc.

A luncheon speaker, Dr. CasimirKowalski, SC State University Professorof Educational Leadership, discussed hisbook Heroes of Solidarity and impressed theaudience by emphasizing how the lead-ers of the Solidarity Movement in Polandmade sacrifices, risking their lives, andfinally winning independence and free-dom for Poland.

Business sessions were conducted atscheduled times throughout the conven-tion. The following are important mattersthat were discussed.

Ursula Brodowicz, Chair, SkalnyScholarships for Polish Studies, submit-ted a report that she had mailed over 50letters with posters to faculty members atuniversities with Slavic departmentsthroughout the U.S. regarding the avail-ability of two $3,000 scholarships for 2011.The committee reviewed the applications

ACPC Annual Convention Hosted by John Paul IIPolish American Cultural Center, Cleveland, OhioBy Jo Louise Winters, ACPC PR Chair and selected the two win-

ners: Lara S. Szypszak,Univ. of North Carolinaat Chapel Hill andKaroline Carlman, Cen-tral CT State Univ. (heraward was presented byMs. Brodowicz at a meet-ing of the Polish CulturalClub, Greater Hartford).

Co-Webmasters TedMirecki and Peter Obstrevealed that during2010-2011 the ACPC web-site (www.polishcultureacpc.org) had been up-

dated many times. The Youth Leadershipand the Social Studies Conferences areexamples of extensive ACPC member in-volvements that insure the website is dy-namic and intellectually interesting. MaryFlanagan inspired the webmasters to adda book promotion section. AvailableACPC promotional books are also listed.

The site is a great way to receive and dis-tribute Polish intellectual/ cultural infor-mation to the many visitors to ourwebsite.

The annual ACPC Literary Competi-tion, chaired by Carolyn Meleski was es-tablished by ACPC member Dr. EstelleVon Wachtel-Torres, MD in honor of herfather Stanley Wachtel. Dr. Torres contrib-utes the award money for first place win-ners in ACPC Affiliate literary competi-tions. This year, the Friends of Polish Art(FPA) - Detroit showcased their winnersat their annual Easter Luncheon. Firstprize winner was Kathryn O’Donnell forher short story “Instincts”. She wasawarded $250 of which $125 came fromthe FPA and $125 matched by the ACPC.Mrs. Meleski reported that the matchingdollar award is being increased by Dr.Torres from $200 to $250 so that an Affiliatecan offer a first prize of $500 for its com-petition with ACPC matching half of it.

Dr. Robert Dutka, Investment Com-mittee Chairman, announced that the In-vestment Committee has agreed with thePulaski Scholarship Committee, MarionWinters, Chairman, that the Pulaski En-dowment Fund should be invested andmaintained in such a manner so that be-ginning with 2012 ACPC will be able toaward four $5,000 scholarships annually.

Carolyn Meleski reported, as Chair-person, that the Special Projects FundingCommittee decided that money raised thisyear will be used to fund the Jamestownhistorical marker, a project chaired byThomas Payne. Mr. Payne announced thatthe marker honoring the Polish settlerswho contributed richly to the success

Debbie Majka calls theconvention to order

Co-chairs Ben Stefanski and AundreaHeschmeyer welcome delegates

Convention opening prayer

continued next page

2 POLISH HERITTAGE

From the PresidentDebbie Majka

The arrival of Autumn brings cooler tempera-tures, falling leaves, Halloween, Zaduszki andin some parts of the country, Pulaski Day Pa-

rades and Polish American Heritage month. For mem-bers of the American Council for Polish Culture, ev-eryday is spent engaged in fostering an interest in ourPolish and Polish-American heritage! And, as we con-tinue to further the Council’s mission, a unique op-portunity presents itself in the form of State Histori-cal Commission markers. Not all States have such a program, but I urge youto investigate this opportunity to promote the renown and accomplishmentsof Poles and Polish Americans in your respective locales. In Pennsylvania,with Peter Obst at the helm, we have dedicated PA Historical CommissionMarkers to the meeting of Pulaski and Washington at Moland House; and tosteel bridge builder Ralph Modjeski; aviation pioneer Frank Piasecki, andthe celebrated WWII and Korean War ace Col. Francis “Gabby” Gabreski.

During next year’s annual convention, which is slated for July 18-22,2012, in Jamestown-Williamsburg, Virginia, and thanks to Tom Payne andthe Polish American Arts Association of Washington, DC, we will dedicate aCommonwealth of Virginia Historical Commission Marker to the First Poles.Please mark your calendars and plan to attend next year’s convention toparticipate in this historical event—the dedication of the marker to the FirstPoles to Arrive in Jamestown. The text of the marker reads as follows: Skilledcraftsmen of Polish origin recruited by the Virginia Company began arriv-ing in Jamestown aboard the Mary and Margaret about 1 Oct. 1608. Polescontributed to the development of a glass factory and the production of pot-ash, naval stores, and wood products. Soon samples of their work wereshipped back to England. The workers were so highly prized that they wereassigned apprentices so that their skill “shall not dye with them.” Capt. JohnSmith praised their work ethic in his writings. Court records indicate that asa result of a dispute, Poles were granted full voting rights on 21 July 1619.

Two very important efforts of the Council require your support. Underthe capable Chairmanship of Cecilia and Ray Glembocki, the Council willagain present its Polish Perspectives exhibit at the National Conference forthe Social Studies (NCSS) from December 2-4, in Washington, DC. Throughits Polish Perspectives exhibits at the NCSS, the ACPC interacts with the ap-proximately 4,000 social studies teachers in attendance, providing them withhistorically accurate facts and highlighting Polish contributions to Ameri-can and world history that is not readily available in American textbooks.All of the materials are provided to the teachers, free-of-charge, but, of course,at great expense to ACPC. To support, please send your check, payable to:ACPC-NCSS and mail to: Cecilia and Raymond Glembocki, 911 SaddlebackCourt, McLean, Virginia 22102-1317. Please help us to teach the teachers,who may then educate future generations with accurate information onPoland’s history, culture and Poles’ accomplishments.

And, finally, we urge your support of our Youth Leadership Confer-ence, which is scheduled to take place from June l7-22, 2012, in Washington,DC. Sponsor at least one student’s participation; it’s an investment in ourfuture! The conference assists youth of Polish descent who are interested incivic and political activism to realize their full potential and to assume lead-ership roles in various fields at all levels of society. It is an up close andintensive opportunity for 20 to 25 young Polish Americans, chosen from allover the U.S., to explore the political processes and interact with nationaland international leaders of Polish background in the realms of foreign policy,business, science, education, journalism, culture, Polish American and east-central European affairs. It is open to high school graduates or college stu-dents/graduates of Polish descent, ages 17 to 26. For more information, checkout the website: polishcultureacpc.org

Annual Convention continued

of the Jamestown Settlement in the early1600s will be installed as part of the 2012ACPC Convention program in Williams-burg, VA.

Evelyn Bachorski-Bowman, ChairMembership Brochure Revision Commit-tee, displayed a proposed new ACPCMembership Brochure - a tri-fold formatwith clean design, positive theme, andtext refreshed and reader friendly.

Scholarship Committee ChairCamille Kopielski announced the namesof the two students chosen to receive$2,000 each to study at a university oftheir choice in Poland during the summerseason. Agatha Kielczewski of Addision,IL is a junior attending NorthwesternUniv. Her academic record is outstand-ing and she is president of the Polish-American Student Assoc. at Northwest-ern U. She was recommended by the Pol-ish Arts Club of Chicago. The second stu-dent to receive the $2,000 grant is Nicho-las Gregory Krol of Bloomfield, MI. He isin his third year at Wayne State Univ.where he has a double major, Fine Artsand Slavic Studies with Polish concen-tration. Ms. Kopielski appealed to allACPC Affiliates and Supporting Organi-zations to submit names of students forparticipation in the 2012 ACPC Study inPoland Scholarships.

