The Boys from Baltimore are returning to the Polish Community Center, 225 Washington Ave Ext, Albany, NY on Saturday, April 27 from 6-10pm. The kitchen will be open with Polish and American food available. The Ladies’ Auxiliary will also be having raffles and a bake sale featuring many delicious baked goods. Tickets cost $15 and reservations are recommended. Please contact Darius Figiel 518-235-6001 for more information and reservations.
From the StarCourier: Father Jerry is Ambassadors’ 2013 Citizen of the Year, Pastor of Holy Trinity Church
Kewanee — The Rev. Jerry Rafalko is the 2013 Citizen of the Year. Rev. Rafalko was selected by the Kewanee Chamber of Commerce’s Ambassadors Club. He will be honored at a community dinner reception which will be scheduled in the next few weeks.
Rev. Jaroslaw “Jerry” Rafalko was born and educated in Poland. He was ordained into the priesthood in 1980 in Poland, and came to the United States in 1989 to join his mother and sister, who lived in Chicago.
In March 1990 he was assigned by the bishop of the Western District of the Polish National Catholic Church as pastor of Holy Trinity Parish in Kewanee.
The parish has been part of the Kewanee community for 85 years, meeting the needs first of Polish immigrants and later of many local residents.
Moving to the United States opened new opportunities and presented new challenges for Father Jerry. He studied English and computer science at Black Hawk East College.
As a priest, his pastoral ministry includes spiritual and psychological counseling. Since 1999 he has been chaplain and bereavement coordinator first for Kewanee Hospital Hospice and now for OSF Hospice in Kewanee, offering spiritual comfort to those who are dying and grief support to their family members.
Father Jerry does a monthly radio show offering information on hospice and conducts weekly support group meetings at Kewanee Hospital and at Courtyard Estates in Galva.
Father Jerry’s community honors have included recognition by the Kewanee Kiwanis Club, the DAR and Kewanee Care, where he was named volunteer of the year in 2004. He also has received the Ambassadors Club Meritorious Service Award and the Elks Distinguished Citizenship Award for outstanding and meritorious service to humanity.
Father Jerry’s wife Leslie is a registered nurse in the emergency room and critical care unit at Kewanee Hospital.
I encourage everyone, and especially PNCC members, to take the Piast Institute’s 2013 Polish American Survey. The survey thankfully includes a question on the religious affiliation of Polish-American and includes the Polish National Catholic Church as a choice among many others. Our inclusion as PNCC members in the Polish-American demographic is important.
This survey follows up on two earlier national studies in 2009 and 2010 that the Institute did of 900 and 1,400 Polish Americans respectively. The new study probes some of the key social, political and economic questions asked on the earlier studies and adds a few additional issues that have aroused public concern since. It also probes the attitudes of Polish Americans on matters of concern to the community and their ideas about its future.
The study is being conducted as a “rolling survey” over a span of three months. Polish Americans and Poles living in America are encouraged to participate. Dominik Stecula, a Ph.D. student at the University of British Columbia who coauthored the original study urged as wide a participation as possible to give the study a broad statistical sample for analysis. “I hope all Polish Americans who have a concern about our community take the time to respond to the survey,” he said. Mr. Stecula noted that “The original study demonstrated to us that Polonia is a unique community which shows distinctive opinions and attitudes on public and community issues. We need broad national participation to allow us to confirm our earlier findings and to deepen our analysis. These will be invaluable as we seek to create Polonia anew in the 21st century.” The survey, he pointed out, which can be completed in 25 to 60 minutes, can be accessed here (NOTE: the survey did not really take that long).
The 2010 study published as Polish Americans Today by the Piast Institute has gone through three printings. Its findings have been a key item of discussion at several national conferences. The chancery of the President of Poland ordered copies for its staff as have several Polish Ministries as well as the offices of the Marshalls of the Sejm and Senate. “The Piast Institute undertook the original study because we found a dearth of information about the Polish American Community as major Research Centers such as NORC at the University of Chicago and the national election exit polls have stopped asking about European American ethnic groups.” Says Dr. Radzilowski. “Poles and other European groups were lumped into a new default category called “White” which makes no historical, cultural or demographic sense. It is a new version of the melting pot.”
The new study will be published by E. Mellen Press, a major Social Science and Humanities publisher.
