Chicago (PMN)—Chicago’s Polish
community dedicated a memorial to the Katyn victims at St. Adalbert
Cemetery in Niles, Illinois, on May 17, 2009, with the help of
Cardinal Jozef Glemp, who succeeded the late Pope John Paul II as
Primate of Poland. The $290,000 monument was designed by Chicago
artist Wojciech Seweryn.
There were tears in the crowd as Glemp
sprinkled holy water on the statue, which resembles Michelangelo’s
Pieta. The Madonna cradles an executed Polish officer. His hands,
like those of many Katyn victims, are bound. "There is no hatred in
that statue. It’s Polish people's history," Glemp said through a
translator. "They will forgive, but don't forget."
Edward Mika, immediate Past President
of the Alliance of Polish Clubs, the group that helped erect the
granite-and-bronze statue, stated, "We want to keep the history for
the next generation … We don’t need a statue, but we want this to
show the next generation that such a thing happened. The young
people need to know who they are. It’s part of their history."
The month of the massacre, the Soviets
exterminated more Polish officers and civilians in nearby areas. The
death toll reached about 22,000. Many of the soldiers’ bodies were
found shot at point-blank range in the back of the head. The widows
and children were often deported to Siberia. Some of them, now
Chicagoans, were in attendance at the memorial.
In addition to military officers,
Stalin’s executioners shot scientists, journalists, doctors and
lawyers. Many Poles believe Stalin deliberately wiped out the
intelligentsia to quash post-war challenges to Soviet power.
The massacre was not spoken of in
Soviet-dominated Poland. "It was a black hole in books. Teachers
couldn’t teach this," Polish Consul General Zygmunt Matynia said.
"Only from one mouth to another was it discussed — only when Poland
became free, we could talk about it."
Los Angeles, California (PMN)—Bogdan
Zdrojewski, Poland’s Minister of Culture and National Heritage, paid
a visit to the University of Southern California (USC) campus in Los
Angeles on April 23, 2009. Arriving with his assistant and
accompanied by Paulina Kapuscinska, Consul General of the Republic
of Poland in Los Angeles, Malgorzata Cup, Consul for Culture, Roman
Czarny, former Consul for Culture, and film director Krzysztof
Jankowski. He toured the campus and met with Dr. Robert Cutietta,
Dean of the Thornton School of Music.
During a brief afternoon ceremony,
Zdrojewski decorated the Dean with the Gloria Artis gold medal. This
highly prestigious award recognizes outstanding individuals for
their contributions to Polish culture and is usually bestowed upon
the recipient upon the initiative of the Minister of Culture or
other high government official.
In his remarks to Dean Cutietta,
Minister Zdrojewski summarized the long-standing relationship of the
Thornton School of Music and the Polish Music Center (PMC) at USC
and the Dean’s leading role in promoting Polish music and culture in
Southern California.
Following the decoration ceremony, the
Dean and Zdrojewski stepped outside the Music School Building for a
photo opportunity next to the monument of Ignacy Jan Paderewski.
Paderewski, one of the most important pianists in the history of
music, was also a statesman and a humanitarian and his
accomplishments in the fields of music and diplomacy were recognized
by USC with an honorary doctorate in February, 1923. Paderewski’s
monument at USC was unveiled at a special ceremony in October, 2007.
The PMC in Stonier Hall was the last
stop on the visit. The Minister and his entourage were introduced to
the library which highlights the collection of manuscripts by Henry
Vars and Zygmunt Stojowski, as well as photographs, personal items,
correspondence and concert programs of Ignacy Jan Paderewski.
At the conclusion of his visit, the
Minister presented the Center with a 12-CD set of recordings of all
of Frederic Chopin’s compositions, performed by various Polish
artists. In addition, the PMC library received two volumes of
limited edition facsimiles of Chopin’s manuscripts, including his
Etudes Op. 10 and Mazurkas, Op. 33, recently published under the
Minister’s aegis. Another fascinating gift from the Ministry of
Culture and National Heritage, a book about Krzysztof Penderecki and
a recording of his most famous works topped up the large gift
package that Zdrojewski had brought with him from Poland to the USC
campus.