Paul Bosse, Fund Raising Chair, re-ported on his single-handed successfulefforts to distribute raffle tickets not onlyto Affiliates but also to individual mem-bers. Additionally, he advised that work-ing together with Peter Obst, in supportof the Polonia Archive at the Pulaski Mu-seum in Warka, Poland, they shipped an-other package of materials, weighing 35pounds, donated by ACPC members andfriends across the country to the museum.They continue to contact Polish parishesin the U.S. for additional support for theMuseum.

Co-Chairs Cecilia & RaymondGlembocki “National Conference for So-cial Studies” revealed that the theme forthe 92nd Conference in Washington, DC,Dec. 2-4, 2011, will be “Dimensions in Di-versity” in which ACPC will continue toplay the lead Polonia role. During the2010 Conference over 4,000 teachers andcurriculum specialists were in attendance.Mr. & Mrs. Glembocki, Mr. Jason Frazen(historian) and Pres. Debbie Majka fed theconferees with interesting facts about Pol-ish history and the numerous brilliantPoles who made rich contributions to U.S.history - more than 450 CDs were distrib-uted. New lesson plans for the 2011 Con-ference have been prepared and a studyguide for a new DVD documentary film

FALL/WINTER 2011 3

“John Paul II: Nine Days that Changed theWorld” will be available. ACPC is com-mitted to this magnificent project - mate-rial and financial support is needed -contact

Glembocki 703-790-1984virginiaegg@cox.net.

ACPC members were delighted andhonored that Dr. Marie Siemionow, MD,PhD addressed the convention audience.Dr. Siemionow is a leader in the micro-surgery field as Director of Plastic SurgeryResearch at the Cleveland Clinic. Dr.Siemionow led a team of six surgeons ona world’s first near total human face trans-plantation.

On the second afternoon of the conven-tion, our members enjoyed a tour and lec-ture at the Western Reserve HistoricalSociety Polish Archive. We were deeplyimpressed with the tremendous volumeof archival personal and public materialspertaining to Poles and Polish Americansresiding in the Cleveland area from agesago. The enthusiastic tour guide tookpleasure in displaying fragile and yel-lowed documents that revealed intimatedetails of the lives of the early residents.

That evening members and guestsgathered at the beautiful St. StanislausShrine in Slavic Village for the annualMarcella Kochanska Sembrich Concert.The performance by this year’s winner ofthe Sembrich vocal competition, sopranoJulie-Anne Hamula, and the incrediblysuperb piano accompaniment of JacekSobieski was extraordinary.

Friday morning we were privilegedto enjoy breakfast with guest speakerCecile Wendt Jensen, CG author “Sto Lat:Modern Guide to Polish Genealogy”. Ms.Jensen provided the listeners with easy tofollow guidelines in uncovering one’sPolish genealogy. This was further en-riched by the fact that the convention hosthad generously provided each memberregistered for the convention with a copyof the author’s book.

Piano concert at the unveiling of the bust of Paderewski AC PC members enjoy concert in Rockefeller Park

We spent the afternoon and early eveningwith a tour at the Cleveland Museum ofArt. We wandered leisurely through thevast museum individually exploring theart works that were of personal interest.Friday afternoon of the convention wasspent at the Rockefeller Park in the Cleve-land Cultural Gardens enjoying a splen-did series of programs leading to the un-veiling of a bust of Ignacy Jan Paderewski,eminent composer, pianist, and statesman.

Breakfast Saturday morning was aspecial treat as we were introduced to RitaCosby, news personality and author“Quiet Hero: Secrets From My Father’sPast.” Her story was enthralling as sherecited how she managed to uncover theexciting tale of her father’s heroic youth-ful experiences during World War II. Hehad lied about his age so that he couldjoin in the uprisings against the Nazi andSoviet forces. Ms. Cosby learned about thehorrifying combat experiences he hadendured and the terrifying escape pathsthrough the city’s sewer system. The au-dience was obviously pleased to learn thatthe heroic deeds of her father are now amatter of record so that his name is listedwith the men and women who sacrificedso much for their country.

On the final day of the convention,Jacqueline Kolowski, Nominating Com-mittee Chair, distributed ballots for the2011 election of ACPC officers, directors

and committee positions. After the com-pleted ballots were counted, Ms. Kolow-ski announced the following results:

President: Deborah M. Majka

Is’ Vice-President: Camille Kopielski

2nd Vice-President: Mary Ellen Tyszka

Treasurer: Gregory Biestek

Recording Sec: Marcia Lewandowski

Directors: Janet Beane; Evelyn Bachoski-Bowman; Ursula Brodowicz; Jacque-line Droleski; Barbara Lemecha;Bernadette Wiermanski

Credentials & Grievances: MatthewMeleski; Alicia Dutka; Irene Musman

Nominating Committee: JacquelineKolowski; Ange Iwanczyk;Irene Mirecki

ACPC members relayed their gratitudeand appreciation to all the past andpresent Board members for their unself-ish devotion to carrying out their respon-sibilities, and sharing their talents, timeand money. They are perfect examples ofthe generosity and devotion in PolishAmerican hearts in promoting Polish cul-ture and heritage. Bog Zaplac! During oursojourn in Cleveland our attention wasdrawn to an article in a Bulletin of the St.Stanislaus Shrine wherein DavidKrakosky refers to the belief long held byPoles and Polonians that guests must betreated reverently because “Gosc w domu,Bog w domu”(Guest in the house-God inthe house). Keeping Krakosky’s com-ments in mind, we realize that as guestsof the Polish American Center we felt veryblessed indeed. Our members offer theirgratitude to the dynamic and debonairPresident Ben Stefanski for the eloquenttreatment accorded us. Our thanks also goto Aundrea-Cika Heschmeyer for her en-thusiastic guidance at every step of theway and also to Ewa Trzeciak for her ac-tive role in making the week a memorableone. Dziekujemy - i do milego zobaczenia!

Readers who wish to join theAmerican Council for Polish

Culture, a non-profit organization,which acts as a national federation

of Polish cultural organizationslocated throughout the UnitedStates, may contact FlorenceLandridge at 860-521-4034,

flolangridge@sbcglobal.net. Individual membership dues

are only $10 annually!

4 POLISH HERITTAGE

ACPC Affiliate & Supporting Member News

Polish Cultural Club of Greater Hartford

The Polish Cultural Club of GreaterHartford proudly sponsored a special

DVD presentation of the Award Winning“No. 4 Street of Our Lady.” It was held onMay 18, 2011 at the East Hartford Com-munity Cultural Center. This film told thestory of Franciszka Halamajowa, a PolishCatholic woman who saved the lives of16 Jews in Sokal, Poland, by hiding andcaring for them in her home during theGerman occupation in World War II. Spe-cial guests Grazyna Kucharczyk andJolanta Staron, local residents and hergrand-daughters, were present. Over 150members and guests attended. FrancesPudlo chaired the event.

On June 15,2011, chairwomen FlorenceLangridge and Virginia Pudlo, awardedscholarships to four deserving recipients.They are: Thomas Cwikla and NataliaZagula, attending the University of Con-necticut, Klaudia Kawka, a freshman atBerklee College of Music and CarolineRose Kieltyka, a sophomore at St.Lawrence University. The traditionalstrawberry shortcake social followed.

