introducing the members of the supreme assembly who will … · 2016-01-13 · volume cv passaic,...

OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE SLOVAK CATHOLIC SOKOL – MEMBERSHIP 28,000 – HOME OFFICE: 205 MADISON STREET, PASSAIC, N.J. 07055 – www.slovakcatholicsokol.org

Periodical Postage Paid at original entry of Passaic, N.J., 07055 and additional mailing offi ces

VOLUME CV PASSAIC, N.J., JANUARY 13 PASSAIC, N.J., JANUARY 13, 2016, 2016 NUMBER 5060

Slovensk¥ Katolícky Sokol

Za Boha a Národ For God and Nation

Introducing the Members of the Supreme Assembly Who Will Serve OurOrganization’s New Administration for the Term of Offi ce, 2016-2019

* Member of theBoard of Directors

Most ReverendJoseph V. Adamec, S.T.L.,D.D.

Bishop - Emeritusof Altoona-Johnstown

Protector

Rev. Andrew S. HvozdovicSupreme Chaplain *

Michael J. HorvathSupreme President *

Edward D. MoellerSupreme Vice President *

Scott T. Pogorelec, F.I.C.Supreme Secretary *

Dennis J. ZifcakSupreme Treasurer *

John D. Pogorelec, Jr., Esq.General Counsel *

James G. JerekChairperson of

Supreme Auditors *

James C. MatlonSupreme Director

of Sports and Athletics *

Kathleen S. WatkinsSupreme Physical Directress *

(continued on page 10)

SLOVAK CATHOLIC FALCON, JANUARY 13, 2016

Scenes of the Annual Children’s Christmas Party hosted by Assembly 162SS. Cyril and Methodius Church Hall + Clifton, N.J. + Sunday, December 20

SLOVAK CATHOLIC FALCON, JANUARY 13, 2016 PAGE 3

(Continued on page 17)

Sokol Calendar OUR NEXT ISSUE IS JANUARY 27TH

In keeping with our bi week ly publishing sched ule, the next is sue of the Slovak Cath o lic Fal con will be that of Wednes- day, January 27th. Dead line for all pho tos and in for ma tion for this is sue will be Thurs day, January 21st. View e-Falcon on our website: www.slovakcatho-licsokol.org. Thank ing you for your con tin ued co op er a tion in this mat ter, I re main Zdar Boh! Daniel F. Tanzone Editor

JAN.15-17 Annual meeting of the Supreme

Physical Fitness Board at the Homewood Suites Hotel, Pitts-burgh, Pa.

SUN.JAN.17 Assembly 79 annual meeting at

the Slovak Catholic Sokol Club, Railroad St., Lilly, Pa. beginning at 2 p.m. a luncheon will follow be-ginning at 3:30 p.m.

Limbora Slovak Folk Ensemble auditions, all genders, ages 13 and older; male singing group Pristasi,

all ages; at the Bohemian Hall & Beer Garden, 29-19 24th Ave., As-toria, N.Y. beginning at 2 p.m., to register call Stano at 917-560-9658.

FRI.JAN.22 43rd annual March for Life in

opposition to the scourge of abor-tion in our country; march with the Slovak Catholic Fraternal so-cieties in Washington, D.C.; buses depart from the home offi ce of the First Catholic Slovak Ladies Association in Beachwood, Oh.,

The Petitions and Donations Committee of the 32nd national convention held in Pittsburgh in August rec-ommended fi nancial support to a number of religious and cultural institutions. A petition was submitted by Group 2 President Eileen S. Wilson on behalf of Holy Name of Jesus Parish in Stratford, Conn. The delegates voted a donation of $1,250.00 for the parish which is the center of many area Slovak activities. Convention delegates recently presented the check to the Rev. Andrew G. Marus, pastor of Holy Name of Jesus Parish, shown above center. Shown during the presentation made by delegates to the 32nd convention are, from the left, Group 2 President Eileen S. Wilson; John Golias and Barbara and Bob Sheehy. Absent when the photo was taken were other convention delegates, Judith Salamon and Joseph Goda. With the exception of Eileen S. Wilson, all are parishioners of Holy Name of Jesus Parish. She is a member of St. Mark’s Parish located in Stratford’s northend. Eileen, however strives to do all she can to support Holy Name of Jesus Parish with all of its fund-raising projects. Holy Name of Jesus was founded in 1923 to serve the area’s Slovak community.

Sokol Benevolence Earmarked for Stratford, Conn. Parish

Message from our Supreme Presidentby Michael J. Horvath

I wish to begin my fi rst article as Supreme President in wishing all a very Blessed and Happy New Year 2016. May we all fi nd peace and joy this year as we begin this “Jubilee Holy Year of Mercy” as declared by Our Holy Father, Pope Francis.

At the start of each New Year we refl ect on the past year and are afforded the op-portunity to set goals for the coming year. Unfortunately, we are unable to change the past. However, we can attempt to set goals that can improve our lives and make the next year better. To meet the goals we set, we must plan appropriately so that our goals are reasonable and attainable. However, we know we must be fl exible enough to recog-nize when we might need to make some ad-

