The
Officers and Members of Polish Women's Alliance of America
join the world in expressing their deep sorrow at the
tragic airplane crash on April 10, 2010, in Smolensk,
Russia, that took the lives of Polish President Lech
Kaczynski, his wife Maria, and 94 others, including
many Polish government officials and top military leaders.
The delegation was on its way to commemorate the 70th
anniversary of the Katyn Forest Massacre, at the site
in western Russia where over 20,000 Polish Army officers
were executed by the Soviet secret police in 1940, in
one of Poland's greatest national traumas.
We
send our heartfelt sympathy and condolences to the people
of Poland and the families of the victims. Czesc Ich
Pamieci.
Virginia
Sikora,
National President
A Nation Mourns
Poles
wept before their televisions, lowered flags to half-staff
and taped black ribbons in their windows after hearing
that President Lech Kaczynski and the upper echelons
of the establishment lay dead in woods a short drive
from the site of the Katyn Forest massacre, where 22,000
Polish officers, intellectuals and priests were killed
in the first months of World War II. Thousands of people,
many in tears, placed candles and flowers at the presidential
palace in central Warsaw. Many called the crash Poland's
worst disaster since World War II.
Twenty
monks rang the Zygmunt Bell at Krakow's Wawel Cathedral
- the burial spot of Polish kings - a tolling reserved
for times of profound importance or grief.
On
board the government plane were President Kaczynski,
his wife Maria, the National Bank president, deputy
foreign minister, army chaplain, head of the National
Security Office, deputy parliament speaker, Olympic
Committee head, civil rights commissioner and at least
two presidential aides and three lawmakers, along with
the top military officers.
The
Polish military suffered the deepest losses. Among the
dead were the army chief of staff, the navy chief commander,
and heads of the air and land forces, who were all making
the emotional trip to honor the Polish officers slain
by the NKVD, the acronym for the Soviet secret police
at the time of the killings in 1940.
Some
on board were relatives of the officers slain in the
Katyn massacre, including Wojciech Seweryn, a resident
of Chicago and the artist who designed the Katyn Memorial
at St. Adalbert's Cemetery in Niles, Illinois. His father
was one of the officers killed at Katyn. Also among
the victims was Anna Walentynowicz, whose firing in
August 1980 from the Lenin Shipyards in Gdansk sparked
a workers' strike that spurred the eventual creation
of the Solidarity freedom movement.
Polish
Prime Minister Donald Tusk and some cabinet members
flew to Smolensk from Warsaw. The president's twin brother,
former Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski, headed to
the area in a chartered plane along with party members.
Television showed Jaroslaw kneeling and praying at the
crash site. Tusk, joined by Russian Prime Minister Vladimir
Putin, placed a wreath at the site and knelt. When he
stood up, Putin hugged him.
"This
is a great tragedy, a great shock to us all," former
president and Solidarity leader Lech Walesa said.
Polish
Parliament Speaker Bronislaw Komorowski, who became
acting president, addressed his country on television:
"Poland is in mourning, we have suffered a dramatically
painful loss." He said he would announce early
elections within 14 days of the president's death, in
line with the constitution. The vote must be held within
another 60 days.
Poland
called for two minutes of silence across the country
Sunday and declared a week of mourning. Medevedev declared
Monday a day of mourning in Russia.
State Funeral for Polish President
at the Wawel Cathedral in Krakow
A memorial service for all 96 victims of the plane
crash that killed President Lech Kaczynski, his wife
Maria, and dozens of high-ranking officials will be
held in Warsaw on Saturday April 17, 2010, and a state
funeral will take place in Krakow on Sunday, April 18,
2010. The President and his wife will be buried in the
cathedral crypt at Wawel Royal Castle in Krakow, where
Polish kings have traditionally been laid to rest.
Thousands of people lined up to pay their respects
in front of the coffins of the late Polish President
and his wife Maria that were lying in state at the President's
Palace in Warsaw. A week-long period of mourning was
declared in the country as flags were flown at half-mast,
black ribbons were placed in windows, and people lit
candles and placed flowers at the Presidential Palace
in Warsaw and other government buildings across the
nation.
U.S. President Barack Obama, Russian President Dimitry
Medvedev, and French President Nicolas Sarkozy are expected
to attend the state funeral in Krakow, along with many
other foreign leaders and dignitaries. A White House
statement released with the announcement of President
Obama's visit, said that his presence at the state funeral
will "express the depth of our condolences to an
important and trusted ally, and our support for the
Polish people, on behalf of the American people."
Condolences have been pouring in to Poland from around
the globe.
Photo Gallery
See photos of a nation in mourning here.
Chicago City Council Resolution
On Wednesday, April 14, Mayor Richard M. Daley and the
Chicago City Council introduced a resolution honoring
the lives of President and Mrs. Lech Kaczynski, Chicago
sculptor Wojciech Seweryn, and Polish officials who
were killed in the tragic plane crash in Smolensk, Russia,
on April 10, 2010. Wojciech Seweryn was the artist who
designed the Katyn Memorial at St. Adalbert's Cemetery
in Niles, IL. His father was one of the Polish officers
murdered at Katyn in 1940.