Doylestown, Pennsylvania (PMN)—A 45’ by
15’ mural painted by Jan de Rosen, which hung behind the altar at
Holy Family Church in Pittsburgh Pa., is in need of a new home.
In December, 2008, Holy Family Church
was closed. On learning of the closing, Polonia and art lovers
became concerned over the fate of the masterpiece titled, "Poland
Always Faithful." The mural memorializes Polish Christianity and is
painted in brilliant colors on a gold leaf background. In an attempt
to save the mural, the Diocese of Pittsburgh plans to send it to the
National Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa in Doylestown, Pa.,
however the costs of removing and transporting the work of art are
astronomical.
The Pauline Fathers at the National
Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa in Doylestown are seeking bids on
removing, transporting and installing the artwork at the Shrine.
Scaffolding and special techniques are needed to insure the mural
will not suffer any damage.
The American Council for Polish Culture
(ACPC) has offered to donate the proceeds from its annual raffle to
the Shrine for the purpose of supporting the transfer of the mural
from Pittsburgh to Doylestown. The raffle will be held at the annual
ACPC Convention in Hartford, Conn., August 4-8, 2009.
Individuals and organizations
interested in assisting in raising funds to save this piece of art
are asked to contact Fr. Tadeusz Lizinczyk, OSPPE National Shrine of
Our Lady of Czestochowa, 654 Ferry Rd., Doylestown, PA 18901, (215)
345-0600. For information about the Shrine visit
http://www.czestochowa.us .
Portland, Oregon (PMN)—Jerzy
Tumaniszwili (Jerzy Trapper), 92, an Oregonian living in
Beavercreek, received a promotion to Rear Admiral from Poland’s the
President, Lech Kaczynski. Admiral is the highest rank in the Polish
Navy, equivalent to General in the Army.
Tumaniszwili is a distinguished WWII
veteran of the Polish Navy, decorated with Virtuti Militari and
other orders. He served as artillery officer on the Polish Navy
ships (ORP) Burza, Krakowiak and Piorun, settling in the U.S. after
the war.
The appointment ceremony took place at
the Polish Hall in Portland on May 31, 2009, preceded by a Mass for
veterans of WWII at St Stanislaus Church in Portland.
Tumaniszwili received the appointment
from the Polish Ambassador in Washington, D.C., Robert Kupiecki, and
General Leszek Soczewica.
Jerzy Tumaniszwili is a Pole of
Georgian descent. More about Georgian officers in the Polish
military can be found at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mDFoDacQedQ&feature=related.
Chicago (PMN)—The Polish National
Alliance (PNA) announced that it will host its 3rd Annual Classic
and Antique Car Show on the grounds of the PNA Home Office
Building,6100 N. Cicero Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, on Sunday June
28, 2009, from 1:00-5:00 p.m. A rain date of Sunday July 26 has been
set.
The car show is open to the public. It
will feature hot cars, food, ice cream, Italian Ice, D.J., Live
Music, and crafts and activities for children. Trophies will be
awarded to the best cars.
Those wishing to show their cars
(muscle cars, antique cars, sports cars, classic cars, and
motorcycles, 1984 and older models) must register with the PNA. To
receive a registration form, contact the Polish National Alliance at
1-800-621-3723 during regular office hours (8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.).
The registration fee before June 10 is $5.00. Onsite registration
the day of the event will be $10.00, cash only.
A registration form can also be copied
and downloaded from the PNA website at
http://www.pna-znp.org in the
"events" section or from the homepage. Questions about the car show
should be directed to Dave at (847) 970-1040.
Warsaw (PMN)—Professor Andrzej
Stelmachowski, Polish academic and politician died on April 6, 2009,
in Warsaw. Polish President Lech Kaczynski expressed
condolences to family and friends, as did politicians from across
the political spectrum in Poland. Representatives of Polish emigrant
organizations were sent from Belarus, Lithuania and the United
States.
