POLISH CULTURAL AND CIVIC ORGANIZATIONS IN HOUSTON
Poles have participated in the history and growth of the state of Texas since 1836 when Felix Wardzinski, Michael Dembinski, and Frederick Lemsky fought for Texas independence alongside Sam Houston and James Fannin. The history of our ancestors emigrating to the Lone Star State also includes two waves of Polish emigration to Texas: Panna Maria, Karnes County, in 1854 and Waverly, Walker County, in 1867. These emigrants brought their culture and the Catholic faith from Poland to Texas where they built churches and homes.
Currently, the activities of Polish Texans and Polish Houstonians are channeled through several organizations, most of them nonprofit. The first Polish organization in Houston was the Polish Home established in 1891 as a seat of the Polish National Alliance, a self-help organization which soon set up three lodges in Houston. In 1918, a separate building was erected. In 1950, the Polish Home was established as a charitable and educational organization. In 1974 a new building was erected in northern Houston. Since the 1970s the Polish Home activities were cooordinated by Mr. and Mrs. Antonina Mazewski. As the focus of Polish activities in town shifted to the Our Lady of Czestochowa Parish, the Polish Home suspended its operations. Website: www.pna-znp.org
The Polish American Congress, Texas Division (PAC TD) is a branch of the most significant Polish American organization, the Polish American Congress, headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. PAC was formed in Buffalo, NY, in 1944. It presently represents the estimated ten million Polish Americans (the 2000 Census put our number at nine million). Since 1972 PAC TD has been incorporated under the Texas Non-Profit Corporation Act. Its activities are cultural, fraternal, and civic. Emphasis is put on educating persons of Polish ancestry and others about the rights, privileges, and duties of American citizenship. PAC TD cooperates with the PAC Headquarters and the PAC Charitable Foundation in promoting a variety of ties with the now-free Poland. The three categories of PAC TD membership are Polish-American Organizations, individual members, and associate members, these latter without voting rights. Its first president was the Rev. John W. Yanta, now Bishop of Amarillo. The current President is Dr. Marian Kruzel.
PAC TD has been taking part in an effort to educate the American public about the potential (now actual) Polish membership of NATO. Currently, PAC TD takes part in the effort to better inform the government officials about the fairness and advantages of a visa waiver for Polish citizens. PAC TD is also engaged in fighting slanderous claims concerning the Second World War in Poland, particularly with regard to the Holocaust, and it tries to educate the American public about the situation in Soviet-occupied Poland (1945–1989). Website: www.polishamericancongresstexas.com
Polish Genealogical Society of Texas (PGST) was founded in 1982 in order to assist members in researching their Polish ancestry. The Society also promotes research in and dissemination of the history of Poles in Texas, and it organizes lectures and civic functions. Brother Christopher Golla and Ms. Anna Borski Campo were instrumental in the founding of the Society. Members meet several times yearly to share research information and learn from guest speakers. Topics cover a wide range including sources, facts, preservation methods, and other genealogy-related subjects. PGST periodical, Polish Footprints, is published three times yearly and is a treasure trove of information about Polish immigration to Texas, in addition to providing genealogical information of general interest. An index of names mentioned in past issues can be searched on the PGST website. Surname Index is published and is included in the membership fee. This index is used to identify members, surnames being researched, ancestral lines, years of immigration, home villages, and U.S. settlements. The surname index can likewise be searched online. The current President of PGSTis Barbara Lee. Website: www.pgst.org
Texas Chapter of the Kosciuszko Foundation (TCKF) was founded in 1993 to support the activities of the Kosciuszko Foundation headquartered in New York, such as promoting cultural exchanges between Poland and the United States and increasing American understanding of Polish culture and history. The Foundation maintains regional chapters in Chicago, Denver, Houston, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and in Southern California, Southern New England, and Western New York State. It is a membership organization supported by contributions from individuals, other foundations, and corporations. Its activities include the distribution of a variety of scholarships, graduate and postgraduate research programs in Poland, the teaching of English in Poland, Polish Studies Programs at various American universities, Chopin Piano Competition, lectures and exhibits.
TCKF participates in this work by organizing an Annual Piano Concert (since 1999) for the current winner of the Chopin Competition and by sponsoring various Polish activities in Houston, including a poetry reading by Adam Zagajewski in 2002. Since 1995, the Texas Chapter has worked with the New York Headquarters and with the Slavic Studies program at Rice University to bring on a yearly basis a Polish scholar to Rice for the purpose of teaching Polish-oriented courses at that university. It also sponsors a summer study in Poland for two young people each year. The president and members of the executive committee of TCKF are elected at the annual elections dinner. The past presidents of TCKF have been Edward Burdzinski (1993–1994), Marek Kimmel (1994–1998), Wojciech Kic (1998–1999), Waldemar Priebe (1999–2001), Joseph Kotarba (2001–2002), Anna Banach-Aikin (2002–2004), and Waldemar Priebe (2004–present).
Contact: wp@wt.net
Polish Society of Houston (Ognisko Polskie) was founded in September 1994. It is a a nonprofit organization headed by an elected Board with a President. Its basis used to be the Polish Saturday School which countedaround 50 children at Ognisko‘s inception. The School closed down in 2001. The curriculum included the Polish language, geography and history of Poland, as well as music and dance literacy. The School’s students performed in Panna Maria during the 150th Anniversary of Polish settlements in Texas, at the Polish Embassy in Washington, DC, and at the International Festival in Houston. Many of the former students are now either college students or professionals who remain aware of their Polish roots and act on that awareness.