Interview
Watch an interview with Consul General of the Republic
of Poland Zygmunt Matynia that was aired on April 12,
2010, on WTTW Channel 11, the PBS station in Chicago:
http://video.wttw.com/video/1467200074
Video "Ojczyzna"
Watch this video about the tragedy called "Ojczyzna"
or "Homeland." CLICK
HERE TO WATCH
Mass at Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago
A Special Mass for the victims of the airplane crash
will be held on Sunday, April 18, 2010, at Chicago's
Holy Name Cathedral, 735 N. State Street, at 7 p.m.
The Mass will be concelebrated by Francis Cardinal George
and by Auxiliary Bishop of Chicago Thomas Paprocki.
All Polish Americans are invited to attend the Mass
to pray for Poland and the 96 victims who died in Smolensk,
Russia on April 10, 2010. The state funeral of President
Lech Kaczynski and First Lady Maria Kaczynska will be
held on the same day in Krakow, Poland.
Memorial March in
Chicago
The Polish American Congress calls on Polish Americans
and all Chicagoans to take part in a Memorial March
on Sunday, April 18, 2010, starting at 4:30 p.m. at
St. Stanislaus Church, 1350 W. Evergreen Avenue, continuing
to Holy Trinity Mission Church, 1118 N. Noble Street,
and ending at Holy Name Cathedral, 735 N. State Street,
where a Memorial Mass for the victims of the tragedy
will be said by Francis Cardinal George and Auxiliary
Bishop of Chicago Thomas Paprocki. President Lech Kaczynski
and First Lady Maria Kaczynska will be laid to rest
on the same day at the Wawel in Krakow, Poland.
State Funeral for Polish President
Lech Kaczynski
Thousands of Poles gathered in Krakow, Poland, on Sunday,
April 18, 2010, to pay last respects to the President
and First Lady of Poland. A funeral Mass was held in
St. Mary's Basilica in the central square of the city
for President Lech Kaczynski and his wife Maria Kaczynska.
A procession later took the coffins to be buried in
a crypt of the historic Wawel Cathedral.
Many
world leaders could not attend due to volcanic ash grounding
flights in Europe. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev
defied the air restrictions to fly to Krakow. U.S. President
Barack Obama cancelled his flight shortly before his
scheduled departure due to the dangers to aircraft posed
by the volcanic ash. French President Nicolas Sarkozy.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and U.K.'s Prince of
Wales also cancelled plans to attend.
In remarks at the funeral Mass, Krakow's Archbishop
Stanislaw Dziwisz said the international feeling of
solidarity extended to Poles in the wake of the deaths
had shown "the many layers of good between people
and nations." Archbishop Dziwisz said he was addressing
Mr. Medvedev personally in stating: "The sympathy
and help we have received from Russian brothers has
breathed new life into a hope for closer relations and
reconciliation between our two Slavic nations."
The coffins were then taken in a gun-carriage procession
through Krakow and on to the walled castle and cathedral
at Wawel for a 21-gun salute and the burial. Thousands
lined the streets, waving flags, and applauding. The
Krakow ceremonies were for family, friends, and international
dignitaries and were shown to residents of Krakow and
visitors on screens across the city.
Earlier on Sunday, the coffins had been driven through
Warsaw on a route that took in key locations of Lech
Kaczynski's life, such as city hall, where he served
as the capital's mayor. The coffins were then taken
from Warsaw to Krakow on a military transport plane
that flew below the volcanic ash cloud.
On
Saturday, hundreds of thousands of people had attended
an open-air memorial service in the centre of Warsaw.
This memorial was for all 96 victims of the airplane
crash that occurred on April 10, 2010, in Smolensk,
Russia. The Polish delegation was on its way to attend
ceremonies in observance of the 70th anniversary of
the Katyn Forest Massacre.
The First Couple's final resting place is in a sarcophagus
in the royal crypt in Wawel cathedral, the final resting
place of many famous and distinguished Poles, such as
Tadeusz Koscisuzko, Jozef Pilsudski, General Wladyslaw
Sikorski and many of Poland's royals.
See photos of funeral and reactions in Poland here:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/3594518/State-funeral-for-Polands-first-couple
Wajda's
Katyn film to be aired on PBS
WTTW PBS Channel 11 Chicago to Air "KATYN"
A Documentary on the World War II
Massacre of Polish Citizens
Friday, April 30, 2010, at 9 p.m.