Following the mission statement of theClub, President Cliff Archie with his com-mittee of Patricia Archie, Ann and CarolOleasz and Patricia Checko reached outto represent Polonia in community eventsby highlighting cultural awareness insharing the history and customs of Polandduring Polish Day at the Cora Belden Li-brary in Rocky Hill, CT. An impressivenumber of people attended this event.

On September 18th the PCC of GreaterHartford celebrated its 35th Anniversary.The organizers paid tribute to 13 original

founders of the Cllub and presented thesurviving nine members with com-memorative engraved lockets. The eventfeatured a “Walk Down Memory Lane”with posters , photographs and clubmemorabilia from events of the past 35years. The featured performer, accordi-onist Gary Sredzinski gave a colorful pre-sentation of the history of Polish- Ameri-can accordion music, anecdotes and hadthe audience smiling, tapping their feetand filled their hearts with warm memo-ries.

During Polish History Month, on Oc-tober, 9 the Hartford Club joined theUnited Polish Societies of Hartford, Presi-dent Janusz Kocur in their celebration ofPulaski-Kosciuszko held at the Pulaskimonument. Joining them was a group ofstudents from the Polish Club of CentralConnecticut College.

The Chopin Fine ArtsClub, So. Bend, IN

At the Annual Anniversary luncheonScholarship Awards were presented

to: Helen Jagla, Marion High School,$1,500, Art; Rebecca Gamble, Penn HighSchool, $300.00, Music Education; PerryHunt, Adams High School, $300.00 The-ater Education; Allyss Swearingen, St. Jo-seph High School, $300.00 Animation.

The 23rd Annual Chopin Youth Pi-ano Competition, chaired by Sue Freitag,was a roaring success. The winners werechosen by Assoc. Prof. ChristopherHarding from the University of Michi-gan. He is also on the faculty for the sum-mer piano program at Indiana Univer-sity in Bloomington. After the program,the students were able to attend a Mas-ter Class with individual instructionfrom Prof. Harding.

The winners were: Peter Rutkowski,Elementary $75.00 Stephanie Tapp,Middle Division, $100.00; Eric Lee, Jun-ior Division, $125.00; Florence Chen,Senior Division, $150.00. HonorableMention Award $25.00 to HannahMcGuiness, Elementary; Jessica Lee,Middle Division; Caralina Vajiac, JuniorDivision; Joshua Spring, Senior Division.

On Sunday, September 11 annualfund-raiser Card Party was held.

On October 30, 2011 Polish HeritageDinner held at the M.R. Falcon Club.Happy Thanksgiving and a WonderfulChristmas!

Central Connecticut State U students withtheir banner and that of the Polish Club

United Polish Societies of Hartford in front of the Pulaski monument

FALL/WINTER 2011 5

The Polish Heritage Association annual award cer-emony was held May 15, 2011 at Holy Rosary Church,

Baltimore, MD.Since its inception the Scholarship Program has been

awarding grants to qualified students of Polish Heritageto pursue studies leading to a baccalaurate degree. To beeligible student must be of Polish descent with at leasttwo Polish ancestors, a legal resident of Maryland, a cur-rent undergraduate Senior High School student. Thegrants are given to full time students to attend any cred-ited college or university in the U.S. Selections are basedon financial need, academic standing, leadership poten-tial and demonstrated pride in their Polish Heritage.

A special tribute was paid to our founder and pastpresident Stanley Ciesielski who celebrated his 101stbirthday. Drugie Sto Lat, Stanley!

The Polish Heritage Association of MD

On Sunday, September 11, 2011, the PAAA celebrated its 45th Anniver-

sary by holding a gala dinner and danceat the Congressional Country Club inBethesda, MD. This club boasts member-ship from many past U.S. presidents andmany other dignitaries, so the venue wasvery elegant with a gorgeous view of thegolf course which has hosted PGA GolfTournament Championships. AliceLaning, the Chair-person for this event,greeted the guests and reminded them ofthe solemnity of the day based on thetragic occurrences on September 11, 2001,but at the same time encouraging all toenjoy the food and music and of coursethe warm association with the guests inattendance.

Father Majka opened with an invoca-tion giving thanks for the meal and offer-ing prayer on behalf of the attendees. Anexquisite dinner of filet mignon or salmonwas served, topped off by a scrumptiouscreme brule for dessert. Music was pro-vided during the entire occasion by DanSkoler and his combo. Many of the gueststook advantage of the spacious dancefloor throughout the evening to enjoy avariety of tunes.

Our president, Tom Payne, addressedthe guests and recognized our special at-tendees, Krystyna and Michal Sikorskifrom the Polish Embassy, SusanneLotarski from Polish American Congress,Teresa Bukowski from Polish NationalAlliance, Richard Okreglak from PolishLibrary, and Connie Donnelly fromFriends of John Paul II. The theme of theGala was honoring our past presidents

Victoria Leshinske, Pres.; Kaitlin LaGrasta, AnnZelinka, DominikaGawryolek, Matthew Foer, Gordon Creamer, Chair.Carolina Burack, Allison Jones, Sadie Lockhart, Taylor Duncan,Alexander Derencz, Joachim Gawryolek

The Polish American Arts Association, Washington DCand their accomplishments.

The Program booklet outlined thehighlights of the PAAA’s history, begin-ning with our first president, MartaKorwin Rhodes. The PAAA began an ex-citing era in the late 60s in which manyPolish artists and poets were brought tothe Washington DC area. PAAA began tocelebrate Wigilia in 1979 during the presi-dency of Myra Leonard. These celebra-tions began in small halls where membersdid the cooking, A new era of excitementarose in 1991 under the presidency of JohnKasper in which several cultural pro-grams of the PAAA, including the Wigilia,took place at the Embassy of the Repub-lic of Poland on a cooperative sponsor-ship basis. We are indebted to the earlypioneers of the PAAA who kept Polisharts and culture in the DC area very muchalive during the early years before the new

democratic government of Poland couldarrive and establish the warm relationshipthat we enjoy with the Embassy today.

The program concluded with theawarding of commemorative plaques ofappreciation to all former Past Presidentsin attendance: Mary Flanagan (1977-78),Stefan Lopatkiewicz (1978-79), BernadetteWiermanski (1981-82), Mary Ann Evan(1985-86, 1993-94), Richard Wiermanski(1992-93), Marianna Eckel (1994-96), Rich-ard Okreglak (1996-97), Edwarda BudaOkreglak (1997-98), Dr. Estelle vonWachtel Torres (1999-2001, 2003-04),Henry Czauski (2001-03), Dr. EdPawlowski (2004-06), Sharon Brzostowski(2007-08), and Tom Payne (2010-12). Sev-eral other past presidents who could notbe present sent their greetings.

The evening was so much fun, wecannot wait for the 50th in 2016!

PAAA Past Presidents holding up their Commemorative Plaques

6 POLISH HERITTAGE

The Diary of AnetkaKaminska

by Susan Campbell Bartoletti

Scholastic Inc. Publishers555 Broadway

New York, NY 10012219 pages, hardcover $10.95

The fictional novel is based on actualhistorical events and real people.

The experience of the main characters(Polish) could be any immigrants fromEurope. They came to America lookingfor a better life only to be exploited andprejudiced against. But they found aninner strength to survive.

The story is a pleasant way of learningthe history of the period in the coalmines of Pennsylvania.

