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Naród Polski - June 5, 2006
Highlanders to
Receive Polish Spirit Award
Chicago,
IL - The Polish Museum of America (PMA) in Chicago, IL, is proud to announce
that it will present its prestigious Polish Spirit Award for 2006 to the
Polish Highlanders Alliance of North America (Zwiazek Podhalen w Ameryce).
The award, which will be presented at the PMA’s Summer Ball on June 23 at
the Mid Day Club in downtown Chicago, will be accepted by Stanislaw Zagata,
President of the group.
The
Polish Highlanders Alliance was established in 1929 by Henryk Lokaski, a
world traveler and geographer who was its first president. It is a large
Polish organization with 3,000 members, 8 folklore clubs, a sport club and
81 regional clubs. It is dedicated to maintaining and preserving the Polish
Highlander way of life and culture - especially its music and dances.
Membership is open to Polish Highlanders or close relatives of immigrants
from the Podhale region in the Carpathian foothills, best known for the town
of Zakopane.
Since
1930, the Polish Highlanders Alliance has had a column in Chicago’s Polish
Daily News. The group also publishes a quarterly Orzel Tatranski and a
monthly Echo Podhalanskie and Podhalanin.
The
Alliance is also active in political arenas both in Poland and in the United
States. They are proud to have members who are on active duty in the U.S.
Army. Representatives of the Alliance have met with heads of state of both
Poland and the U.S., as well as with leaders of the Roman Catholic Church.
The group is proud of its relationship with the late Pope John Paul II. In
1989, members of the Alliance visited the Pope at the Vatican, where the
Holy Father became an honorary member of the Alliance and blessed its
official flag.
The
group’s first convention was held in 1930; now conventions are held every 3
years. The Alliance’s Hall is located at 4880 South Archer Avenue in
Chicago, IL, in a building that was exquisitely remodeled to resemble those
in Podhale with carved wooden beams, shutters, hand-carved wooden chairs,
cutwork embroidered curtains, etc.
Hats off
to this important group for its dedication to preserving Polish culture in
America!
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