justments along the way. May we all strive to do our best to reach our goals this year. I wish to offer Congratulations to the newly elected Su-preme Offi cers of our beloved Slovak Catholic Sokol who were elected during our 32nd Quadrennial Convention last August in Pittsburgh, PA. The members elected with me to serve on the Supreme Board of Directors for the 2016-2019 term include: Supreme Chaplain, Rev. Andrew S. Hvozdovic; Supreme Vice-President, Mr. Edward D. Moeller; Supreme Secretary, Mr. Scott T. Pogorelec, F.I.C.; General Counsel, Mr. John D. Pogorelec, Jr, Esq.; Supreme Treasurer, Mr. Dennis J. Zifcak; Chairperson of the Auditors, Mr. James G. Jerek; Supreme Director of Sports and Athletics, Mr. James C. Matlon; Supreme Physical Director, Mr. John M. Underation; and Supreme Physical Directress, Mrs. Kathleen S. Watkins. In addition to the Board of Directors the other Supreme Of-fi cers elected include: Supreme Auditors; Mr. James F. Knis, and Mr. Brian Suchy; Supreme Assistant Director of Sports and Ath-letics, Mr. Frank P. Laury, III; Supreme Assistant Physical Direc-tor, Mr. Dusan Dorich; Supreme Assistant Physical Directress, Mrs. Katie Swift; Members of the Supreme Physical Fitness Board, Mrs. Nancy Kropolinsky, Mrs. Julie Laury, Mr. Martin A. Degnan, and Mr. Philip J. Walsh. I likewise wish to congratulate those who were elected as Supreme Honorary Offi cers during the Convention. This new class of Honorary Offi cers include: Immediate Past Supreme President, Mr. Larry M. Glugosh; Immediate Past Supreme Vice President, Mrs. Julie Ann Dobbs; Immediate Past Supreme Sec-retary, Mr. Steven M. Pogorelec, F.I.C.; Immediate Past General Counsel, Mr. John D. Pogorelec, Esq., and our current Editor of the Slovak Catholic Falcon, Mr. Daniel F. Tanzone. These excep-tional fraternalists have combined cumulative years of service that exceed 150 years to the Slovak Catholic Sokol. I extend my sincerest appreciation to these retired Supreme Offi cers for their leadership, service, and dedication to our organization. You leave behind a great legacy of service and very large shoes to fi ll. I pray that those of us who follow your example may be able to serve with equal dedication and commitment that every one of you had done. The newly elected Supreme Board of Directors begin our term of offi ce fi nding that you left our society fi nancially sound and a membership that is growing. I also wish to acknowledge those Supreme Offi cers who have retired after fulfi lling their two term service to our society. They are: Supreme Auditor, Mr. Steven Burican, and Supreme Members of the Physical Fitness Board; Mrs. Denise DiMartino, Mrs. Jennifer A. Romine and Mr. Damian J. Suess. The delegates of the 32nd Quadrennial Convention tasked the Supreme Board of Directors to take under study a special project titled the 20/20 Project. The delegates requested that this study committee be chaired by our Honorary Immediate Past Vice President, Mrs. Julie Ann Dobbs, Sister Julie accepted the appointment. The additional members who will make up the Committee will include three (3) current Group Presidents; three (3) members at large from the current membership of the Slovak Catholic Sokol. The committee will meet throughout the next four years, and the chair will report to the Supreme Board of Di-rectors the progress being made by the Committee. The purpose for the formation of such a 20/20 Committee is to review the So-ciety’s By-Laws and to explore possible models of governance which might enhance the future of the Slovak Catholic Sokol. This does not necessarily mean that change is inevitable, but it is worth exploring possibilities. As the Committee meets over the next four (4) years, information will be shared with the member-ship though our offi cial printed publication.

With God’s Blessings to All! Zdar Boh!

Honorary Supreme Offi cer, Steven M. Pogorelec, F.I.C. is shown above far left presenting the diamond Sokol lapel pin to his son and successor, Scott T. Pogorelec, F.I.C. who assumed the position of Supreme Sec-retary and our organization’s CEO on January 1, 2016 while Honorary Supreme Offi cer John D. Pogorelec, Esq. presents the diamond Sokol pin to his son and successor, Attorney John D. Pogorelec, Jr. who assumed the position of our organization’s General Counsel. Brother Steven M. Pogorelec, F.I.C. served for 24 years as our Supreme Secretary while his brother, Attorney John D. Pogorelec was our General Counsel for 44 years. All of the above have been active members of Assembly 162 in Clifton, N.J. where they were enrolled at birth. Our congratulations and fraternal best wishes go out to all of the above.

Passing on the Mantle of Fraternal Leadership


REFLECTOR ... Jotings fr om Sokol and Slovak life

Second Sunday of the Year - January 17th

(John 2:1- 1 1)

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

Jesus did this as the beginning of his signs at Cana in Galilee.There was a wedding at Cana in Galilee,and the mother of Jesus was there.Jesus and his disciples were also ‘invited to the wedding.When the wine ran short, the mother of Jesus said to him,“They have no wine.”And Jesus said to her, “Woman, how does your concern affect me?My hour has not yet come.”His mother said to the servers, “Do whatever he tells you.”Now there were six stone water jars there for Jewishceremonial washings,each holding twenty to thirty gallons.Jesus told them,“Fill the jars with water.”So they fi lled them to the brim.Then he told them,“Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter.”So they took it.And when the headwaiter tasted the water that hadbecome wine,without knowing Where it came from– although the servers who had drawn the water knew-,the headwaiter called the bridegroom and said to him,Everyone serves good wine fi rst,and then when people have drunk freely, an inferior one;but you have kept the good wine until now”Jesus did this as the beginning of his signs at Cana in Galilee and so revealed his gloryand his disciples began to believe in him.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Third Sunday of the Year– January 24th

(Luke 1:1-4; 4:14-21)

Since many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the eventsthat have been fulfi lled among us,just as those who were eyewitnesses from the beginningand ministers of the word have handed them down to us,I too have decided,after investigating everything accurately anew .to write it down in an orderly sequence for youmost excellent Theophilus,so that you may realize the certainty of the teachings and news of him spread throughout the whole regionJesus returned to Galilee in the power of the SpiritHe taught in their synagogues and was praised by allHe came to Nazareth, where he had grown upand went according to his custominto the synagogue on the sabbath day. He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the , prophet Isaiah. He unrolled the scroll and ‘found the passage where itwas written: The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed meto bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind,to let the oppressed go free,and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendantand sat down,and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him.He said to them,“Today this Scripture passage is fulfi lled in your hearing.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

The Word of God...

