| Polish
Festival in Staten Island
From Nowy Dziennik
May 20, 2002
By Wojciech T. Mleczko
Over six thousand people gathered at the Yankees-Richmond County
Bank Ballpark on Staten Island last Saturday to celebrate "Majowka,"
the first Polish festival ever held in Staten Island. The five-hour
long event ended with a concert of a popular Polish rock group Budka
Suflera.
It was raining until noon, but that did not discourage the crowds
from coming out to being a part of the festival. After a short prayer
led by Father Marek Suchocki and a minute of silence honoring those
who died in the tragic events of September 11th, a group of children
from Richards School of Dance came on the stage. The audience
was exhilarated by the lively rhythm of cha-cha, samba and rumba.
The event was conducted in Polish and English and it was hosted
by Anna Zak and Marek Skowronski. Nearly the entire afternoon was
filled with musical and artistic performances of Polish groups and
individuals including E1H from Las Vegas, Polamany Jezyk, Lubelska
Federacja Bardow z Wojciechem Cugowskim and Michal Hochman. But
it was the performance of Budka Suflera that truly stirred up excitement
in the audience. The popular songs by this band made the crowds
dance, sing, and demand an encore.
Among the prominent individuals present at the event were Consul
General of Poland Agnieszka-Magdziak-Miszewska, Consul Cezary Dziurkowski,
Consul Anna Pelka, President of Staten Island James Molinaro, Krystyna
Myssura from the office of Gov. George Pataki and representatives
of several Polish organizations in New York.
"Majowka" was the first festival promoting Polish culture
and traditions in Staten Island. The sponsors
of the event say they will try to make "Majowka" into
an annual fair. The revenue from the event will be allotted to the
General Pulaski Scholarship Fund and St. Stanislaw Kostka Parish
in Staten Island.
"Majowka" received a full page coverage in the Staten
Island Advance which reported that the borough was awakened from
lethargy by this lively Polish festival. The planned soccer game
Nowy Dziennik v. Super Express (another Polish daily in New York)
unfortunately did not take place. Our friends from Super Express
changed their mind last minute and so we won 3:0.
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