Polski Noc Polish Heritage Celebration In Bryan Texas

Polski Noc RehearsalIt’s always good to see the Polish community get together to celebrate our heritage and honor our ancestors who brought their culture, work ethic and faith to Texas. Polski Noc, hosted by Bryan residents Dr. Jim and Kathy Mazurkiewicz also honored a Polish American from Wisconsin, an American army veteran returning from a tour of duty in Iraq. The things that defined our ancestors lives were well represented at this party and it’s interesting to compare this event with the lifestyle of the early Polish settlers:

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Polski Noc Rehearsal

Polski Noc RehearsalIf you’re going to have a big Polish party on Saturday night to honor an old friend, what do you do to prepare for it? The most logical thing to do would be to have a rehearsal; at least that’s what Jimmy Mazurkiewicz figured. Jimmy and his friend Bernie Kroll and their families along with a good size crowd of other friends and locals met at Jozwiak Grocery in Chappell Hill, Texas for a scaled down version of the big party.

There was lots of cold piwo and hours of some really good acoustic music played by Jimmy Mazurkiewicz and his son James, Bernie Kroll and his son Jeremy, Brian Marshall, Sonny Janczak, Brian Wisnoski and Joshua Behrens.

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Bigos Recipe

BigosBigos or Hunters Stew is one of the most popular of Polish foods. It is sometimes called the national dish of Poland. The best thing about Bigos is that there is really no standard recipe, it varies from region to region and from family to family. So each time you eat Bigos, it is likely to taste slightly different. The main ingredients are sauerkraut, cooked cabbage, mushrooms and a variety of meats. It is best to make a large batch since this dish gets better each time it is reheated. Below is the recipe that I have developed over the years, but even it varies depending on what kind of meat I have available.

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Polski Noc Polish Night In Bryan Texas

We are having “Polski Noc” Polish Night at our house on Saturday, August 1 at around 6:30 p.m. till 11:30 p.m. We are located at 5525 FM 1179 Bryan, Texas 77808. We are having this to honor my friend Bernie Kroll and to celebrate our Polish heritage. Bernie has just finished his second tour of duty in Iraq and is coming down to Texas from Green Bay, Wisconsin to visit for a short vacation.  Bernie and I met 32 years ago when I was a USDA Meat Grader in one of the packing plants. Bernie, his wife Sandy, his son Jerome and his mother-in-law are coming to Texas for a 4 day trip. We thought it would be appropriate to have a party and celebrate Bernie’s service to our country and our Polish Heritage!

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Texas-Polish Music at Sengelmann Hall

TEXAS-POLISH, TEX-MEX and Louisiana Cajun Music at Sengelmann HallTEXAS-POLISH, TEX-MEX and Louisiana Cajun Music at Sengelmann Hall in Schulenburg on September 6, 2009!

Houston area, Texas-Polish fiddler Brian Marshall (Marszalek) joins button accordion, Chemnitzer concertina and trumpet player Bradley Jaye Williams (Szumila) for a “POLSKI DZEM SESSION” with members of The Gulf Coast Playboys as they perform polkas, obereks and Cajun two-steps and waltzes to keep the dancers on their toes.

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The Ripkowski Brothers – True American Patriotism

Stash and Mattie Ripkowski FamilyWhile going through my grandmother Agnes Polka Smock’s old photographs, I found a newspaper clipping from the Houston Chronicle. It was a photo of one of her neighbor’s large family from New Waverly, Texas. The photo was titled "Twelve Brothers Served Uncle Sam" and the caption reads "These 12 sons in a family of 16 children, of Mrs. Stash Ripkowski of Dayton, have served with the United States armed forces. Husbands of three of the daughters were in service also, and a fourth husband worked in a defense plant. Members of the family are, left to right, front; Mrs. Ripkowski, Bernie, Felix, Alex, August, Leon, Bill, Raymond; second row: Herman, Catherine, Virginia, Franklin, John J., Pearline, Mike, Anna Lee and Stanley."

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2009 Polski Dzien In Bremond, Texas

2009 Bremond Polski DzienTexas has been in the middle of a severe heat wave for the last week or so, but the hot weather didn’t stop a large crowd from enjoying the 22nd annual Polski Dzien Polish Days celebration which was held on Saturday, June 27, 2009 in downtown Bremond, Texas. As always, the day began with the Polish Pickle 5 K Run at 8 AM followed by the Kids K Run. It always fascinates me that so many people, young and old, show up in the middle of summer to run. As the race ended, the runners were fed a feast of fruit, kolaches and good kielbasa sausage with water, soft drinks and cold beer to wash it down. Cold piwo at 8:30 AM may sound strange to some, but I’d have been right there drinking with them if I had just pounded out 3 miles on the hot asphalt. After all of the runners made it to the finish line, a raffle drawing was held and awards were handed out.

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Final Plans For Polski Dzien XXII

2008 Bremond Polski Dzien

The Bremond Chamber of Commerce recently finalized their plans for the Polski Dzien XXII or the Polish Days celebration. The Polish Pickle Run is expected to draw another good crowd. Over 165 runners have pre registered by Wednesday (June 17). The 5K run begins at 8:00 am. The 2009 Pickle Run T-shirts will be available starting on Saturday (June 20) at the Bremond Press office. More colors of shirts will be available to the early shirt buyers. This year there will be a limited number of Tye Dye Polish Pickle Run shirts.

The horseshoe and washer competition will take place under the water tower as it has in recent years. The new city building has taken up some of the area but there is still enough room for the two popular Polish Day games. Sign-up will be in Wasik’s store on Polish Day morning. The deadline for washers is 11:00 and horseshoes at 11:30. Play begins thirty minutes after sign-up ends. The entry fee is $20 per team. For information call Janel Swick at 254-746-7552.

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