First parish named for BlessedMiriam Teresa Demjanovich The Most Reverend Bernard Hebda, coadjutor Archbishop of Newark, solemnly blessed and formally dedicated the new parish of Blessed Miriam Teresa in Bayonne, N.J. on Sunday, January 3rd, the feast of the Epiphany of the Lord. The parishes of St. Andrew,

founded in 1914 and St. Mary Star of the Sea, founded in 1859, the city’s oldest parish, have been merged. This new confi gura-tion will be the fi rst parish in the United States to be placed under the patronage of Blessed Miriam Teresa Demjanovich, S.C., a Sis-ter of Charity of St. Elizabeth who was beatifi ed by Pope Francis in

September 2014. Her beatifi cation, the fi rst ever cel-ebrated in the United States, took place at the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark, N.J. on October 4, 2014 with Angelo Cardinal Amato, S.D.B., Prefect of the Congregation of the Causes of Saints in Rome and personal representative of Pope Francis presiding. Blessed Miriam Teresa Demjanovich was born in the Constable Hook section of Bayonne, March 26, 1901 youngest child of Alexander and Johanna Dem-janovich, who were natives of Bardejov in eastern Slo-vakia. Most of the residents of the neighborhood were eastern European immigrants. The Demjanovich fam-ily was Greek Catholic and belonged to St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Parish. Blessed Miriam Teresa was baptized and chrismated(confi rmed) fi ve days after her birth and received her First Holy Com-munion at this Byzantine Catholic Church whose members had emigrated from what today is eastern Slovakia and western Ukraine. Sister Miriam Teresa was by birth Greek Catholic but Roman Catholic in practice. Growing up, she for the most part attended local Roman Catholic churches including St. Joseph’s Church, the oldest Slovak parish in the State of New Jersey established in 1889. After graduating from Bay-onne High School in 1919, she enrolled at the College of St. Elizabeth in Convent Station, N.J. It was here she fi rst encountered the Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth and entered the community n 1925. Her health de-clined while she was still a novice and she was given permission to profess her vows “in articulo mortis,” on her death bed. She died on May 8, 1927. Her cause for canonization was offi cially introduced in the Diocese of Paterson in 1946. In 2012, Pope emeritus Benedict XVI decreed that Sister Miriam Teresa was of heroic virtue and was to be called Venerable. On December 17, 2013, a panel of Cardinals and Bishops agreed that the cause of the blind child has been accomplished through the intercession of Sister Miriam Teresa. On that same day, Pope Francis declared this an authentic miracle and was declared Blessed. It is appropriate then that the fi rst parish in the United States to be placed under the patronage of Blessed Miriam Teresa Demjanovich, S.C. be estab-lished in her native city of Bayonne, N.J. We commend the Archdiocese of Newark for this honor. May those who will be part of this faith community be inspired and motivated in their Christian practive through the intercession of Sister Miriam Teresa Demjanovich, S.C.

43rd Annual March for Lifeset for Washington, D.C. 2016 marks 43 years since the U.S. Supreme Court decision, known as Roe v Wade, which legal-ized the taking of innocent life in abortion in our country. Pro-life proponents from across the country will travel to our nation’s capital in Washington, D.C. on Friday, January 22, 2016 to participate in the 43rd annual March for Life. The event’s program actu-ally begins with the National Prayer Vigil for Life on Thursday evening, January 21 at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. The largest Catholic church in the United States, located

at 398 Michigan Avenue, North West, located in the heart of our nation’s capital. The liturgy begins at 6:30 p.m. with Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Archbishop of New York as principal celebrant and homilist. Hundreds of bishops and priests will concelebrate the liturgy. Through the night, a variety of religious devotions will be held throughout the shrine, con-cluding with a 7:30 a.m. Mass celebrated in the great upper church. On Friday, January 22, the March for Life com-mences at 1 p.m. For more than a quarter century, members of the Slovak Catholic Sokol have joined with members of our three other Slovak Catholic fraternals, namely the First Catholic Slovak Union, the First Catholic Slovak Ladies Association and the Ladies Pennsylvania Slovak Catholic Union, march-ing under the banner “Slovak Catholic Fraternals for Life.” Slovak Catholic fraternalists will once again gather at 12 noon at the corner of Constitution Avenue and 7th Street to join the line of march. We encourage our members from various parts of the country to participate in the March for Life. Buses depart from the home offi ce of the Ladies Pennsyl-vania Slovak Catholic Union in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. at 7 a.m. For reservations call President Theresa Kluchinski at 888-834-6614 or email [email protected]. Buses also depart from the home offi ce of the First Catholic Slovak Ladies Association in Beachwood, Oh. For reservations call Kelly at the FCSLA home offi ce at tel. 800-464-4642, ext. 1051 or email her at [email protected] for details. During this Year of Mercy, let us pledge our support for the Pro-Life movement and the sanctity of life. Let us once again affi rm our support and re-spect for the unborn, celebrating life from concep-tion to natural death.

Visit Slovakia ----“The Old Country” Remember how your parents or grandparents referred to their birthplace as the “the old country.” Well now is the time for you to sit down and talk with the oldest members of your family to learn about their birthplaces in the old country. There is so much beau-ty and charm in their ancestral land and it’s all there just waiting for your visit. So get your passport and let’s go. Join our Sokol members Jim and Kay Bench as they host the 19th annual Youngstown/Spisska Nova Ves Sister cities tour July 8-July 22- 2016. We will be celebrating The 25th Anniversary of the Youngstown/Spisska Nova Ves Sister Cities so get your dancing shoes ready for the time of your life. You will see the capital of Slovakia, Bratislava lo-cated on the Danube River. Since joining the European Union, you will see how the villages, towns and cities have been restored to their former beauty. Unique to our trip is a reception with the mayor of our sister cities Spisska Nova Ves complete with entertainment and a formal signing of the city registry for all tour partici-pants. You will enjoy traditional Slovak food, attend several kolibas, enjoy shopping, go whitewater rafting on the Dunajec, the natural border between Poland and Slovakia, visit villages such as Cicmany where you will see decorated homes, visit historic Tichy Po-tok a village of 324 people, stay in a beautiful spa in Sliac and enjoy the thermal waters, indoor and out-door pools, saunas and other amenities. Visit many of the Unesco sites, castles, churches especially the oldest church in Slovakia located in Nitra. Attend and participate in a mock wedding in traditional Slovak Kroj. Wine tasting is a favorite to many participants. There are so many things to see and do, too numerous to mention in this short article. Remember our trip is fourteen days so you really get to see Slovakia, visit family and have time for shopping. English speaking tour guide, large air conditioned bus with restroom, fi rst class hotel accommodations, great food and entertainment.



