After years of seeing Polish traditions overlooked or forgotten, leaders of local Polish organizations have high hopes for a new state commission whose mission is straightforward — keep their peoples traditions and history alive.
“The (Polish) traditions are not being preserved enough at the present time,” said John Skibiski, 30-year member of the Polish Heritage Committee in Northampton.
Enter the Special Commission to Preserve Polish Heritage in the Pioneer Valley, a new panel to which state Sen. Eric P. Lesser, D-Longmeadow, was recently appointed by Senate President Stanley Rosenberg.
The commission will consist of two senators, three members of the House and five members appointed by the governor.
Two of the House members will be of Polish heritage, while three of the governor appointments will be officers of the Polish heritage or genealogical organizations in Hampshire, Hampden or Franklin counties. The remaning two government appointments will come from nominees by the Polish Center for Learning and Discovery in Chicopee and from the Slavic, Eurasian and East European Studies Program at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Together, the commission will focus on spreading the culture and history of the Polish community in the Pioneer Valley.
Northampton’s Polish Heritage Committee meets once a month and plans events and activities such as the Pulaski Day Parade and Polish language instruction. The committee also sponsors public meetings to teach people how to research their genealogy.
“There’s a lot that hasn’t been recognized yet in regards to the (Polish) immigrant experience in the Pioneer Valley,” Skibiski said.
Similarly, the Polish Center of Discovery and Learning in Chicopee teaches Polish history and culture.
“This will help keep these people’s stories alive, these skills alive,” said Ronald Lech, associate director and vice president of the board of directors.
“We tell Polish history and Polish culture and through that, we tell the history of the United States and immigration history and world history,” Lech said.
According to Lech, visitors to the center can explore a full museum of artifacts and attend cultural classes and activities, such as Polish Easter egg-decorating.
The center has been at its current location on South Street for about 15 years, Lech said. It is housed in the building where the first five Polish immigrants to Chicopee spent their first night, he explained.
The story of Polish immigration to the Pioneer Valley is something that the state commission plans to highlight through its programs, according to Senator Lesser. “At a time when there has been so much focus on immigration… this is the chance to tell the story of immigrants who risked a lot,” he said.
The commission will allow a chance to recognize the achievements of the Polish community in the Valley throughout history, Lesser said.
“Sometimes elements of the Polish story in western Massachusetts have been overlooked and deserve recognition — just as many groups deserve recognition,” he said.
Speaking about Polish traditions, Skibiski said, “We want them there, we want them back and we have to cultivate it.”