Currently, the basis of the Ognisko activities is the Polish Theater founded 12 years ago. The Theater has given 26 performances between April 1994 and May 2006. It has staged classics of the Polish drama and literature, as well as its own creative pieces. The chief director and writer is Ms. Małgorzata Mucha. The performances are in Polish, and thus serve as a valuable tool in preserving the ability to use spoken Polish by the younger generation of Polish Houstonians. Ms. Mucha is a talented director and organizer who deserves congratulations for her work. The following is a partial list of the works performed by the Ognisko Theater: Âluby panieƒskie and Zemsta by Alexander Fredro, Grube ryby by Michał Balucki, Wdowy by Sławomir Mrožek, Farrago by Lida Amejko, Byle nie o miłoÊci and Apetyt na czereÊnie by Agnieszka Osiecka.
In addition to the Theater, the Ognisko has repeatedly organized a number of recreational activities for the Polish community in Houston: the parties of Andrzejki and Ostatki, bivouacs for young people, a Fun Run, Bridge Club, as well as concerts of guest artists form Poland. Contact: ognisko-psh@email.com
Forum Polonia Houston was started in 1997 as a platform for discussion among Polish organizations in the Houston area. It eventually became a Forum Polonia Webpage and the broadest source of information for and about Polish community in Houston, with over 400,000 visits to-date (www.forum-polonia-houston.com). Forum Polonia is not an organization in the strict sense of the word, but rather a web address providing an opportunity for Polish organizations to be listed in one place and provide information to each other and to the larger Houston community about cultural and social events in the Polish community. The organizer of Forum Polonia is Zbigniew Wojciechowski, MD, who at present is also the Honorary Consul of the Republic of Poland in Houston. He is responsible for the existence of the Webpage and for its content. He also provides the funds necessary to maintain the Page. An important role is also played by Ms. Anna Witas who is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the Webpage and for its graphic design.
The organizations listed on the Forum Polonia Webpage are Texas Chapter of the Polish American Congress, Texas Chapter of the Kosciuszko Foundation, Polish Society of Houston (Ognisko Polskie), Polish National Alliance, Our Lady of Czestochowa Polish Parish, Sarmatian Review, and Radio Courier. This list however is not the center of information provided by Forum Polonia. Numerous photographs from Polish cultural and recreational events are continuously displayed on its pages, and various new initiatives and the Archives provide much material for searchers. Among Dr. Wojciechowski‘s (and Mrs. Wojciechowski’s) other accomplishments is the Annual Polish Film Festival in Houston. It was held for the eighth time in November 2006.
Contact: forpol@mindspring.com
The Polish Institute of Houston and Sarmatian Review are interconnected. The Polish Institute of Houston was formed in 1999 as a nonprofit public foundation. It is a cultural and educational institution whose main goal has been to continue the publication of Sarmatian Review, an academic triquarterly on Polish and Central European affairs. Sarmatian Review was first published in 1981 under the title of Houston Sarmatian, under the auspices of the Houston Chapter of the Polish Institute of Arts and Sciences. In 1988 the journal was renamed Sarmatian Review, and it has been published under this name ever since. Its web version is distributed by Rice University (www.ruf.rice.edu/~sarmatia), its archives are available at the Central and East European Library (www.ceeol.com).
Sarmatian Review publishes scholarly articles related to Poland and non-Germanic Central and Eastern Europe. It also publishes translations of historical and cultural texts. Each issue contains about a dozen book reviews. Harvard University’s Hollis Catalogue describes Sarmatian Review as follows: “Sarmatian Review is a scholarly journal on the history, culture, and society of Central and Eastern Europe, with strong attention to Poland, the post-Soviet period, and American emigration and ethnic issues. Recent issues have covered religion and state, the mass media, censorship, education, literature, inter-ethnic relations, and government and politics.”
Articles about Sarmatian Review have appeared in Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (23 February 2002), Przeglad Humanistyczny, no. 2, vol. 50 (2006), and in other periodicals and books worldwide. Reprints of articles from Sarmatian Review are too numerous to mention. SR reviews are quoted in the publicity materials of numerous American publishers. The financial base for Sarmatian Review is provided by its subscribers and donors.
Sarmatian Review is edited by Dr. Ewa Thompson, Professor of Slavic Studies at Rice University.
Contact: sarmatianreview@yahoo.com
The Chopin Society of Houston was founded in January 2000. The Chopin Society of Houston is a 501(c)(3) organization and has not changed in the exempt status, name, purpose, character or method of organization since it received its tax-exempt status. The purpose of the organization is to educate young people from kindergarten through high school in the appreciation and performance of the music of Frederick Chopin, one of the greatest composers of all time. This is accomplished by organizing competitions, master classes, and piano workshops involving young pianists.
In 1999, or prior to the founding of the Chopin Society of Houston, a group of piano teachers representing pre-college and college students organized a piano competition in which almost sixty participants took part. It was the success of this first competition that lead to the founding of the Society. The second competition was held in 2001, and it had over 100 participants. These competitions are judged by the reputable musical scholars who give three awards to each of the three grade levels. The awards are medals, cash, and educational materials. The winners are featured on our website. The Chopin Society of Houston has also organized Master Classes where young piano students perform the music of Chopin, participate in poetry and essay contests and in tournaments on the life and music of Chopin, in addition to receiving instruction from world-class musicians. The first such Master Class was organized in 2000, and it had about 25 participants; the second, in 2002, had over sixty participants.
Website: www.chopinsocietyofhouston.org
Radio Courier provides an opportunity to listen to the Polish language radio in Houston. Its programs feature interviews with prominent Houstonians of Polish background and with visiting Polish personalities. The Radio Courier Webpage tries to keep Houstonians informed about the current cultural events in Poland. It also contains a selection of recent articles from the Polish and Polish American press. It is maintained by Mr. Waldemar Sokalski.
Website: www.radiocourier.com
Sources: information provided by leadership of Polish organizations
information available on the Web