ISSN: 0897-8107

Established April 15, 1911Official Publication of the Slovak Catholic Sokol

Issued Bi-Weekly

Daniel F. Tanzone, EditorEditorial office: (973) 777-4010

Annual Subscription RatesUnited States $40.00 – All others countries $45.00

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Slovak Catholic Falcon,

P.O. Box 899, 205 Madison Street,

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Association and the Slovak Newspapermen's

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Proprietor and Publisher

SLOVAK CATHOLIC SOKOLP.O. Box 899

205 Madison Street, Passaic, N.J. 07055Home Office: (973) 777-2605-06

WEB SITE –www.slovakcatholicsokol.org(Continued on page 15)

Join us for the 43rd March for Life

Washington, D.C. January 22, 2016

Lodge Jottings An outstanding fraternal benefi t

$63,000 in S.C.S. Scholarship GrantsAvailable to Eligible Members in 2016 We are pleased to announce that the Slovak Catholic Sokol will make available a total of $63,000 in scholarship grants to eligible members in 2016. Previous recipients of Slovak Catholic Sokol scholarship grants may reap-ply for a 2016 grant; however, per Convention mandate - a student may receive a maximum of two (2) Slovak Catholic Sokol scholarship grant awards in each category. A total of 30 Slovak Catholic Sokol college grants of $1,000 each, two Theodore and Mary Jane Rich Memorial Scholarships one for a male and female in the amount of $2,500 each, two Emil Slavik Memorial Scholarships one for a male and female in the amount of $2,000 each, one The Doctors’ Les-ko Medical Memorial Scholarship in the amount of $1,000, one Krista L. Glugosh Memorial Scholarship in the amount of $1000 and three Slovak Catholic Sokol (SCS) Memorial Scholarship in the amount of $1000. With one application you may apply for all college scholar-ship grants for which you are eligible. Note that only one grant per applicant will be awarded.

College scholarship eligibility requirements:Slovak Catholic Sokol (a total of 30, $1000 grants will be awarded) • Must have a minimum of $3,000 permanent Life Insurance Coverage • Must be a member of the Slovak Catholic Sokol for at least fi ve years. • Must have completed one semester of undergraduate studies as a FULL TIME student at an accredited college, university or professional school, or be enrolled in a graduate or professional degree program. • Must have an accumulated grade point average of at least 2.5 or better • One parent must be a Slovak Catholic Sokol member • Essay- “How has being a member of the Slovak Catholic Sokol infl uenced my life?”

Theodore and Mary Jane Rich (one male and one female grant in the amount of $2500 will be awarded) • Same requirements as for SCS scholarship AND • One parent must be of Slovak Ancestry • Must be majoring in medical curriculum

Emil Slavik (one male and one female grant in the amount of $2000 will be awarded) • Same requirements as for SCS scholarship AND • Both parents must be members of the Slovak Catholic Sokol • Must be majoring in liberal arts, the sciences, pre-law, pre-medical or business curriculum.

The Doctors’ Lesko Medical Memorial Scholarship (1 grant in the amount of $1000 will be awarded) • Same requirements as for SCS scholarship AND • Majoring in Nursing or Medical curriculum • One parent must be of Slovak AncestryKrista L. Glugosh Memorial Scholarship (1 grant in the amount of $1000 will be awarded) • Same requirements as for SCS scholarship AND • Majoring in curriculum with a focus in computer graphics, design or layout

Slovak Catholic Sokol Memorial Scholarship (3 grants in the amount of $1000 will be awarded to the applicant that best exem-plifi es the spirit of volunteerism) • Same requirements as for SCS scholarship • Essay- “Describe the one volunteer experience that made the biggest personal impact on you- how/why”.

The process of applying for any of the above college level scholarships is completely on-line. Applications and instructions are ONLY available on our website @ www.slovakcatholicsokol.org Questions regarding the Slovak Catholic Sokol Scholarship Program may be directed to:


Inaugurating the new administration

Quarterly Meeting of the Board of Directorsset for March 11-12 in Passaic, New Jersey As per Section 3.2 (F) of the Constitution and Bylaws of the Slovak Catholic Sokol, we hereby offi cially announce the Quarterly Meeting of the Board of Directors scheduled for March 11-12, 2016 at the Home Offi ce in Passaic, N.J. This is the fi rst meeting of the new administration elected at the 32nd National Convention in Pittsburgh, Pa. this past August. The meeting will open on Friday, March 11 with a Mass at 8:30 a.m. celebrated for the living and deceased members of our organi-zation by our Supreme Chaplain, Rev. Andrew S. Hvozdovic in the Board Room of the Home Offi ce. Following the liturgy, the meeting of the Slovak Catholic Sokol Museum Board will convene. At 10 a.m. the Board of Directors meeting will be called to order. The retiring board members will present their reports. The directors will continue the meeting until all business brought before the board has been acted upon. On Saturday, March 12, following the conclusion of the meet-ing, the directors and guests will assemble at St. Mary’s Assumption Church, located at the corner of Market and Monroe Streets where the pastor is the Rev. Jorge Rodriquez for the traditional installation Mass at 5 p.m. Following the liturgy, a buffet supper will be served in St. Mary’s Parish Center. Area Assembly and Wreath offi cers and members are cordially invited to participate in the liturgy and supper. Any Group, Assembly, Wreath or individual member having any recommendations for the good of the order should address same by writing to: Scott T. Pogorelec, F.I.C., Supreme Secretary, Slovak Cath-olic Sokol, P.O. Box 899, 205 Madison St., Passaic, NJ. 07055 by the deadline of March 1, 2016. We ask for the continued prayers and support of the membership as the new Board of Directors gathers to labor in the best traditions of our organization and promote the high ideals of the fraternal benefi t system.