Book Reviews

With Paintbrush and SwordThe Life and Works ofJan Henryk de Rosen

by Mary Lubienski Flanagan, KCSS

Self Published, printed byFranklin’s Press Chantilly, VASoft Cover 108 pages Copyright 2011 TXu-1-737-359

Jan de Rosen is one of the great muralartists of his century. He brought his

work in the tradition of Europe’s great-est artists to this country just before theSecond World War. These beautiful workscan be found in churches and publicbuildings from coast to coast where theyinspire admiration and spritual ex-periences in the viewer.

De Rosen’s life is a story of one born togreat wealth and privilege but who neverlost his humility and gentleness. He wasan intellectual and a very talented artistwho always remained true to his prin-ciples. Above all he was a firm believerand a great patriot. Although he died inpoverty he was a wealthy man in his ac-complishments and legacy.

Profits from the sale of the book go to theJan de Rosen Memorial Fund at theAmerican Council for Polish Culture.Book Price: $25.00 plus S & H in the US($3.00)

For orders of 10 or more $20.00 ea. plus S & H ($10.95 in the US) Questions -EMail: mflan90733@aol.com

A Coal Miner’s Bride

Produced by Academy Award WinnerJan A P Kaczmarek, the film covers a son

who makes a startling discovery. After thedeath of his father, a forgotten bank safe de-posit box reveals his grandmother’s autobi-ography, old photos of an army officer and amysterious postcard that all link to a concealedcrime: the Katyn Forest Massacre.

Weaving dramatic interviews with bold ani-mation, The Officer’s Wife probes the collisionof truth, justice and memory in a shroudedfamily tragedy.

For more information visittheofficerswifemovie.com

FILMThe Officer’s

WifeA documentary by

Piotr Uzarowicz

FALL/WINTER 2011 7

The recent Fall Board meeting of the American Council for Polish Culture

in Randolph, MA (suburb of Boston), washosted by the Polish Cultural Foundationof Boston, Dr. Andrzej Pronczuk, Presi-dent. During the business sessions, ACPCPresident Debora Majka led an animateddiscussion with the board members re-garding the Council’s 10lh consecutiveparticipation in the annual National Con-ference for Social Studies (NCSS), whichwill take place this year in Washington,DC, December 2-3,2011. Our Committeechair, Cecelia Glembocki, reported that wehave been assigned a corner booth as re-quested and the fee for our “Polish Per-spectives” booth is $1,300.

The National Conference for the SocialStudies is the largest of its kind whereteachers and administrators in educationfrom all over the United States and acrossthe globe attend. With each succeedingyear since 2001, the presence of the ACPCat the annual conference clearly proves itis a powerful means to assure that Polishhistory and culture are not overlooked incommunication and dialogue betweenteachers and students in schools across theUnited States. Reaching the thousands ofteachers attending these conferences withaccurate essential information means wehave reached a multiple of students andhave increased their general interest inreading and researching the accomplish-ments of Poles and Polish-Americans.

The “Polish Perspectives” booth willconsist of a three paneled display wherewe will feature books, book markers, post-ers, coloring sheets, CDs and DVDs (in-cluding “Nine Days that Changed theWorld” - the story of Pope John Paul II’svisit to Poland); and lesson plans withsome even translated into Polish andSpanish. To complete the display we haverequested donations of (or placed ordersfor) books, book markers, coloring sheets,CDs and DVDs (including “Nine Daysthat Changed the World” - story of PopeJohn Paul IIs visit to Poland). The exhibitwill also feature historical posters withexamples of traditions, customs and folk-lore. Polish sweets, a straw-decoratedChristmas tree and the Cracow Szopka(manger) will be exhibited as well as anEaster basket filled with pisanki (deco-rated eggs). A Chopin CD will be givenout as the door prize as has been done in

National Conference for Social StudiesPolish Perspectives

Ted MireckiAwardedPride of Poloniathe past. We’re planning to obtain books

for donation or sale, such as books fea-turing Polish heroes in Rita Cosby’s“Quiet Hero, “StoLat” by Cecile Jansen’s“How to Trace Your Polish Heritage”, andreference manual The Polish American En-cyclopedia by James S. Pula. Additionalitems that will be added will be some Pol-ish crafts as developed by ConnieDonnelly for elementary or scoutinggroups. As the year 2011 has been desig-nated by the Polish Embassy as the yeardedicated to honor Madame SklodowskaCurie we will work cooperatively with theEmbassy to feature Curie’s accomplish-ments.

Conference attendees will interact withour representative and receive classroomready plans, free CDs, DVDs, pamphlets,brochures, some books, posters, etc. Ininteracting with the teachers we will stressthe importance of Poles in the course ofAmerican history and seek to build con-fidence in teachers as to how to use oureducational materials in the classroom.We’ll also share the opportunities avail-able for study in Poland and our YouthLeadership Conference for 2012.

Our “Polish Perspectives” booth at-tracts many, many teachers and adminis-trators. They return year after year seek-ing our audio/visual handouts, lessonplans, etc. It is very important that weprovide accurate information aboutPoland’s history, literature, traditions, andcontributions to humanity to help com-bat and counter the erroneous and falseinformation that continues to be dissemi-nated by the press and other means.

ACPC’s expanding role in this highlysignificant annual event is made possiblebecause of the generous commitment andresolve of many Polish organizations andindividuals who realize the need for pro-moting the “Polish Perspectives” pro-gram and we are truly grateful. If you feelin your heart that you would like to be apart of this vital and fruitful program,please offer your financial support now.Please make your check payable to:ACPC/NCSS and mail it to: Mrs. CeciliaH. Glembocki, 911 Saddlebrook Court,McLean, VA 22102-1317. Donations are taxdeductible to the extent of the law. Thankyou for helping this program function notonly for the benefit of today’s Polonia, butalso future generations.

On September 4, 2011 at the NationalShrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa

in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, TedMirecki was given the prestigious Prideof Polonia Award. For those who knowhim it was a most deserved honor and allthe members of the ACPC are most proudof his achievements and sincerely con-gratulate him for the well deserved honor.Following is his acceptance speech.

Reverend Fathers, Dear Friends, Ladies andGentlemen:

I wish to thank the Polish Apostolate for thedistinct honor that places my humble personamong some of the most accomplished activ-ists for the causes of Catholic Polonia.

But my deepest thanks go to Irena, my wifeand helpmate of some 44 years, whose pa-tience, forbearance, encouragement and, aboveall, assistance have made it possible for me tobe actively involved in causes that are dear tome and, I trust, to all of Polonia.

I accept this award with humility andgratitude, and with the hope that my continu-ing activities will justify this recognition andfulfill the expectations implicit in its bestow-ing.

Serdeczne Bog Zaplac!

The Pride of Polonia Award was createdin 1992 by the Board of the PolishApostolate. It recognizes the significantcontributions of individuals to Polishcauses and who are involved in philan-thropic activities.

Ted Mirecki is a former President ofThe American Council for Polish Culture.

By Jo Louise Winters, P/R

Irena and Ted Mirecki

8 POLISH HERITTAGE

At the 63rd Annual Convention of the American Council for Polish Culture

in Cleveland, Ohio, Annual awards werepresented honoring Polish American citi-zens for their dedicated contributions topromoting Polish culture and heritage.

Mrs. Mary Flanagan, Awards Chair,presided over the award ceremonies. Sheintroduced Vice-President Mary EllenTyszka who presented the

Founders Award for outstanding ser-vices to the organization to

JACQUELINE KOLOWSKI

Ms. Kolowski is dedicated in working andproficiently employing her considerabletalents and a great deal of time to herACPC duties. At the present time shechairs the Nominating Committee.“Jackie” has been very successful in gar-nering nominations of competent mem-bers from Affiliates, officers and boardmembers. She presided over the final vot-ing procedures, which succeeded in fill-ing all of the vacancies. The ACPC mem-bers offer their heartfelt thanks to Jackiefor all of her productive labors by award-ing her the Founder plaque of apprecia-tion.

