First time in Seattle, the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity (GOCC) is a huge annual charity event in Poland; it has been raising funds for children hospital equipment and similar causes since 1991. This is also the goal this year. In Seattle volunteers will be soliciting funds on January 12 & 13 and the Grand Finale will take place at the Polish Cultural Center Dom Polski on January 12 at 4 pm. The Finale program includes performance by local artists, an auction and games. The GOCC Seattle needs a lot of volunteers, so if you would like to help please contact the organizers right away!

The deadline for the registration of collection volunteers is December 11, 2018. Please contact Anna right away if you want to become one.

 

More: detailed info and volunteer contacts for GOCC Seattle, facebook WOSP Seattle page, for more overall info please contact Anna Cholewinska, for Grand Finale Anetka Kalicka

posted December 6, 2018

Polish Festival Seattle is asking for everyone’s help to raise funds for bringing great entertainment to Seattle. Money raised will go towards travel costs, housing and/or stipends for out of town artists, including a traditional Polish dance group. In 2019, we would like to bring Polish contemporary rhythm and blues singer, Kasia Wilk! For every $10 you give, your name will be added to a drawing for a ticket to Chihuly Garden and Glass. More:  How to get involved with Polish Festival Seattle.

Please visit our gofundme page for more info and spread the word! Polish Festival is on July 13, 2019.

 

More: Please contact Alisa Lahti at alisalahti@live.com for more info

posted Oct 24, 2018

The UW Polish Studies Endowment Committee welcomes Dr. Marcin Jauksz as the Fulbright Lecturer of the Polish Studies at the Univ. of Washington in 2018 / 2019 academic year. Dr. Jauksz is an Assistant Professor at the Dept. of Polish and Classical Philology at the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poland, in interest in the 19th c. Polish literature and culture and in film. His UW fall course is on the film adaptations of  the 19th c. European and American novels. Congratulations and welcome!

 

More: UW PSEC

posted October 11, 2018

Among different ethnic food classes in the Global Gourmet series, the PCC Community Markets offers classes about making Polish pierogis. Instructor Marianna Stepniewski shows hands on how to make different vegetarian pierogis, from cheese- or mushrooms-based to onions & celery combo. There are several classes scheduled at different Puget Sound locations in November and December but reservations are filling in fast, so if you want to attend, hurry up!

 

More: To make a reservation visit the PCC classes site

posted Sep 27, 2018

Mr. Sebastian Niziol, a very active member of the Polish community died on August 5, 2018 from complications following an open heart surgery. He was only 37.

 

Sebastian Witold Niziol was born and raised in a Polish family in Anchorage, AK, where he earned his degree in business management and worked at the First National Bank. In 2010 he moved to Seattle and became an active member of the local Polish community. Among others, he served as the president of the Seattle-Gdynia Sister City Association, at the Polish Home Association Board of Trustees and as the treasurer at the PHA and the SGSCA. He also settled into a happy family life with Patrycja Nowak and their son Staś. We will all miss his gentle presence and smile.

 

Funeral Arrangements on August 15, 2018

    12 noon - Funeral Mass at St. James Cathedral in Seattle

                   Burial, following the mass, at the Lake View Cemetery in Seattle

     4 pm     - Celebration of Life at the Polish Cultural Center Dom Polski

 

In lieu of flowers please consider making a contribution to Sebastian's memorial fund at GoFundMe.

Please see Funeral and Memorial announcement prepared by the family.

posted August 13, 2018

Walk in the Seafirst Torchlight Parade with the Seattle-Gdynia Sister City Association! SGSCA secured a place in the parade and invites all folks from the Polish community to join in the fun! You'll be marching along a vintage T-Bird automobile. Over 100 units march, dance and float in the parade; this is your opportunity to make a Polish accent at the event!

 

Where: Parade is in downtown Seattle from the Seattle Center around 7:30 pm to just past Yesler along 4th Ave; please RSVP to Zbig Konofalski if you want to come

More: SGSCA, https://www.seafair.com

posted July 24, 2018

Polish Festival at the Seattle Center is fast approaching – if you'd like to help, now is the time to sign up! You can sign up for 2 hr or 3 hr shifts. Please see the festival volunteer info & registration page to sign up - it has a complete list of available positions and shifts and plenty of positions to choose from. For more info contact the PF volunteer coordinator Dominika at PFSVolunteer2018@outlook.com.

Free T-shirt and food vouchers for volunteers!

  

Last minute update: All volunteers will be entered into a lottery drawing with several prizes such as new Polish Home anniversary books, a set of 4 festival T-shirts with different designs etc. See here for details.

  

 More:  How to get involved with Polish Festival Seattle.

updated June 28, 2018

Alternative-pop singer-songwriter Magdalucca has just issued her debut music album The Air Between. Seattleite Magdalena Hill is a performer and a multi-media artist; among others she produced and directed the short movie Lavender Braid in 2016. Her debut EP, The Air Between, offers enlightening and emboldening social commentary, personal revelation, and wisdom gleaned from tenets of Buddhism. Visit her site to listen and download her music.

  

More: Magdalucca and album release site, artist's site.

posted June 21, 2018

More: SPFF site

posted June 22, 2016

The Polish Home Association has announced two competitions related to the 100th anniversary of PHA and the centennial of Poland regaining its independence in 1918: an art competition and a photo competition. The deadline for both competitions is October 15, 2018. Prize winners will receive awards ranging from $300 to $75.

An exhibition of competition entries will be presented at the PHA anniversary gala in November 2018.