Zdar Boh! Michael J. Horvath Scott T. Pogorelec, F.I.C. Supreme President Supreme Secretary

CHICAGO, ILLAssembly 11

The annual meeting of our As-sembly, under the spiritual patronage of SS. Cyril and Methodius, will be held on Friday, February 12 begin-ning at 1 p.m. at the home of our Financial & Recording Secretary, Therese M. Buc, 9024 Del Prado Drive in Palos Hills, Ill. All members are urged to attend this very important meeting. After the Assembly offi cers present their reports, we will have election of offi -cers to serve our lodge in 2016. Most important, there will be discussion on the future of Assembly 11. In the past ten years. Assembly 11 has hosted the 100th anniversary cel-ebrations of Slovak Catholic Sokol Assembly 11, Wreath 9 as well as that of Group 4. At each of these cel-ebrations, we were pleased to greet anywhere from 60 to 120 Assembly 11 members. We urgently invite the members who showed interest in these celebrations to join us as this year’s annual meeting. Following our business meeting, refreshments will be served. The gathering will be an opportunity to enjoy traditional Sokol fellowship and fraternalism at its best. Remember, the date, Friday, Feb-ruary 13 at my home in Palos Hills. In order to make the necessary prep-arations, those planning to attend are asked to call me at 708-598-1468. Assembly 11 has enjoyed an ac-tive and inspiring history since its founding in 1906, when a group of ten Slovak men gathered at St. Mi-chael the Archangel Slovak Parish in the back-of-the yards neighbor-hood of Chicago to establish a lodge of the Slovak Catholic Sokol. It was just a year after the founding of the national organization in 1905. Our Assembly, one of the oldest in our organization, was the fi rst to be es-tablished in the Midwest and as a result of merger of several Chicago Sokol lodges, today Assembly 11 is the largest. Members of our lodge have played an important role in the life of the organization by their ser-vice as Supreme Offi cers. We have much to be proud of and with the cooperation of our current members, we hope to continue this fi ne frater-nal tradition in Chicagoland. Looking forward to seeing a good turnout at our annual meeting and extending warm fraternal wishes to our members for a Happy New Year fi lled with God’s blessings and good health, may I remain Zdar Boh! Therese M. Buc Financial & Recording Secretary

DETROIT, MICH.Assembly 36

The annual meeting of our lodge was held on October 28, 2015 in the meeting room of the Clinton Macomb Public Library. President Mark Papcun called the meeting to order and offered an opening prayer and moment of silence remembering



Celebrating our organization’s ageless slogan of “A Sound Mind in a Sound Body”

A Recap of our 2015 Slovak Catholic Sokol International Sporting Events

by James C. MatlonSupreme Assistant Director of Sports and Athletics

Recap of the 2015 Slovak Catho-lic Sokol International Sporting Events 2015 was once again a busy year for the athletic activities of our organization. The fi rst event of the year was the 69th International Slo-

vak Catholic Sokol and 79th Greek Catholic Union com-bined bowling Tournament, the weekend of May 15th through the 17th at Free-way Lanes in

Wickliffe, Ohio. The Radisson Inn in Eastlake, Ohio was the host hotel for the 2015 bowling tournament. The combined fraternal societies had 35 Men’s Teams and 18 Wom-en’s Teams a total of 212 bowlers. On Friday evening the bowlers were treated to a hospitality dinner conve-niently served right at the bowling lanes. The annual sporting event be-gan with the playing of the National Anthems of the United States and Canada. Supreme President Larry M. Glugosh welcomed all of the bowlers to the Freeway Lanes in Wickliffe, Ohio. George Juba, the Executive President of the Greek Catholic Union also welcomed all of the bowlers from both societies. Edward D. Moeller, The Supreme Director of Sports and Athletics and Christie Petty, Fraternal Director from the Greek Catholic Union co-ordinated the lane assignments for all 53 teams. Two other members of the Greek Catholic Union also helped with the combined bowling tourna-ment, Gregory N. Vladika, National Vice President and Basil M. Wahal, Communications Director. When team bowling concluded on Friday evening, the Slovak Catholic Sokol Team from Assembly 79, Lil-ly, Pa., had placed fi rst with a score of 2,828. The 1st Place Team was led by Gary Risko who rolled a 795 and other team members included Brian Risko, Francis Risko and Jer-emy Glass. In second place was the GCU Club Lane who fi nished with a 2,734, led by John Bost who rolled an 805, and team members included Charles Robinson, Michael Patak and Joe Willson. Geo Lawn Service, from the CGU fi nished in third place with 2,732, led by Steven Roman-chak with a 766, Wayne Newmyer, George Romanchak all contributed to the third place fi nish. In the Women’s Division, Dad’s Daughters from GCU fi nished with a 2,144, led by Laura Anderson-Messer who rolled a 581, and team members included Cindy Anderson, Mary Anderson-MacGil and There-sa Manspeaker. In second place with a total score of 2,133, a mixed team of SCS and GCU led by Bonnie Ciresi who fi nished with a 574 fol-lowed by Jean Karafa, Deb Selip and Dianna Simpson. In Third Place Just Friends from GCU was led by Mi-