Thank you for your participation. You can access the survey HERE.
See Pete and Peggy Seeger at the Eighth Step Coffeehouse, Proctors Theater, Schenectady on Mother’s Day, Sunday May 12th in a special event to benefit the New York Folklore Society.
The New York Folklore Society is offering a special opportunity to attend the Pete and Peggy Seeger Concert on Sunday May 12th at Proctors Theater with a block of tickets that includes a Pre-Concert Reception And Dinner in the Fenimore Gallery at Proctors. The reception will take place from 5 – 6 p.m.. The Concert begins at 7 p.m. Dining includes specialties from the Indo-African diaspora.
Tickets for the dinner are $35, the dinner and show is $70. Friend of the Folklore Society are $100 which includes dinner, show, and Society membership – a $15.00 savings. Tickets may be purchased on-line.
The New York Folklore Society’s Annual Conference will be held at ArtsWestchester, 31 Mamaroneck Avenue, White Plains, NY on Saturday, March 2nd. The day will begin at 11 a.m. with a preview of the Society’s newly designed website followed by the Society’s annual meeting. An optional lunch will be available (advanced reservations and a small fee required). Speakers and panel discussions begin at 1 p.m. on the theme Occupational Folklore: A conference to accompany the exhibit From Shore to Shore: Boat Builders and Boat Yards of Westchester and Long Island.
Admission is $15, $10 for NYFS Members, Students are Free. Attendees may register and RSVP online. More information on the event is available by calling (518) 346-7008.
Event Sponsors include ArtsWestchester, Long Island Traditions, the New York State Council on the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts.
This summer, One Story will again be offering a six-day fiction workshop for writers. With just two workshops of ten students each, this summer workshop is designed to help each student take the next step in their writing career in a supportive environment.
The week will include morning workshops, afternoon craft lectures, and evening panels with authors, agents, MFA faculty, and editors. The workshop will be held from July 14 – 19, 2013, at the Center for Fiction in Manhattan. Former Associate Editor Marie-Helene Bertino and Contributing Editor Will Allison will be returning as workshop leaders. Both bring their unique experience as editors and writers to the table.
Editor-in-Chief Hannah Tinti, as well as other established writers chosen for their ability to teach the craft of writing in engaging ways, will lead focused afternoon craft classes on topics like character, dialogue, and plot.
Every night, there will be a wine and cheese reception and panel discussion with industry professionals. Last year’s lecturers and panelists included Myla Goldberg, Victor LaValle, Simon Van Booy, editors from Granta, Bellevue Literary Review, Gigantic, literary agents, and MFA directors.
Applications for the One Story Workshop for Writers are being accepted now until April 30, 2013.
Prior attendees have said:
“The One Story Summer Writers Workshop was the first time I’ve felt that what I do is important. For a solitary writer, the experience of meeting, connecting with, and learning from others in the field is priceless. I’m inspired.” — Adam Sturtevant, Summer Workshop Participant 2011
“I feel much more confident about pursuing a writing career after the workshop. The thing I wasn’t necessarily expecting was the thing that I’ve come to appreciate the most: an overwhelming feeling of community and camaraderie, and I absolutely believe the relationships developed at the workshop will carry on long into our careers.” — Eric Fershtman, Summer Workshop Participant 2010
“I loved spending a week with the people at One Story. The spirit and energy was infectious and encouraging. Everyone is excited to talk about writing.” — Patty Forgie, Summer Workshop Participant 2012
Please see the official Polish American Historical Association (PAHA) call for papers for its January 2-4, 2014 Annual Meeting below and consider submitting a proposal.
The PAHA 2014 Annual Meeting will be held in Washington D.C. from January 2-4, 2014 as part of the American Historical Association’s Annual Conference. Abstracts for papers and panel proposals are now being accepted and should be submitted to the Chair of the Program Committee:
Grazyna Kozaczka, Ph.D.
Professor of English
Cazenovia College
22 Sullivan St.
Cazenovia, NY 13035
Electronic proposals in email and word format are strongly preferred. E-mail proposals directly to Dr. Kozaczka. The deadline for submissions is April 15, 2013.