Mrs. Bernadette Wiermanski, 1st Vice-President, presented the ACPC’s 2011

Cultural Achievement Award to

MR. DAVID MOTAK in recognition ofhis outstanding talents and skills as anartist, educator, communicator and hisspecial talent as a Szopka Artist. Mr.Motak is a graduate of Alliance College,where he majored in Slavic studies andPolish culture. He attended theJagiellonian University in Krakow, Polandfor two years as a part of the KosciuszkoFoundation Academic exchange program.His professional career has taken him toseveral managerial positions at the Uni-versity of Pittsburgh, Point Park Uni-versity and the Sweetwater Center for theArts.

Mr. Motak’s contributions to Polish-American cultural life have been substan-tial, particularly as a volunteer with manyPolonia organizations. He has led culturaltours to Poland and headed fundraisingfor Polish efforts. Dave’s highlight is theCracow Creche Workshop, a nationalSzopka Art form in the United States. Hehas received many awards including the2006 Polonian of the Year for WesternPennsylvania. In 2009, he was the firstPole to receive the Artist of the YearAward and in 2010 he was the first for-eigner and first American to enter andearn the prestigious “Special Award forArtistic Merit” presented by the city ofKrakow History Museum.

Mr. Motak ventures beyond Poloniato produce community service projectsand succeeding in bringing the arts to allthe population. Now to add to his longlist of awards and recognition, the Ameri-can Council for Polish Culture proudlypresented him the prestigious ACPC Cul-tural Achievement Award plaque for 2011.We are happy to announce that he will betaking over the editorship of our PolishHeritage Newsletter in 2012.

ACPC President Deborah Majka pre-sented the

Distinguished Service Award plaque toMrs. Cecilia Glembocki, who accepted theaward on behalf of

NEWT & CALLISTA GINGRICH.

The Gingrich’s schedule did not permitthem to attend the Saturday eveningAwards Banquet & Ball. The award wasgiven to display thanksgiving to Mr. &Mrs. Gingrich for their key roles in bring-ing the “John Paul II: Nine Days thatChanged the World” documentary film tofruition, making it available to the publicworldwide. This film records the visit ofPope John Paul II to Poland. Many view-ers are convinced that the subsequentpolitical freedom that Poland gained wasgreatly influenced by the Pope’s visit.

ACPC Annual Awards By Jo Louise Winters, P/R

Mary Ellen presents award to Jackie

Debbie Majka presents Gingrich’saward to Ceil Glembocki

Ewa Junczyk, Counsul General of Republicof Poland; Debbie Majka; David Motak;Bernadette Wiermanski and TimothyKuzma, Pres. Polish Falcons

Ceil Glembocki presents award to theGingrichs

FALL/WINTER 2011 9

Excitement mounted among members of the American Council for Polish

Culture and their guests during theCouncil’s annual convention in Cleve-land, Ohio this month as the hour hadarrived for the concert featuring the win-ner of the annual Marcella KochanskaSembrich Voice Competition.Members of the Music Committee,Alicia Dutka, Chair; Dr. RobertDutka; and Jaroslaw Golem-biowski were highly pleased withtheir selection of the Com-petition’s winner, Julie-AnneHamula, a very beautiful and tal-ented soprano. Ms. Hamula at-tended Westminister Choir Col-lege for her Bachelor’s degree invoice performance and completedher Master of Music degree at theUniversity of Texas, Butler OperaCenter. She had been lauded as a“pliable and rich soprano” whenshe sang as Antonia in Les Contesd’Hoffman. Julie-Anne has per-formed in various operas and hasbeen praised for her “technicallysound, rich performances.” Ac-companist for the recital was JacekSobieski, pianist.

Ms. Hamula’s Sembrich perfor-mance was conducted at the beau-tiful St. Stanislaus Shrine in SlavicVillage, Cleveland. Her first offer-ing was “Martern aller Arten”,Wolfgang Mozart. She made a vivid andenduring first impression - very efferves-cent with a beautiful expressive face andtruly powerful voice. Julie-Anne’s perfor-mance of “Robert, tai que j’aime” by G.Meyerbee revealed her enormous andsurprising power as a singer, providingan enchanting sense of immense humanemotion. She has a regal princess bearing.

Yet, Julie-Anne has the strength andgrace to sing songs like “MojaPieszczotka” (“My Darling”) and ‘“Tis theLast Rose of Summer” with a coquettishcharm and warm and loving delivery. Thepraise that had been lavished on her byreviewers following previous perfor-mances for her warm tone, agile phras-ing and considerable vocal energy wasfully endorsed by ACPC members at thecurrent concert in Cleveland. The ACPCmembers and guests reacted to her mes-merizing performance by rising and ap-plauding vigorously at length, showingtheir appreciation for Julie-Anne’s out-standing performance of her entire pro-gram.

Alicia Dutka presented Julie-AnneHamula with a bouquet of flowers and theACPC’s Sembrich award, a $1,500 check -an award designed to encourage buddingvocal artists. President Deborah Majkaoffered warm and hearty congratulationsto the gifted singer on behalf of the Ameri-can Council for Polish Culture.

The accompanist Jacek Sobieski wasthe music director for almost two decadesat the National Theatre in Warsaw, Po-land. He holds a Master of Music degreefrom the State College of Music in War-saw. Since 1988 he has resided in the U.S.where he has performed as a soloist andaccompanist. Together with his wife

Dorota, Jacek Sobieski founded the Op-era Circle in 1995, musically directing andconducting over 20 opera productions. Heis also Music Director at St. CharlesChurch in Boardmen, Ohio. Mr. Sobies-ki’s performance as an accompanist to Ms.Hamula was strong and well focused.When he performed a solo piece during

the recital break, he left the au-dience in awe of his skill and in-tensity, which made a vivid andenduring impression of hisplaying as a soloist and ac-companist. A very happy concert audi-ence filed into the Shrine’s gar-den to enjoy the reception pre-pared for the occasion by ourhost, the Polish American Cul-tural Center, where we werewined and dined. Inspired bythe outstanding Sembrich prizewinner, soprano Juli-AnnHamula and the many talentedinstrumental and vocal soloistswho appeared during the con-vention, ACPC members formedan impromptu chorus led enthu-siastically by Aundrea Hesch-meyer. The group raised theirvoices in popular Polish and En-glish songs. Among their Polishselections were “Gdzie Jest TaDziewczyna?” (Where is thatGirl?), “Gdybym ja byla slo ne-czkiem na niebie” (If I were the

sun in the heavens), and many others.The old beautiful Polish songs moved

the impromptu singers to feelings of hap-piness and joy as they closed the memo-rable evening’s performances by singing“Jak szybko mijaja chwile” (“How swiftlythe moments fly”). ‘

Marcella Kochanska Sembrich ConcertBy Jo Louise Winters, P/R

Group atreception

following theconcert join inan impromptu

sing along

Marion Winters photoJacek Sobieski, Deborah Majka,Julie-Anne Hamula and Alicia Dutka

10 POLISH HERITTAGE

For the 13lh consecutive year, theLouis Skalny Foundation donateda grant for the Louis & Nellie Skalny

Scholarships for Polish Studies to be ad-ministered by the American Council forPolish Culture (ACPC). The generousgrant once again amounted to $6,000. Ms.Ursula Brodowicz, Chair of the ACPCSkalny Scholarships Committee reportedthat the Committee, consisting of Ms.Ange Iwanczyk, Mrs. Deborah M. Majka,Dr. Ed Pawlowski, and Mr. Marion Win-ters, chose Karoline Carlman and Lara S.Szvpszak for the 2011 scholarships of$3,000 each. These scholarships are in-tended for students pursuing some Pol-ish studies (majors may be in other fields)at universities in the U.S. who have com-pleted at least two years of college or uni-versity work at an accredited institution.

