Local church to showcase traditions during celebration
The 21st annual Carpatho-Rusyn Celebration will take place from noon to 7 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 27, at St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Church Social Hall, 201 E. Main St., Uniontown. The day will feature the heritage of the Carpatho-Rusyns, who come from the very heart of Europe, along the northern and southern slopes of the Carpathian Mountains. Their homeland, known as “Carpathian-Rus,” is situated at the crossroads where the borders of Slovakia, Ukraine and Poland meet. There are smaller groups of Rusyns in Romania, Hungary, Yugoslavia and the Czech Republic.
It is immigrants from Carpathian-Rus who came to the United States in the early 1900s, settled in this area and started several churches, including St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Church. The Carpatho-Rusyns, though a Slavic group, have distinct differences in language, customs, music, dance, folk crafts and foods. These immigrants brought their traditions with them and maintained them, particularly those in their church life.
The day will highlight various aspects of Carpatho-Rusyn culture. Foods such as pirohi, holubki, halushki, kolbasi and sauerkraut, nalesniki (potato pancakes), soups and more will be served. There will also be baked goods, including kolachi (apricot, nut, poppyseed and cottage cheese rolls), pagach, breads and more.
There will be on going entertainment, which includes music, folk dancing, singing, demonstrations, displays and presentations.
Slavjane Folk Ensemble, dancers and musicians, from Holy Ghost Byzantine Catholic Church in McKees Rocks will perform at 3:30 p.m. Jerry Jumba of McKees Rocks will entertain with a sing-a-long and live Rusyn music at 2 p.m.
Speakers on various topics, such as Carpatho-Rusyn family customs, both secular and religious, genealogy and tracing cultural roots, and recent trips to the Carpathian homeland will be topics. John Righetti, a Monessen native and president of the Carpatho-Rusyn Society, and Dean Poloka, Carpatho-Rusyn, society vice president, along with others, will share their experiences from recent trips to the Carpathian homelands of Poland, Slovakia and the Ukraine.
John Righetti will also give a presentation on who the Carpatho-Rusyns are. The Rev. Thomas J. Wesdock, administrator of St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Church, will speak on the topic “Eastern Christianity – Not What You Think.” There will also be videos on Carpatho-Rusyn iconography and Rusyn customs. A highlight of the day will be a preview of St. John’s newly installed work in process icon screen.
The event will also feature children’s activities. Children can experience the Rusyn culture through storytelling and making crafts such as pysanky, icon bookmarks, crosses decorated cookies, coloring sheets and more. There will also be demonstrations of pysanky (egg decorating), folk embroidery and wood burning, which are traditional folk crafts of the Carpatho-Rusyns. A display by the Carpatho-Rusyn Society will include costumes, crafts, religious artifacts, videocassettes and demonstrations of the Carpatho-Rusyn heritage. A display will also depict the span of 20 years of the Carpatho-Rusyn Celebration at St. John’s.
Tables of crafts for sale will include contemporary crafts as well as traditional Carpatho-Rusyn folk crafts. The contemporary crafts include secular and religious items, fall decorations, Christmas items and more. The folk crafts of the Rusyns include pysanky (decorated eggs), embroideries such as those used to cover Easter baskets to be blessed, wood-burned icon ornaments and other articles. Available also are imported items, cookbooks, T-shirts, maps and informational materials. The many raffle items include a queen-size folk-embroidered/appliqued quilt made by St. John’s Ethnic Craft Club in patriotic colors and in memory of those who lost their lives in the events of Sept. 11, 2001. A donation from the sales of raffle tickets on this quilt will go toward the “Thunder on the Mountain Flight 93 Memorial Chapel” in Shanksville. There is no admission charge. For information, call 724-438-6027 Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. or 724-438-8412 or 724-437-2462 in the evenings.