WTTW, Chicago's premier public television station, will
broadcast the gripping documentary KATYN: SLAUGHTER
AND SILENCE, the story of the April 1940 mass murder
in the Katyn Forest of 22,000 Polish Army Officers and
civilian POWs at the hands of the Soviet NKVD, predecessor
of Russia's KGB. The program will air on WTTW 11 on
Friday, April 30, at 9 p.m., the evening of the
day Poland's President was to have visited Chicago,
a city which boasts the largest Polish population in
the world outside of Warsaw .
The film traces the growing hostility between Soviet
Russia and pre-World War II Poland, telling the story
of the crime and its subsequent repercussions -- from
the discovery of human bones in the Katyn Forest near
Smolensk, to how the victims met their fates and the
conditions under which they lived while being held prisoner,
to the attempts to place the blame on the Nazis, the
overwhelming evidence pointing to Moscow and Stalin,
the cover-up and the silence. To this day, no Russian
officials responsible for the massacre have been brought
to justice. For more information on Katyn, please visit
www.katyncrime.pl.
This broadcast of KATYN: SLAUGHTER AND SILENCE is especially
timely in that Polish President Lech Kaczynski, his
wife, and many of Poland's senior state officials were
tragically killed in a plane crash enroute to a commemoration
ceremony marking the 70th anniversary of the Katyn massacre.
Read More
Op Ed - New York Times - The Glory of Poland
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/13/opinion/13iht-edcohen.html
Op Ed - The Washington Post - Out of Tragedy Detente
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/04/12/AR2010041201831.html?hpid=opinionsbox1
Editorial - The Chicago Tribune - Poland's Pain
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/editorials/ct-edit-poland-0412-20100411,0,2801880.story
PRESIDENT
VIRGINIA SIKORA RECEIVES
"WOMAN OF EXCELLENCE" AWARD
FROM ILLINOIS STATE TREASURER
Niles, IL-National President
Virginia Sikora was honored by Illinois State Treasurer
Alexi Giannoulias for being a financial role model during
the tenth annual Smart Women Smart Money (SWSM) conference
held on March 18, 2010. The conference, which addressed
financial and investment strategies for women, was presented
by Dollars and Sense Inc., a nonprofit organization,
and by the State Treasurer's office. PWA was one of
the sponsors of the event, along with Northern Trust,
Country Financial, Visa, and State Farm. Several hundred
women were on hand to hear experts speak on financial
issues facing women and their families.
Virginia Sikora received the
"Woman of Excellence" award. City Treasurer
of Detroit for 12 years and National President of the
PWAA for the past decade, the award recognized President
Sikora's leadership and management skills and her lifelong
emphasis on service, volunteerism, and support for such
programs as intergenerational mentoring, financial planning,
youth activities, and community and cultural events.
She was also lauded for being instrumental in creating
a scholarship endowment fund for PWA members who are
pursuing college degrees.
Dr. Pamela Lowe, director and
president of Professional Eye Care Center, was also
honored at the conference with the "Woman on the
Rise" award. Congratulations to President Virginia
Sikora and Dr. Pamela Lowe!
National President
Virginia Sikora and Robin Kelly,
Chief of Staff, Illinois State
Treasurer's Office.
CONGRATULATIONS
TO OUR
MAY QUEENS FOR 2009!
We are proud to
announce the following individuals, to whom we pay tribute
for their efforts in signing new members to our organization
in the 2009 calendar year.
We thank them
for their hard work and extend our sincere congratulations.
FIRST PLACE
MAY QUEEN
Grazyna Buczek
Gr. 754 Council 7 District VII
Independence, Ohio
Introduced 13 new members
2 annuitants and 11 insured members
Total face amount $21,100
SECOND PLACE
MAY QUEEN
Bernardine Regis
Gr. 450 Council 40 District XIV
West Wyoming, PA
Introduced 12 new members
All insured members
Total face amount $68,381
THIRD PLACE
MAY QUEEN
Bernadette Vlock
Gr. 409 Council 25 District XI
Omaha, Nebraska
Introduced 12 new members
All insured members
Total face amount $47,000
FOURTH PLACE
MAY QUEEN
Mary Ann Michalak
Gr. 132 Council 21 District III
Munster, Indiana
Introduced 12 new members
All insured members
Total face amount $28,000
FIFTH PLACE
MAY QUEEN
Bertha Kuckla
Gr. 267 Council 44 District XIV
Dupont, PA
Introduced 11 new members
All insured members
Total face amount $39,723
SIXTH PLACE
MAY QUEEN
Mary Ann Watterson
Gr. 221 Council 2 District II
Parkhill, PA
Introduced 10 new members
All insured members
Total face amount $101,275
SEVENTH PLACE
MAY QUEEN
Eleanore Kowynia
Gr. 202 Council 9 District I
Chicago,IL
Introduced 10 new members
All insured members
Total face amount $42,079
EIGHTH PLACE
MAY QUEEN
Barbara Misiolek-Gamble
Gr. 786 Council 20 District V
Clinton Township, Michigan
Introduced 10 new members
2 annuitants and 8 insured members
Total face amount $25,000