Karoline Carlman

of AndoverCT is a stu-dent at Cen-tral CT StateU n i v e r s i t yworking to-wards a Bach-elor of Artsdegree in In-ternat ionalStudies withE u r o p e a nUnion/Western Europe concentration.She had previously studied at theFranciscan University of Steubenville inOhio and last year Karoline studiedabroad at the University of Hertfordshireand the University of Cumbria in En-gland. Karoline spent the summer of 2008in Poland in the town of Tczew ofPomorska at an English immersion campas a volunteer teaching assistant with theKosciuszko Foundation. This includedassisting American teachers, tutoring Pol-ish high school students in the Englishlanguage and translating between Polishstudents and American teachers. She hastaken courses in the Polish language andin the history of Poland’s neighbors.Karoline has applied to the State Depart-ment for a grant to study in Lithuania aspart of her interest in Eastern Europe.Most recently she completed the coursetitled the History of Modern Poland, de-scribed as extremely demanding andtaught by Dr. M.B. Biskupski, Holder ofthe S.A. Blejwas Endowed Chair in Pol-ish Studies. Dr Biskupski praises

$3,000 Skalny Scholarships AwardedBy Ursula Brodowicz, Chair Karoline’s work in his course as earning

high marks. He describes her as a seriousand mature student with an ambitiousinterest in Poland and its place in theworld and who has practical plans to in-crease that knowledge with direct experi-ence.Karoline notes that her personal in-volvement in the community to promotePolish culture stems in part from beingan active parishioner at SS. Cyril &Methodius Church in Hartford. The Co-ordinator of the Development Program atthe parish school, Mrs Patricia Zima,notes Karoline’s deep pride in her Polishfamily heritage including their celebrationof Poland’s customs and traditions.Karoline has taught art including Polishfolk arts at the school alongside hermother. Karoline has also been an entrantin the annual Szopka Contest sponsoredby the Polish Cultural Club of GreaterHartford and has mentored other studentswith their szopka entries.As an amateur photographer, Karolinestarted an internet blog to documentplaces she visits abroad as well as describ-ing life in a Polish American family. Sheplans on using the blog to document Pol-ish Culture in Lithuania.

Lara S. Szypszak

attends theUniversity ofNorth Caro-lina at ChapelHill. She ispursuing adouble majorBachelor ofArts degreewith Honorsin Slavic andEast Euro-pean Languages and Literatures with afocus on Poland and a Bachelor of Artsdegree in History with a Modern Euro-pean focus. In 2010 she attended a fourweek highly intensive summer programin Lublin Poland and has received a For-eign Language and Area Studies Grant toreturn this summer to the Catholic Uni-versity of Lublin for a six week highlyintensive summer program. Courses inPolish studies include several Polish Lan-guage courses as well as 20th CenturyPolish Literature and Culture. Dr. EwaWampuszyc, Assistant Professor of Pol-ish at the Slavic Languages and Litera-tures Department describes Lara as a tal-ented and dedicated student who is mak-

ing steady progress towards increasedlanguage proficiency. Dr Wampuszyc de-scribes Lara as mature, creative, moti-vated, and eager to learn; having foundher passion in the study of Polish lan-guage and culture. As part of a historyseminar entitled “Florence, Cradle of theRenaissance” Lara submitted a paper en-titled Sigismund Chapel; Humanist inPolish Architecture from Florence forwhich she received a high evaluation.

Lara is founder and President of theUniversity of North Carolina Polish Club.Valerie Bernhardt, Administrative Man-ager and Student Services Manager at thetwo academic departments who advisedLara on how to establish the Polish Clubdescribes Lara as extremely enthusiastic,efficient, self-sufficient, patient and per-sistent. Ms Bernhardt states that Lara’sgoal of establishing a Polish Club was toincrease the presence and accessibility ofthe Polish language and culture at theUniversity and to create a community ofstudents and others interested in all thingsPolish. Lara’s leadership and or-ganizational skill has quickly establishedthe Polish Club’s presence on campus, hasreached out to non-departmental stu-dents, and has taken part in campus-wideglobal events.

Lara states that during the last twoyears of her life she spent an enormousamount of time involved in the culture,history, and language of Poland. Herplans include continued involvement inthe Polish Club, reaching out to the com-munity through programs about Polishculture and history. One way she has donethis is through establishment of a PolishClub website which is widely available,gets over 250 views a month and is linkedto several organizations.

Post card from Lublin, Poland toMarion Winters sent by Lara Szypszak.

She writes:Pan Winters,I hope this card from Lublin finds you well.I want to thank you again for the greathonor and scholarship you have awardedme.I appreciate your faith in my scholarshipthus far and in the future, and I hope touphold the honor well. Dziekuje bardzo -pozdrawiam z Polski,

Lara Szypszak”

Lara sent a similar card for Dr. Skalny

FALL/WINTER 2011 11

PLEASE SAVE THE DATE April 20 -21, 2012ACPC Spring Board Meeting in Detroit, Michigan

hosted by

The Friends of Polish Artcelebrating its

75th Anniversary

The Committee awarded two scholarships of$5,000.00 each to Beata Hrynkiewicz of

Westhersfield, CT, a PhD candidate in PhysicalTherapyat the Unversity of CT and Lisamarie Gora of Colonia,NJ, a Juris Doctor candidate at the NY Law School.

The Frienda of Polisth Art of Detroit under the di-ection of President Carol Surma, Esq. held its An

nual Swieconka chaired by Christa Zabawski and AnneMarie Tyszka where the “Short Story” Competitionawards were presented. This 5th Literary Competitionis an annual event chaired by Janet Ann Hedin.

The FPA scholarship committee awarded five$1,500.00 Frank Filipek Scholarships and one $500.00Lillian and Chester Mitchell Fine Arts Scholarship to sixvery deserving young students.

All the details can be found on FPA website atwww.friendsofpolishart.org

In October the FPA celebrated the 26th anniversary oftheir Fine Arts Competition (formerly Kubinski Art Com-petition) which was held in the Galeria on the groundsof the Orchard Lake Schools under the direction of newlyappointed Director of the Galeria and a long time chair-person of the event, Evelyn Bachorski- Bowman and co-chair J. William Gorski. This year it was juried by awardwinning artist Vianna Szabo, P.S.A. The awards werepresented by the new Rector of the Orchard Lake Schools’SS Cyril & Methodius Seminary, Fr. Thomas Machalski.A reception followed. Also, a “Gallery Talk” by jurorSzabo was held at the Galeria where the members andguests were able to meet and exchange views with theartist.

Now, the Szopka Competition is in full swing. Origi-nally started by past president Carolyn Meleski it gainsin popularity every year with the support of the PolishArt Center in Hamtramck. The event is under the skill-ful chairmanship of First Vice-President Gorski. .

In 2012, the Friends of Polish Art will be celebratingtheir 75th Anniversary and to commemorate that SpecialYear the FPA is hosting the ACPC Board Meeting, sched-uled for April 20 and 21, 2012 to be followed by a SpecialCelebration.