chelle Davis who rolled a 585, and other team members, Maria Marks, Linda Bartek and Barbara Rushe. On Saturday morning, all of the bowlers returned to the Freeway Lanes for the Doubles and Singles competition. In the Men’s Division, the dynamic Doubles duo of Ed El-nikar and Clarence “Buffalo” Check-ton from Perryopolis, Pa., fi nished with a 1,504 score. The second place team in Doubles, Brian Risko and Gary Risk from Lilly, Pa., fi nished with a 1,454. Marty Underation and Joe Burfi eld from Barberton/Canton, Ohio fi nished in Third Place with a 1,394. In the Women’s Division the duo of Karen Bakita and Carol Macko from Barberton, Ohio fi nished in fi rst place with a combined total of 1,207 including handicap. Laura Anderson-Messer and Mary Ander-son-MacGil from the Greek Catholic Union fi nished in second place with a 1,179. In third place with a 1,145, Karen Adamcik and Cheryl Fisher, members of the GCU . In the Men’s Singles competition, two GCU members Matthew Nis-kach from Coraopolis, PA and Mi-chael Cimperman from Brecksville, Ohio, both rolled a 763, to fi nish in a tie for fi rst place. In third Place Dave Iskra, Jr. from Wilkes-Barre, Pa, rolled a 757, just 6 pins behind the fi rst place bowlers. Mark Brooks from Homestead, Pa fi nished in fourth place with a 747. Mark Matras from Perryopolis, Pa fi nished in 5th place rolling a 743, and Rich Under-ation from Barberton, Ohio fi nished with a 738, which was good enough for sixth Place. In the Women’s Singles Division Barbara Rushe from Whitaker, Pa and a member of the GCU, fi nished in fi rst place with a 623. In second place Daria Shierly from Endwell, NY and a member of the GCU,rolled a 610. Karen Adamcik from West Miffl in, Pa, a member of the GCU and Marianne Nalli from Ambridge, Pa and a member of the SCS both rolled a 593 to fi nish in a tie for third place. In the Men’s Division for All-Events, Michael Cimperman a member of the GCU from Brecks-ville, Oh, fi nished in fi rst place with a 2,243. Brian Risko from Lilly, Pa, fi nished with a 2,233, to place second and Marty Underation of Barberton, Ohio fi nished with a 2,199 for a third place fi nish. Gary Risko from Lilly, Pa fi nished in fourth place with a 2,158. In the Women’s Division for All-Events, Cindy Anderson from Howell, Michigan and a member of the GCU, placed fi rst with a total of 1,751. Dorothy Bakalar from John-son City, NY and a member of the GCU fi nished in second place with a 1,728 score. Amy Shorthall from West Miffl in, Pa and a member of the GCU rolled a 1,697, to fi nish in third place. The fi nal awards recognition is for

the best Scratch Bowlers at the 69th International SCS Bowling Tourna-ment and 79th International GCU Tournament. High Game: Brian Risko, Lilly, Pa rolled a 290 in Team and Mary Anderson-MacGil from Redford, Michigan rolled a 228 in Doubles. The High Series: John Bost from West Miffl in, Pa and a member of the GCU rolled a an 802 for Team and Amy Shorthall also from West Miffl in, Pa and a GCU Member rolled a 612 in Doubles. Best Scratch All-Events: Brian Risko from Lilly, Pa fi nished with a 2,170 and Amy Shorthall from West Miffl in rolled a 1,697. On Saturday afternoon at the Radisson Inn, Reverend Richard J. Plishka celebrated the Byzantine Catholic Divine Liturgy (Holy Mass) for all of the bowlers and guests to fulfi ll the Sunday Obligation The bowling banquet was held at the Radisson Hotel beginning at 6:00 with a happy hour for the 225 participants and guests. Edward D. Moeller, Supreme Director of Sports and Athletics gave the opening re-marks and Robert Sufl ita from the GCU, gave the invocation. Christie Petty, Fraternal Director of the Greek Catholic Union also welcomed all of the bowlers and guests. After the meal, George N. Juba, Executive President/CEO of Greek Catholic Union welcomed all of the bowl-ers and guests from both fraternal societies to the inaugural combined bowling tournament as both societ-ies have promoted this annual event for six plus decades. Larry M. Glu-gosh, Supreme President of the Slo-vak Catholic Sokol, also gave greet-ings from the Slovak Catholic Sokol Board of Directors to all bowling participants and guests and hopefully this will be the beginning of many annual combined bowling tourna-ments for Slovak Catholic Sokol and Greek Catholic Union. The fi nal event of the evening was the announcement of the Frank S. Petruff Memorial Sports Award, presented in 2015 to Michael T. Ma-tras, from Assembly 25, Perryopolis, Pennsylvania. Michael was very sur-prised to have his name announced as the 2015 recipient, and he thanked the all of the members and Supreme Offi cers that have been involved in the bowling tournaments for the past 69 years. Michael T. Matras is proud to represent our great frater-nal for the past 60 plus years and pledged to continue active involve-ment in all aspects of the organiza-tion. Previous winners in attendance included: Joseph V. Gebura, Richard Underation, Anthony J. Glodava, Walt Kazmierczak, Paul Awramko, and Albert J. Pogorelec. The rest of the evening was spent socializing be-tween fellow members of our society and members of the Greek Catholic Union, enjoying the Ohio hospitality. On Sunday morning the bowlers and guests headed home trying to beat the rain that was predicted for

