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POLISH-AMERICAN NIGHT IN CHICAGO
On Tuesday, July 6, 2010, the four
largest Polish fraternal organizations - Polish National Alliance,
Polish Women's Alliance of America, Polish Falcons of America and
Polish Roman Catholic Union of America - united once again for an
evening to host the 5th Polish-American Night at U.S. Cellular Field
(Sox Park) in Chicago, IL.
Before the game, at the stadium, the
Polish fraternals’ Vice Presidents were introduced to the fans: PNA
- Paul Odrobina, who also chaired this event; PWA - Sharon Zago; PFA
- Robert Gorny; and PRCUA - Anna Sokolowski. Each of the four
organizations were mentioned with a short history, as photos of the
VPs and organizational logos were flashed on the huge screens.
Rainy weather delayed the start of the
game. But that did not dampen the spirits of our members and the
fans, who patiently waited until the rain stopped and the field was
cleared, so the game could begin. Because of the rain, PRCUA’s
Wesoly Lud Polish Folk Dance Ensemble was not able to perform on the
field as they did in the past, but they performed inside the stadium
and their wonderful performance was projected onto the mega screens
for all the Sox fans to see and admire.
I must humbly admit that the Polish
Fraternal Vice Presidents selected yours truly (PRCUA VP Anna
Sokolowski) to throw out the first ball. I am not athletic. I never
in my life played baseball or softball. So to be asked to throw out
the first ball at the stadium in front of thousands was very scary.
Yes, I was very nervous, but when I heard the cheers, to my
amazement, my fear vanished. I just calmly walked to the pitcher’s
mound and with all the power that I had, I threw the first pitch to
White Sox Pitcher Mark Buehrle. I was so happy when he caught my
ball and I still do not believe that I had that wonderful privilege.
Special thanks go to the Polish Fraternal VPs for all their
encouragement, to our members and to all White Sox fans for cheering
me on - you all made my day!
After the umpire called "Play Ball"
our members cheered on the Chicago White Sox who played against the
Los Angeles Angels. It was a wonderful evening, especially since the
Chicago White Sox defeated the Los Angeles Angels 4 to 1! GO SOX!
On behalf of the Polish fraternals, we
would like to thank our members and the fans for supporting this
event and other events sponsored by our organizations. For our
future events see our PRCUA website (www.prcua.org) and follow us on
our social networks - Facebook, MySpace or Twitter. Photos of this
event and other events are posted on the PRCUA website and on
Facebook. Hope you all had a wonderful Polish American Night US
Cellular Field and see you all next year!
Submitted by Anna Sokolowski -
PRCUA Resident Vice President
Here are some photos
from the 2010 Polish-American Night in Chicago.
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