 

If you are interested, please read the following documents for the detailed information about the competitions: PHA Art Competition 2018, PHA Photo Competition 2018, PHA Contestant Declaration 2018.

posted May 24, 2018

This year, the Seattle Polish Foundation participates again in the annual online GiveBIG event for local nonprofits. It's an opportunity to support your favorite Polish causes! Donations channeled through the GiveBIG do not receive any matching this year; however each donation can win a $1,000 Golden Ticket in a lottery with 250 such tickets. You can donate on or before May 9.

 

To donate to the SPF, visit the SPF Donation Page at the SF Give Big site - please specify the cause you want supported in the Comments field. The Polish News suggests the Polish Home 100th Anniversary Projects for this year's donations. To donate to the SPF directly without paying any fees, please send a check to Seattle Polish Foundation, 1714 18th Ave, Seattle, WA 98122.

 

More: supporting Polish community through GiveBIG Campaign

May 2, 2018

The Consulate General of the Republic of Poland in Los Angeles kindly informs that the consular visit to Seattle, only to process passport applications, is scheduled for May 8 & 9, 2018. The Consul will be available at the Polish Cultural Center, by reservation only, 9 am to 5 pm on Tuesday and 9 am to 3:30 pm on Wednesday. To make a reservation send an email to losangeles.kg.paszporty@msz.gov.pl stating your name, DOB, the PESEL number and a preferred time.

   

Where: at the Polish Cultural Center Dom Polski in Seattle, WA; reservations required.

More: info about the visit in Seattle (PL), the Consulate passport info

Apr 10, 2018

The PHA centennial committee is calling for volunteers to help with the projects related to the 100th anniversary of the PHA. Among the projects that need volunteer support are

 

     1. Exhibition of 100 years of PHA history in Seattle

     2. Time line of Polish Home Association’s history

     3. Oral history and a documentary movie about PHA and Polish community

     4. Photographic contest in memory of Polish Home Association

     5. Painting contest titled:"100 years of our Polish Identity" (in Polish: "Sto lat naszej Polskości")

 

Please read more about the projects and how to volunteer in this leaflet or visit the PHA website.

posted March 22, 2018

There is a new Polish language proficiency test for high school students who want to obtain a college credit based on WA state Seal of Biliteracy. Polish tests have been available for a long time, but the new test is one of the STAMP tests that are widely used and available in local school districts for language testing. The test costs only 17.50 to take.

 

More: WA Seal of Biliteracy, an Avant STAMP 4S sample tests

posted Mar 1, 2018

University of Washington Polish Studies Committee cordially invites to the 2018 fundraising dinner and lecture Paderewski and the World of Politics by Prof. Marek Żebrowski. Silent auction, music and cocktails from 5:30 pm, dinner & lecture at 7 pm. Please make a reservation here - the deadline is February 28, 2018.

 

More: See the Polish News calendar entry about this event

posted Feb 15, 2018

Local Polish-Americans are joining a drive to stop a controversial act of Congress related to property and assets orphaned after WWII, many of them belonging to Jewish victims of Holocaust. A group of parishioners will be handing out leaflets w/ letters to Congress members and gathering signatures at the Parish Hall of St. Margaret Church in Seattle after 9:45 and 12:00 mass on Feb 18 and 25, 2018. Stop by if you would like to support the protest.

More: please visit http://stopacthr1226.org/ for more info

posted Feb 15, 2018

Fat Tuesday is coming fast and Fat Thursday in the Polish tradition is even sooner - so get your supply of ponchki / pączki!

At Polish places: Sebi's Bistro has a special on Feb 8 (Fay Thursday), and I'm sure they will have it on Fat Tuesday as well, also try George's Deli (call first). You can also order a batch from Viola Szymanski and at 206-435-4103.

Bakery Nouveau (stores in West Seattle & on Capitol Hill), great pączki, they can spell it, too

posted Feb 8, 2018

Wybitny Polak is an award given by the Foundation Teraz Polska to outstanding Poles living abroad to promote their success and positive impact of Poland. The nominations to the 2018 West Coast edition of the award can be submitted till February 25. The nomination process is open to the public and participation of different Polish communities is encouraged.

 

The awards are in five categories: business, culture, science, personality and Young Pole (less than 35 years old); the West Coast covers 15 states in the LA consular region. The past winners included Mr. Alex Herbst in 2015 and Mr. Michal Pietrzyk in 2016, both from Seattle. Please nominate outstanding people you know!

 

More: about the award, how to nominate (PDF), about 2015 awards in Życie Kolorado June 2015 (PL), about 2016 awards in Życie Kolorado Jan 2017 (p.18-19), the award jury includes Honorary Consul Teresa Davis of Seattle.

posted Feb 1, 2018

The Polish Women's Club invites everybody to pierogi making sessions before the Spring Bazaar at the Polish Cultural Center on March 24, 2018. Come to help, or come to learn how to make pierogi first and then help at one of these days:

       February 6, 13, 20 & 27 and March 6

   All pierogi making sessions are at the Polish Cultural Center Dom Polski on Tuesdays from 7 to 9 pm.

 

More: Contact the Club President Barbara Augustyniak for more info

posted Jan 18, 2018

Ms. Anna Sycz at her I love pierogies blog runs a very interesting Project SiS, which is an interview cycle presenting profiles of inspiring Polish women in the Seattle area. In the last three months the following additional ladies have been featured: Dagna Barrera of Silesia Guitars, Marta Bras of marta bras PHOTOGRAPHY and Sylwia Gulik. All profiles are illustrated with excellent photo portraits by Marta Bras. Congratulations to all participants of the project!

 

Photo by marta bras PHOTOGRAPHY

More: Project SiS

posted December 7, 2017

Among different projects related to the upcoming 100^th Anniversary of the Polish Home Association, there is a history video project. First filming session is on December 9, 2017. If you would like to help with this or other sessions or otherwise get involved in the project, please see the project brochure and or task list for 12/9, or contact: Ryszard Kott.

posted December 6, 2017