Joe Bielecki: So first off, let's sort of introduce the Polish Heritage Society to someone who maybe has only just been to Pulaski Days for the Pączki or otherwise doesn't know what it is. What is this organization and what do you do?
Richard Panek: The Polish Heritage Society is the only organization in West Michigan that really promotes Polish-American culture in Grand Rapids, specifically traditional cultural aspects of what our immigrant Polish population brought to West Mission in Grand Rapids. It was originally started in 1963 as a Polish art society and back then they were doing a lot of programming, choral performances, musical performances, art exhibitions, poetry readings. And over the years the Polish Heritage Society has become most well-known for the Polish Dożynki Harvest Festival in August every year. In fact, it's the longest-running ethnic festival in Grand Rapids.
JB: I like taking my family to that. There's lots of booths, people selling stuff and musical performances.
RP: Yeah, it's a great time. One of the things that we wanted to do too, also as far as the board wanting to take the Polish Heritage Society into a new direction, expanding our exposure is to, in addition to using the Polish Heritage Society annual harvest festival to promote Polish culture in form of polka music, Polish food, we wanted to refocus on the original aim of the Society, which would be to present fine arts and culture. So, what we're doing is we're increasing our programming, including a language club, which meets the last Tuesday of the month at the Polish Falcons Clubhouse, Polish cooking classes, which the Polish Heritage Society sponsors that take place at Sons and Daughters Polish-Lithuanian Club, as well as the annual Polish Festival in August. One new thing we're introducing is a classical piano recital. So, on Saturday, June 7th at St. Cecilia Music Center, we're bringing in Polish pianist, Cezary Karwowski, to perform music of Chopin and Podoreski, some of the most internationally well-known Polish composers, as well as to perform music of other Polish-American composers, such as Morris Rosenthal, Leopold Godowski, Joseph Hoffman, and Ignace Friedman. Our aim is to introduce Polish fine arts to the community so that West Michigan learns that Polish heritage is more than just Polka music and kapustan, pierogi and kielbasa. There have been some tremendous contributions to world and even American culture by Poles and Polish Americans.
JB: Yeah, I remember seeing the Harvest Festival there is also a booth set up with a bunch of contributions that people have made in the Revolutionary War and beyond, too. You guys are also getting regional attention. Talk about that a little.
RP: A few years ago, the board basically embarked on an effort to increase our exposure locally as well as regionally, and we've been leveraging social media to get the mission of the Polish Heritage Society out into the community reached the point where we're getting inquiries from nationally known and international artists to inquire about performing in Grand Rapids. Some of these include Mr. Karwowski, the pianist, as well as performance artists, poets, and other individuals who can present artistic programming. Some of the things we're considering is having historical lectures as well as possibly exploring the option of Polish cinema screenings.
JB: Do you have to be Polish to join the Polish Heritage Society?
RP: You do not have to be Polish to join the Polish Heritage Society. It's open to all people who are interested in learning more about what makes America great, and that is the influence of our immigrant population. Grand Rapids is ranked 19th nationally, according to the 2000 U.S. Census in people of Polish ancestry. And many of the members of our society don't even carry Polish surnames anymore. So, you don't have to be necessarily Polish, 100 % Polish, 10 % Polish. You just have to have a love of culture and a love of ethnic diversity. So, everyone is welcome.
JB: And with regard to the Polish halls that are all over town, what's your relationship with them?
RP: The Polish Heritage Society is separate from the Polish halls. The Polish halls, it's an interesting story. They originally started as benevolent societies. If you can imagine back in the late 1800s, early 1900s before social programs like OSHA, social security, workman’s compensation. If an immigrant worker was injured on the job or lost his life, these benevolent associations started by the Polish halls would support the families and provide basically financial support as well as a center for building community.
JB: Yeah, kind of a life insurance before life insurance sort of thing.
RP: That's right. And these halls persisted. They were ways of welcoming recent immigrants, helping them assimilate into the community. In fact, at one time there was a daily Polish newspaper printed in Grand Rapids in the Polish language. So, it was a strong community. Some of them came from formerly Prussian occupied areas of Poland when they migrated in the 1880s. So, some of them came able to speak both German and Polish, but they integrated well and kind of settled in certain areas. And it's kind of reflected by the location of certain churches in the area, such as St. Adelbert's Church, Sacred Heart of Jesus Church, as well as St. Isidore's. So those are traditionally Polish parishes. In fact, there’s such a strong Polish influence in these parishes that we’ve generated tourism interest from Poles in Detroit. This past year, a group from Detroit chartered a bus and came to Grand Rapids for a tour of what we call Grand Rapids Polonia. The Polish heritage experience in Grand Rapids, toured St. Isidore's Church. They also had lunch at the Jackson Street Hall, which is a Polish national aid society, the longest continuously functioning Polish hall in the United States, originally founded in 1888. And then they also went to the Christkindle Market downtown to get a full flavor of West Michigan. And it was very well received.
JB: Okay. So one more time piano concert coming up June 7th. What are all the details on that one more time?
RP: Go to polishheritgesociety.com and scroll down to the culture fine arts programming page. We have ticketing information and it's free to students in clergy as well as religious.
JB: Wonderful. Richard, thank you.
RP: Thank you very much, Joe.
This interview was first heard on WGVU’s Focus West Michigan Podcast on May 15, 2025