the greater Cleveland area. The next sporting event of the year was the 47th International Slet held at Slippery Rock University in Slippery Rock, PA July 14-18, 2015. The Slet included over 230 athletes from 9 different Groups, Includ-ing Group 1, Passaic, NJ: Group 3, East Douglas, MA; Group 4, Chi-cago, IL; Group 5, Cleveland, OH; Group 7, Wilkes-Barre, PA; Group 11, Superior, WI; Group 14, Pitts-burgh, PA; Group 17, Youngstown, OH and Group 19, Toronto, Canada. The action packed week included 68 Track & Field Events, 32 Gymnastic Events, Co-Ed Volleyball Competi-tion, Individual Drilling and Team Drilling. The weather in Slippery Rock this year was nearly picture perfect for the entire four days of competition, in contrast to the hot and humid condi-tions at the previous Slet. During the Slet all of the top fi ve athletes in track & fi eld, gymnastics, and individual drilling are awarded points for each competing group. The Team Drilling and Volleyball place winners points are also tallied and the group with the most combined points takes home the International Slet Flag. The members of the Supreme Physical Fitness Board arrived on Monday, July 13th to ensure ev-erything was ready for the 47th In-ternational Slet. The Slet began on Tuesday morning, July 14th, as the Slet participants and Group leaders checked into Watson Hall at Slippery Rock University. On Tuesday all of the Slet participants completed their individual drilling for all of the age groups. The formal opening of the Slet began with the Grand March into the Field House because of the threat of a large thunderstorm that was passing through Slippery Rock, Pa., on Tuesday evening. When the participants fi nished marching into the fi eldhouse, Father Andrew Hvozdovic, our Supreme Chaplain celebrated Mass for all participants, family and friends. On Tuesday evening after open-ing ceremonies, Co-Ed Volleyball completion began for the senior men & women and the younger partici-pants had soccer and basketball con-tests in the back gym to socialize and meet participants from other groups. On Wednesday, July 15th, some of track & fi eld events were held at University Stadium. In the after-noon, Senior Team Drill Competi-tion was held in the Fieldhouse and Junior Finalist Competition was also held at the Morrow Field House. On Wednesday evening the Gymnas-tic Competition was held at Butler Gymnastics and the non-gymnasts participated in Wacky Olympic Games at the Fieldhouse. On Thursday, July 16th, addition-al Track & Field events were held in University Stadium in the morning. Junior Team Drill Competition was held at the Field House and Senior Individual Finalists performed at the Morrow Field House. After the Junior Drill Completion was held, the Volleyball Championship game was held between Group 5, Cleve-land, Ohio and Group 3, East Doug-las, Ma. The volleyball competition was very exciting and Group 5 won

in a tie breaker set. After dinner, all of the Slet participants headed up to University Stadium for our fi rst ever evening track & fi eld competition to take advantage of the cooler evening breezes at Slippery Rock University. On Friday morning, July 17th, all participants headed back to Uni-versity Stadium for the Track Finals and award presentations. On Friday afternoon all of the Slet participants practiced the Junior and Senior drills at University Stadium for Closing Ceremonies. On Friday evening all of the ath-letes marched into the Slippery Rock University Stadium for the Closing Ceremonies. After all of the athletes entered the stadium, our Supreme Chaplain, Father Andrew S. Hvoz-dovic celebrated Mass for all par-ticipants, family and friends in atten-dance. The Junior Boys performed two drills, “Kamarati” by Samo Smetana and “Eye of the Tiger”, a Sher Gunn remix. The Junior Girls performed to “Jablcko” by Kristina Pelakova and “Let It Go” by Idna Menzel. The Senior Men performed to the Slovak Song “Fazula” by Samo Smetana and “Batman Begins (2010)” by James Newton How-ard and Hans Zimmer. The Senior Women performed the Slovak song “Horehronie” by Kristina Pelakova and “Roar” by Katy Perry. All of the athletes came back to the fi eld for the Mass Drill Exhibition, performing to a mix of music from the Avengers movie. As the athletes sat on the fi eld, at University Stadium, Edward D. Moeller, the Supreme Director of Sports and Athletics announced the presentation of awards and fi nally the International Slet Winner. The Team Drill Winners: Junior Boys: Group 3, East Douglas, MA, Junior Girls Group 3, East Doug-las, MA., Senior Women Group 19, Toronto, Canada and Senior Men, Group 5, Cleveland, OH. The Individual Drill Winners, (Boys 8-9), Nicholas St. George, Gr. 3, East Douglas, MA; (Girls 8-9), Rozie Popik, Gr. 19, Toronto, Canada; (Boys, 10-12) Raymond Johnson, Gr. 3, East Douglas, MA; (Girls 10-12), Reece Slowik, Gr. 3, East Douglas, MA; (Boys 13-15), Ian Lattea, Gr. 5, Cleveland, OH; (Girls 13-15), Emily Fallis, Gr. 19, Toronto, Canada; Senior Men, Andy Underation, Gr. 5, Cleveland, OH; Senior Women Jenna Babinchak, Gr. 19, Toronto, Canada; Physical Direc-tor, & Assistants, Zach Manyak, Gr. 3, East Douglas, MA; and Physical Directress and Assistants, Jacqulyn Manyak, Gr. 3, East Douglas, MA. The All-Around Track & Field Winners: (Boys 8-9), Sloan Slowik, Gr. 3, East Douglas MA, and Antho-ny Glugosh, Gr. 19, Toronto, Cana-da; (Girls 8-9), Riley Bush, Gr. 14 Pittsburgh, PA; (10-12), Noah Ro-mine, Gr. 4, Chicago, IL; Girls (10-12), Elisa Glugosh, Gr. 19, Toronto, Canada; Boys (13-15), Alec Golden-burg, Gr. 3, East Douglas, MA; Girls (13-15), Allie Benedict, Gr. 3, East Douglas, MA; Senior Men, Matthew Underation, Gr. 5, Cleveland, OH; and Senior Women, Chelsea Laury, Gr. 5, Cleveland, OH. The All-Around Gymnastic Win-


(Continued from page 5)


Edward D. MoellerSupreme Vice-President

Chairperson of the Scholarship [email protected]

(412)881-3506Deadline for submission of all scholarship

applications is March 31, 2016 In addition to our college grant program, we make available 18 Catho-lic High School Grants in the amount of $500 each as well as 36 Catholic Grade School Grants in the amount of $250 each. Please fi nd these schol-arship applications and directives in each of the next issues of the Falcon.