Friends of Polish Art,Detroit, Michigan

Anna Mae Maglaty presented the 2011 recipient of the ACPCPulaski Scholarship Award to Beata Hrynkiewicz on May 18.

Pulaski Scholarshipsfor Advanced Studies

For detailed informationabout ACPC Scholarships,please see oour website:www.polishcultureacpc.org

Lisamarie Gora

12 POLISH HERITTAGE

The American Council for Polish Cul-ture (ACPC) held its 2011 Fall Board

Meeting, Oct. 14-15 in a suburb of Bos-ton, which was hosted by the Polish Cul-tural Foundation whose president is Dr.Andrzej Pronczuk. Dr. Pronczuk earnedhis Doctor of Science degree from presti-gious MIT in Cambridge, MA. He is a spe-cialist in human nutrition and lectures andconducts research at Brandeis University.He is the author of well over 100 scien-tific publications and holds several pat-ents.

Dr. Pronczuk, his charming wife Lila,and the Foundation’s Vice-Presidents,Donata Czulak, Elzbieta Welz, andSzymon Tolak planned a very excitingand informative weekend for the mem-bers of ACPC. Business sessions kickedoff the Friday evening meeting, whichwere followed by a splendid receptionprepared by Mrs. Pronczuk and other ac-tive members of the Foundation.

After a brief business session Saturdaymorning the ACPC members embarkedupon a memorable two-hour trolley cartour through Boston and Cambridge.They viewed Faneuil Hall where SamuelAdams and other Revolutionary figuresmet to plan their fight for liberty. Othersites they witnessed were Paul Revere’shouse, the Boston Harbor where BritishRedcoats marched ashore in 1768, a viewof the U.S.S. Constitution, Bunker Hill,and many other important historical siteswhere the battles for our country’s free-dom began. Other sites pointed out withprecise and interesting facts by the trol-ley driver, such as the Christian ScienceChurch building, the Kennedy Libraryand the Old North Church where the lan-tern warned that the British were comingbrought sighs of recognition. Our mem-bers were absolutely fascinated by the his-torical backgrounds, which have been soimmaculately maintained.

ACPC Board Meets in Boston By Jo Louise Winters P/R Chair

Andrzej Pronczuk welcomes guests

she has decided to donate the income re-ceived from the book sales to the mainte-nance of the de Rosen cenotaph which theACPC had erected in the cemetery of theNational Shrine of Our Lady ofCzestochowa.

Chairman Marion Winters announcedthat it appears that the Pulaski Scholar-ships program will be able to award fourscholarships of $5,000 each to PolishAmerican youths in advanced studies in2012.

Camile Kopielski, Chair of the SummerStudies in Poland program, reported that$2,000 awards were granted this year toAgatha Kielczewski and Nicholas Gre-gory Krol. Agatha is a senior atNorhwestern University. She wrote of herexperience at a university in Poland that

“the study was with two incrediblyknowledgeable and talented professorsinvolving four hours of daily classes cov-ering Polish history and literature”.Planned weekends included tripsthroughout Poland and Eastern Europe,which “made a most poignant, memo-rable summer.”

Nicholas Krol is a senior at Wayne StateUniv. A Wayne State professor, Dr. AlinaKlein, visited Poland this summer andmet Krol there. He informed her that heis remaining in Poland to attend theJagiellonian University for one year.

Thomas Payne, Chairman of theJamestown Historical Marker Commit-tee, announced that the marker preparedby ACPC honoring the Polish settlers whocontributed richly to the success of theSettlement in the early 1600’s has passedall of the requirements that the State ofVirginia requires. It will be installed inJamestown during the ACPC Conventionin 2012.

Dr. Andrzej Pronczuk announced thatin addition to the $100 donation made byhis Foundation to our ACPC booth at theAnnual Conference for Social Studies, hewould be sending his very popular bookmarkers and also a supply of the May 3rd

Constitution booklet.Many other business decisions were

discussed and processed as Pres. Majkaskillfully and adroitly guided the proceed-ings on Friday evening and Saturday af-ternoon.

After enjoying a delicious dinner Sat-urday evening, ACPC members weretransported by the Foundation membersto the home of Mrs. Lila Pronczuk’s cousinfor a piano recital. We were delighted tobe seated by the hosts in the very spaciousparlor of what could be best described asa mansion, the home of Elzbieta andWaldemar Welz. We were introduced toKrystian Tkaczewski, pianist who is a

Upon returning to the hotel meetingroom, we were treated to a very tasty lun-cheon while Pres. Majka began the finalbusiness agenda. Among the many inter-esting and important activities andprojects discussed was a report by MaryFlanagan. Mrs. Flanagan has written andpublished a book “With Paintbrush andSword”, which reflects the Life & Worksof Jan H. de Rosen. She announced that

President Majka opens evening session

FALL/WINTER 2011 13

graduate of the University of Hartfordwhere he is presently pursuing his Doc-tor of Musical Arts degree. Mr.Tkaczewski has taken part in a numberof piano competitions and took first prizein several, such as American Protégé inNY and Jose Iturbi Music Competition inLos Angeles.

Tkaczewski’s piano selections weresuperbly played, sometimes forcefully,sometimes delicately in delivery. The en-ergy of the music seemed to coursethrough him. He appeared to perform infull authority and conviction. Tkaczewskiseemed to be always exploring the rangeof sound, keenly passionate, exciting, butas in Chopin’s Nocturne also lyrical anddelicate.

The recital was a superbly atmosphericpresentation of Mozart, Schubert andChopin. The presentation by Mr.Tkaczewski, his range of sound and pas-sionate delivery made the music loud inbeauty that gladdened the senses. Theaudience responded with tremendousapplause revealing their delight and ap-

preciation for Mr. Tkaczewski’s perfor-mance.

The beaming audience was invited topartake of a dessert table filled with cook-ies and cakes and another table laden withwines and other refreshments. Mrs. LilaPronczuk had personally baked the tastycookies and the really superb poppy-seedcake.

What a lovely and very interesting day– a sight-seeing trolley tour through Bos-

ton and Cambridge, a fine luncheon, veryengrossing and productive ACPC busi-ness session, a delicious dinner, an out-standing piano recital, and a really deli-cious dessert! The Polonian memberswho attended the weekend’s Board Meet-ing were transfixed by recalling the Pol-ish tradition displayed by Dr. Andrzej &Lila Pronczuk and Mr. & Mrs. Welz that“Gosc w domu, Bog w domu” (“Guest inthe home, God’s in the home”), which wasindeed applicable to our visit in Boston.The concluding feeling was that the week-end manifested a very warm companion-ship among all members, creating a feel-ing of happiness in their Polish souls. Themajestic experience continued into Sun-day morning, as the gracious Lila meteveryone in the hotel lobby, inquiring ifanyone wanted transportation to churchto attend Mass. Folks went to Mass withthanksgiving in their hearts and souls foran unforgettably happy weekend. Thefaithful Mass attendees were furtherblessed by Rev.Andrzej Urbaniak whogreeted them warmly and wished them asafe journey home.

Stop on the bus tour at sculpture “The Partisans”by Andrzej Pitynski

Board members in front of Our Lady of Czestochowa Church before Mass

Members enjoying the Tkaczewski recital in the spacious parlor of Elzbieta and Waldemar Welz

Krystian Tkaczewski at the piano

14 POLISH HERITTAGE

This issue of the Polish Heritage willbe the last issue Robert and I will

be editing. We wish to thank all those whoconsistently helped in making every is-sue informative and inspiring pride in theaccomplishments of the organization.Thanks to: Jo Louise and Marion Winterswith coverage and photos of our events;Jackie Kolowski with photos and the in-dividual clubs who sent in their reportsfor the Affiliate News as well as the indi-viduals who took time to send informa-tion of interest. Please continue your valu-able input and support for the new editor- Mr. David Motak.