Individuals and panel organizers should include the following information when submitting a proposal:
- Paper/Session title(s) (of no more than 20 words)
- Paper/Session abstract(s) (up to 300/500 words, respectively)
- Biographical paragraph or c.v. summary (up to 250 words) for each participant
- Correct mailing and e-mail address for each participant
- Chair (required) and commentator (optional) for the session
- Audiovisual needs, if any.
Please be advised that it is unlikely that PAHA will be able to use PowerPoint in its sessions, due to the high cost of rental, or that presenters will be permitted by the hosting conference hotel to bring their own. You may wish to consider distribution of paper handouts as an alternative.
The Polish American Historical Association holds its Annual Conference in conjunction with the American Historical Association (AHA). The full information about the AHA conference can be found at at their website. PAHA members who plan to attend PAHA conference only do not need to register for the AHA conference, but are required to register for the PAHA conference by November 1, 2013. Registration may be done on-line or by sending the $20.00 registration fee to:
PAHA Headquarters
c/o Magda Jacques
Central Connecticut State University
1615 Stanley Street
New Britain, CT 06050
From UMASS Amherst: Polish biographer Agata Tuszyńska to read from new book
Polish biographer Agata Tuszyńska will read from her new book, “Vera Gran – The Accused,” on Tuesday, Feb. 26 at 7:30 p.m. in 601 Herter Hall.
[AMAZONPRODUCT=0307269124]
Vera Gran was a sultry contralto headlining at the Café Sztuka in the Warsaw Ghetto. The café and her accompanist are remembered in Roman Polański’s film The Pianist, but she is not. Accused after the war of collaboration with the Germans, despite being acquitted of all charges, she was never able to get her career back into full swing, though she did make some recordings in Paris, had a Carnegie Hall recital, and sang with the likes of Charles Aznavour. Tuszyńska’s book, newly translated into English by Charles Ruas, tells her story.
Tuszyńska, one of Poland’s leading biographers and writers, sought out Gran in Paris and interviewed her over a period of three years, researching Gran’s claims and allegations in an attempt to render an account of her life from scraps of memory, refracted through amnesia, paranoia and delusion. Her controversial book, quickly translated into several languages, is also a subjective account of the author’s struggle to work through her own personal relationship to the Warsaw Ghetto. Tuszyńska, the daughter of Ghetto survivors, only learned of her Jewish heritage in her late teens. In her book she attempts to get inside the minds of Gran and of her accusers, raising more questions than she answers.
Tuszyńska’s visit is sponsored by the Amesbury Professorship in Polish Language, Literature and Culture in collaboration with the Polish Cultural Institute New York and the Adam Mickiewicz Institute in Warsaw. Copies of her book will be available for sale after her talk.
Several PNCC Parishes now stream their Holy Masses and other services online. If you are homebound or unable to attend on a particular Sunday you can still prayerfully participate in the life of the Church.
Holy Names of Jesus Parish in South Deerfield, Massachusetts televises Sunday Holy Mass and other services via Frontier Cable Access every Sunday and Tuesday on TV. Services are also recorded and are available via ‘Video On Demand.’
Tune in to Cable Channel 23 (Conway, Deerfield, Sunderland, and Whately, Massachusetts) and watch the previous Sunday’s Holy Mass at 9am and 9pm every Sunday, and rebroadcast on Tuesday’s at 4pm. Over 50 videos are now available in ‘Video On Demand.’
Sts. Cyril and Methodius in Chicago, Illinois has a live streaming web feed 24/7. You can view what’s going on at anytime, spending time in the Lord’s presence, and participate in Holy Mass and other services. Holy Masses are broadcast at 8, 9:15, and 11 am as well as 12:30 pm every Sunday in English, Spanish, and Polish.
Make a joyful shout to God all the earth! Sing out the honor of His name; make His praise glorious – Psalm 66:1,2
January 27th, the last Sunday of January, has been set aside by PNCC Synodal resolution as Music Scholarship Sunday, which puts special emphasis on the Music Scholarship program of the National United Choirs of the P.N.C.C. It is the Sunday when the choirs, organists, directors and choir members should be recognized for their contributions to the music ministry of our church. It is also the Sunday when we look to the future and identify those that we hope will be part of the music ministry of the church. Thank you for your support of the music scholarship program. Scholarship applications are available on-line at the NUC website.