Cultural Exchanges Surprise Texans and Silesia, Poland
by Elaine Mazurek Stephens
Oct. 23, 2008
     When traveling involves more than just sight-seeing, the results can surprise everyone.  In recent months, several visits  between local travelers and their counterparts in Silesia, Poland, have brought a fresh exchange of culture, music and understanding between the distant waypoints.  The Father Leopold Moczygemba Foundation has been working hard to support such exchanges, and is announcing plans for a Christmas season with musical surprises from Silesia.

 Pilgrimage Takes Silesian Texans to Poland

            In June, a group of South Texans, including fourteen teens and thirty-five adults, made a pilgrimage to an ancient region in Europe, now in Poland, called Silesia.  Most of the travelers are descendants of early Texas settlers from the region in Europe now called Sileisa, Poland.  In Texas, they are identified as Silesian Texans.  They were led by FLM President, Father Frank Kurzaj of St. Paul's Catholic Church in San Antonio.  In Poland, the Texans met a people and a country much different from what they expected. 

            The travelers knew their ancestors immigrated to Texas in the 1850s, following years of hardship in Silesia, but their summer pilgrimage to their ancestors' villages brought a new meaning and purpose to their lives.   Many in Father Frank's group expressed a deep appreciation for the Silesian people and the resilient country of Poland.  

            During an August reunion of the travelers many impressions were voiced.   "The country has been torn by many

wars but the people have pulled themselves back by their bootstraps.  They cherish all they have," said Ferdinand Kotzur, of Adkins, Texas, whose own Silesian ancestors settled in harsh South Texas in the 1850s. 

    The students expressed a new interest in their own Silesian heritage while recalling their trip.  "I'd like to learn more Polish now," said one of the fourteen, followed by much agreement from her fellow travelers.  Kaine Korzekwa, of Gillette, Texas, said, "The architecture is so much older, and it's built to last.  The country is so clean -- there's no litter." 

    "Everyone was so willing to talk to us.  We felt welcomed everywhere we went," said Mary Jane Moczygemba, of Floresville, Texas.

 

Devin Dziuk, of Koscuisko, Texas, added, "They have such pride in their country, especially for their soccer teams.  There were Polska (Polish for 'Poland') flags everywhere and during the night I could hear people saying, 'Polska! Polska!'"

    The spiritual faith in Poland made a lasting impression on the Texas travelers.  Laura Dylla, of La Vernia, Texas, said, "Even after 250 years of partitions, wars and struggles, they still have a very strong faith.”  Another person said, "The trip made me want to be more religious, more spiritual."

      The group visited Krakow, Wawel Castle, Tatra Mountains, Auschwitz, Wieliczka Salt Mines, Wadowice (the birthplace of Pope John Paul II), the Shrine of St. Ann, and in Czestochowa they toured the Jasa Gora Monastery with the Black Madonna Shrine.  They also visited the Basilica of the Divine Mercy and prayed at the grave of Saint Faustina Kowalski.  They traveled into the Czech Republic and toured the city of Prague.  Other cities visited by the Texans were Opole, Gliwice, Pluznica, Koszęcin  and Boronow. 

    Many of the students and adults exchanged email addresses and genealogical information with some of the people they met on the trip.  Not surprisingly, all of them felt a new appreciation for their Silesian Texan heritage.

Billy Mata  & Band Visits Poland

    Summer held surprises for the people in Silesia, too.  In August, local music legend Billy Mata and the Texas Tradition band performed in Koszęcin, Poland, another trip organized by the FLM.   Mata and his band, along with guest singer, Texan Ray Sczepanik, not only performed three concerts in four days, but they met members of the international Polish music group, "Śląsk."  The meeting brought decades of award-winning talent together, giving inspiration to both sides of the ocean. 
 

     The Texas Tradition band and Sczepanik played their famous Texas music to thousands of people in Koszęcin, Poland.  Western swing and ballads lead their lineup as they headlined for "A Country Picnic," a musical exchange program between the two countries.

      “It was the first time in history that Western Swing music had been heard live in Poland,” said Mata’s drummer, Rocco Fontunato.  “At first they didn’t know what to think, but soon they recognized something very familiar in the beat and tempo; they heard their own Polish and German influence in the polkas and the fiddles.  Prior to our concert they had only heard the kind of western music associated with line dancing and 1990s Nashville.”

            Fontunato went on to explain how the music was new, yet familiar to the Silesian audiences.  Western Swing music was founded in the 1920s by Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys, a band from South Texas, whose members were a mixture of Polish, German, Dixie and Cajun musicians who blended their talents to create a popular and enduring style of music.  “The South Texas ethnic communities learned music from their ancestors -- many of whom were from Poland.”
           
      “They loved our cowboy hats and were excited to see real Stetsons.  By the third concert, people were coming from everywhere.  They even stood in the rain to listen and dance.” said Fontunato.  “They just kept coming and coming.  It was great to see them dance to our music.”
     
       Mata and the band were equally impressed by the country itself.  “The Polish people have been through so much.  They don’t take anything for granted and they appreciate every day.  We have so little to complain about here.  Our band still talks about how the trip has changed our life for the better,” said Mata.

      Accompanying Mata was Ray Sczepanik, of the famous Texas Top Hands, a band organized in 1945.  Sczepanik was born in Cestohowa, Texas.  When asked how he connected with the Polish audiences, he said, "I made all of them Honorary Texans".   Sczepanik visited several villages during his short trip to Silesia.  When asked what he thought when introduced to people in Poland, he jokingly said, "I hoped my ancestors didn't owe them any money."
       
     Another band member shared his impressions of Poland.  “I was impressed with the beautiful, modern malls and fashions” said Richard Helsley.   “I was also amazed at the wide range of farming methods.  In one field we would see a man using modern farm equipment while down the road was a person using a wooden pitch fork to toss hay.” 

  Śląsk  To Visit South Texas in December
  

    Continuing the excitement and cultural exchanges, in December the FLM will host the song and dance ensemble, "Śląsk" which means Silesia in Polish. "Śląsk", is a highly professional group of dedicated folk singers and dancers in Poland who have performed in Japan, Australia, Israel, Canada and Mexico.  The originator was the artistic director Professor Stanislaw Hadyna, son of a music teacher from Silesia, Poland, who was influenced by the songs and dances of the land of Silesia. 

    The Culture and Art Minister of Poland made the decision to establish the group in 1953.  The first 120 performers were chosen from among 12,000 candidates.  The highly artistic level of the ensemble has brought it recognition throughout the world, along with numerous awards and certificates including a certificate of merit from the President of the United States.

    Sixty singers and musicians from "Śląsk" will perform during the Christmas Season in Texas from December 22 to December 30, visiting Houston, Corpus Christi, San Antonio, St. Hedwig and Panna Maria.  "Texas is in for a wonderful surprise,” said Dorothy Pawelek, a frequent traveler to Poland.  Details of their schedule will be available here, the Wilson County News and at SilesianTexans.com.       

    Visiting other countries can be a rewarding and enlightening experience, but the impression is often deeper and more lasting when blood, faith and hope surprises the traveler.