Mr. Motak is an artist/educator knownfor his beautiful ‘szopkas’ for which hehas won acclaim in Krakow, Poland attheir annual Szopka competition. He is

also Director of Communications, PolishFalcons of America. At the last ACPC Con-vention held in Cleveland, Ohio, last sum-mer, he was awarded the ACPC CulturalAchievement Award.

Dave’s value to Poloniacontinues to be consider-able. He has been a dynamiccultural ambassador for ourcommunity. Rather thanmerely presenting lecturesor talks on the szopka form,he has been innovative intaking this traditional, or-nate Polish folk artform,popularizing it, developinga simplified yet authenticconstruction technique andmaking it accessible to

SAVE THE DATE!July 18-22, 2012

64th ACPC Annual ConventionWilliamsburg, Virginia

On Saturday, July 21, 2012 there will be a ceremony at near-by Jamestown

to unveil a historical markercommemorating the arrival of

the first Poles to America

To our readersawide-range of individuals. In doing so,Dave has brought many adults and chil-dren into the creative process, many ofwhom would not necessarily have access

to the arts. By portraying Pol-ish history and culture in in-novative and dynamic ways,he has helped to enhancepride in their heritage forpeople of Polish descentwhile simultaneously servingas a positive representative ofPolish arts and culture to thegeneral public. Throughworkshops, classes, publica-tions and public presenta-tions to community groups,Dave has worked tirelesslv toincrease the visibility of Po-land and Polish culture bothregionally and nationally.

We are delighted to welcome Mr. Motakto our Board and wish him joy and satis-faction in this new endeavor. To our read-ers - we wish happy reading and pleasurein being a part of this (ACPC) vital orga-nization.

Mary and Robert Flanagan

David Motak.

Joyful Christmas &Happy New Year!

Until Mr Motak issues his contact address,please continue to send your information toMary Flanagan for forwarding to the new editor

FALL/WINTER 2011 15

Arecent issue of The PostEagle carries a front page

story about the 100th anniver-sary of Madame Curie’s Nobelprize in Chemistry. Most excit-ing is the fact that Senator Bar-bara Mikulski of MD wasjoined by the Embassy of Po-land to open an exhibit on thelife and accomplishments ofMadame Marie Sklodowska-Curie - on display in the Sen-ate Office Building Rotunda tomark National Chemistry Week.

At the opening, Sen.Mikulski was joined by the Embassy of Poland Deputy Chiefof Mission Maciej Pisarski and Dr. Bradley Miller, Dir. of theOffice of Intl. Affairs at the American Chemical Society.Inher opening remarks the Senator described Curie’s accom-plishments and honors bestowed upon her. Then she alsoexplained that she was a big fan of Madame Curie - “when Iwas a little girl growing up in Baltimore during WWII, myparents took me to see a famous movie about her. Theywanted me to know the story of Poland; they wanted me toknow the story of this brilliant woman. At age 8, I saw GreerGarson play “Madame Curie”. I knew then that I wanted tobe just like her. When I came home, I begged my parents tobuy me a chemistry set. I wanted to be a scientist. I wantedto win a Nobel prize. I wasn’t sure how to spell it, but Iwanted to win it. The story mesmerized me and I workedhard in my science classes in school. I had hoped, as a younghigh school girl and as a young college student, to have acareer in science, but it was not meant to be. I am good atunderstanding science, but I’m not very good at doing sci-ence. So I shifted my career to social science, to social workand to politics. I now use my talents in government to fundthose that do science. When I think about Madame Curieand all that she meant for science, I think of all the possibili-ties and potential for women, for those who have a passionfor science, and for those who pursue the passion of intel-lectual discovery.”

Marie Sklodowska Curie100th Anniversary by Marion Winters

ACPC Affiliate Matching Funds Grants

The Affiliate matching funds have been successfullyawarded to the Polish Arts Club of Trenton,NJ, and the

Polish Arts Club of Youngstown, OH.The Grant Criteria and Application Form have been

posted to the ACPC Website. Affiliates in good standing forat least two years may apply for matching funds for projectsin their respective communities. All information needed tocomplete an application is detailed in the Grant Criteria andApplication Form.

The Membership Outreach Committee looks forward toreceiving your applications. If you do not have access to acomputer, or prefer to complete a paper application form,you may obtain the forms by mail by contacting:

Marcia Lewandowski5128 Casmere St.Detroit,MI 48212-2872

American Council forPolish Culture

Individual Memberships/Subscriptions

Buy 2 get 1 FreeMembers of affiliates are automatically members of ACPC.Individual membership is for those who do not live in anarea with an ACPC affiliate.

First Gift

Name ____________________________________________

Addess ___________________________________________

City _______________________ State ___ Zip ________

e/mail ___________________________________________

Second Gift

Name ____________________________________________

Addess ___________________________________________

City _______________________ Sate ____ Zip ________

e/mail ___________________________________________

Third (Free) Gift

Name ____________________________________________

Addess ___________________________________________

City _______________________ State ___ Zip ________

e/mail ___________________________________________

Compliments of

Name ____________________________________________

Address __________________________________________

City _______________________ State ___ Zip ________

Please send check/money order payable to ACPC in the amount of $20.00 US to:

Membership ChairmanFlorence Langridge78 Meadow LaneHartford, CT 06107 flolangridge@sbcglobal.net

Foreign Memberships: add $2.00 US each.

16 POLISH HERITTAGE

Polish Heritage is the officialPublication of the American

Council for Polish Culture, aconfederation of affiliated Pol-ish-American organizations andindividuals in the continentalUnited states, propagating theknowledge and appreciation ofthe culture and civilization ofPoland, and the contributions ofAmericans of Polish descent tothe history and culture of theUnited States of America. TheCouncil conceived and helpedfund the establishment of theAmerican Center of Polish Cul-ture in Wash. D.C.

Mary Flanagan - Editor

Robert Flanagan - Layout & Design1721 Forest Lane, McLean, VA 22101-3323

Editorial Staff:

Wallace West, Mary Flanagan - Book Reviews

Bernadette & Richard Wiermanski - Proofreaders

Judi Tompkins - Subscriptions & Business Mngr.805 N Hickory Ridge Rd., Highland MI 48357-4126EM:kallie25@comcast.net

Thaddeus Mirecki, Peter Obst - WebmastersWebsite: www.polishcultureacpc.org

Printed by Avalon Digital Printing & Graphics2245 Eureka Rd. Wyandotte, MI 48192

Annual Subscription to Polish HeritageU.S. - 1 yr. $10 2 yrs. $18 Canada/Foreign - 1 yr. $15

Individual Membership in ACPC including SubscriptionU.S. - 1 yr. $10 2 yrs. $18 Canada/Foreign - 1 yr. $15

Attention Affiliate and Supporting MembersThe deadline for submitting your organization’s news is as follows:

Business Office805 N Hickory Ridge RoadHighland MI 48357-4126

Address Service Requested

Nonprofit Org.U. S. POSTAGE

PAIDDetroit, MI

Permit No. 1439

Reprints are permitted provided credit is given to ACPC Polish Heritage and copy to editor

Spring/Summer Issue .... March 1 Fall/Winter .... October 1

Postmaster: Dated material, Please expedite