The organization he founded in Poland
in 1990, Stowarzyszenie Wspolnota Polska [Association of the Polish
Community or Polonia Association], enabled hundreds of other Polonia
organizations around the world to communicate and interact to better
showcase Poland’s heritage, and future possibilities. He served as
President until May 11, 2008.
Of late, Wspolnota Polska has been
relentlessly working to save Poland’s roots in the Ukraine, Belarus
and the other northern Russian regions that were once Polish. They
accept monetary donations as well as books for students living in
those regions, to replace those destroyed by the Russian civic
groups attempting to eradicate any Polish tracks.
New York, N.Y. (PMN)—As an American
citizen, Chet Szarejko never wore a Polish Army uniform. But, what
he recently wore was Poland’s Cross of Merit awarded in the past to
many Polish war veterans and Holocaust survivors. In ceremonies
commemorating Poland’s May 3rd, 1791 Constitution, adopted shortly
after America’s Constitutional Convention of 1787, Poland’s Consul
General Krzysztof Kasprzyk presented Szarejko with the decoration
for his efforts to promote the cause of Poland in the U.S.,
particularly New York City.
Szarejko spent nearly three years
assisting Consul General Kasprzyk in clearing the way for placing a
statue of Jan Karski in front of the Consulate on Madison Avenue and
E. 37th Street in Manhattan.
Just a few weeks prior to the award
ceremony, New York City designated that intersection "Jan Karski
Corner," according to Milewski. He also noted that Szarejko is well
known and highly regarded in New York for the many years he has
devoted to the advancement of good will and understanding among the
ethnic groups who live there.
Szarejko said it was an honor for him
to work on the Jan Karski dedication because of his admiration for
this World War II hero "who risked his life when he left
German-occupied Poland on a secret mission to England and the United
States to warn the Allies the Germans were conducting the genocide
of the Jews in his country."
Participating in the ceremony was Frank
Milewski, President of the Downstate New York Division of the Polish
American Congress (PAC) where Szarejko is Vice President and
chairman of that organization’s Political Activities Committee.
London, England (PMN)—Found in
Translation is an annual prize given for the best translation of
Polish literature into English. This year’s award went to Antonia
Lloyd-Jones, for her translation of Pawel Huelle’s book "The Last
Supper" (Serpent's Tail, London, 2008), a novel that raises
fundamental questions about the nature of belief in modern society.
Antonia Lloyd-Jones received the prize from the hands of Pawel
Huelle himself during the European Literature Night in the British
Library on May 13.
Lloyd-Jones is one of the finest
translators of Polish literature into English. Born in 1962, she
read Russian and Ancient Greek at Oxford. Her published translations
from Polish include novels by Pawel Huelle and Olga Tokarczuk, short
stories by Jaroslaw Iwaszkiewicz, and non-fiction, most recently by
Ryszard Kapuscinski and Wojciech Tochman. Her translations of a
selection of poems by Tadeusz Dabrowski is forthcoming with Zephyr
Press.
The Found in Translation Award,
established in 2007 by the Polish Book Institute in Krakow, the
Polish Cultural Institute in London, the Polish Cultural Institute
in New York, and the W.A.B. Publishers in Warsaw, is given annually
for the best translation of a work of Polish literature into English
that was published as a book in the preceding year.
The Award consists of a three-month
residency in Krakow, with lodging, a monthly stipend, roundtrip
airfare, and a financial award of about $3,000. The laureate is
announced during the Award ceremony, which is organized each year in
the laureate’s country of origin.
Candidates for the Award can be
nominated by private persons, as well as institutions in Poland and
abroad. Nominations are to be sent with the subject-heading Found In
Translation to: The Polish Book Institute, 31-011 Krakow, ul.
Szczepanska 1, Poland, e-mail
biuro@instytutksiazki.pl
.
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