$63,000 in S.C.S. Scholarship GrantsAvailable to Eligible Members in 2016

Members of Wreath 111 gathered at the American Slovak Home in Lorain, Oh. to participate in the lodge’s annual Christmas celebration on Monday, December 14th. The evening included a fabulous Christmas meal which included all of the Slovak traditions of the season. Thanks and gratitude go out to Helen Zemanek and Marge Kurta for preparing the delicious dinner. At the dinner, Glenice Zelina formally announced her retirement as Wreath president and was presented with a gift in appreciation for her years of fraternal ser-vice. New offi cers elected to serve Wreath 111 in the New Year of 2016 include: Helen Zemanek, president; Sue Naelitz, vice president; Martin Zemanek, secretary; Michele Mager, treasurer and Helene Virant and Marlene McCauley, auditors. During the gathering, winners of the annual raffl e which fund the lodge’s various charitable activities were chosen. Winners include: the fi rst prize of $100, won by Michael Matras; the second prize of $75, won by Amy Grude; the third prize of $50 won by Bob Karticak and the fourth prize of $25 won by Jessica Gut. At wonderful evening of traditional Sokol fellowship and camaraderie in honor of the birth of Christ was had by all. Shown in the above photo are: fi rst row, l-r, Glenice Zelina, Sue Naelitz, Regina Davies and Michele Mager; second row, l-r, Marge Kurta, Tom Zuffa, Ken Zapolski and Steve Gaydosh; third row, l-r, Melissa Deneen, Judy Hromada, Kathy Trifi letti, Pat Frey, Bill Frey, Amy Grude, Chad Grude and Marie DeRuchie.

Celebrating Slovak Christmas Traditions in Lorain, Oh.Thoughts from our Supreme Chaplain

January 22 Day Of Prayer For The Legal Protection Of Unborn Children

by Rev. Andrew S. Hvozdovic The over 56 million abortions since the 1973 decisions of Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton refl ect with heartbreaking magnitude what Pope Francis means by a “throwaway culture.” However, we have great trust in God’s providence. We are reminded time and again in Scripture to seek the Lord’s help, and as people of faith, we believe that our prayers are heard. The General Instruction of the Roman Mis-sal (GIRM), no. 373, designates January 22 as a particular day of prayer and penance, called the “Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children”: “In all the Dioceses of the United States of America, January 22 (or January 23, when January 22 falls on a Sunday) shall be observed as a particular day of prayer for the full restoration of the legal guarantee of the right to life and of penance for violations to the dignity of the human person committed through acts of abortion.” As individuals, we are called to observe this day through the peni-tential practices of prayer, fasting and/or giving alms. Another way to take part is through participating in special events to observe the an-niversary of Roe v. Wade. Call your local diocese or parish to fi nd out what events might be taking place in your area.

Continuing in a fi ne cultural tradition spanning more than six decades, The Slovak Garden, billed as “A Home for American

Slovaks,” will host its 64th annual Florida Slovak Day on Saturday, March 5 at its cultural center

located at 3110 Howell Branch Road in Winter Park, just outside Orlando, Fla. The annual event is an opportunity for Florida’s grow-ing permanent Slovak population as well as snowbirds from north of the Mason Dixon Line to celebrate their culture and heritage. The Slo-vak Day program will be held in the cultural center of The Slovak Gar-den. Doors open at 12 noon with a luncheon featuring Slovak culinary specialities beginning at 1 p.m. A cultural program featuring Slovak music, dance and song will begin at 3 p.m. Live music for dancing and listening pleasure will be provided throughout the afternoon until 6 p.m. Tickets for this year’s Slovak Day are $30.00 per person. For reservations call The Slovak Gar-den at tel. 407 677-6894 or email at [email protected]. An enjoyable afternoon in sunny Florida is assured. The Slovak Garden, billed as

“A Home for American Slovaks” has its beginnings in 1950 when a group of Slovak fraternalists de-cided to build a facility in sunny Florida where they planned to re-side during their retirement years. Property was purchased and a com-plex of apartments was constructed in Winter Park, located just outside Orlando. Over the years, the Or-lando area has enjoyed tremendous growth and has become one of the premier areas in Florida attracting both tourists and individuals mak-ing the area their year-round home. Today, Florida ranks as the nation’s third most populous state with a population exceeding 20 million, including many of Slovak ances-try. The fi rst Florida Slovak Day, hosted by The Slovak Garden was held in 1952 and since then, the an-nual March observance has grown in popularity. Today, The Slovak Garden hosts a modern cultural center along with a Slovak Muse-um. Andrew F. Hudak, Jr., former president of The Slovak Garden, and well-known American Slovak cultural and fraternal leader, au-thored a book on the history of the Slovaks in Florida. Of special pride to the Florida Slovak community is Congressman John Mica. Con-gressman Mica, who is of Slovak ancestry, represents Florida’s 9th

64th Florida Slovak Day setfor March 5 in Winter Park, Fla.


A large turnout of youngsters were present at the annual St. Nicholas Day Celebration held on his actual feast day, Sunday, De-cember 6 at St. John Nepomucene Parish in New York City. Father Richard D. Baker and his associ-ates, Father Stefan Chanas and Fa-

ther Paul Pratap Gatla welcomed the youngsters at the gala celebra-tion celebrating the tradition of St. Nicholas among the Slovaks. Youngsters from Slovak Catholic Sokol, Assembly 182, Branches 45 and 716 of the First Catholic Slo-vak Union participated in the joint

Scenes of the Annual St. Nicholas Day Celebration held in New York City

Father Stefan Chanas, parochial vicar of St. John Nepomucene Parish is shown left with some of the youngsters in a sing-along with St. Nicholas at the New York celebration.

festivities. The highlight of the af-ternoon was the arrival of St. Nich-olas, aptly portrayed by our own Brian Korcek. He was accompa-nied by an angel who brings along a thick book with a record of all the good and bad deeds of the world’s children as listed by their Guardian Angel. In addition, accompanying them is the traditional Krampus, a legendary demon “cert” who’s duty it is to punish children for not be-ing good throughout the year. In Slovakia and the Czech Republic the name of this demon is derived from the Slavic demon cohort of pre-Christian times. He is often de-picted as a man-like fi gure, covered in coarse, long dark hair with goat horns and a long red tongue. St. Nicholas himself makes the judg-ment of who has been good or bad and if selected as good, then the youngster receives gifts. If a child has a poor record, then it is up to Krampus to pass out the proverbial lump of coal, a piece of wood, rock or stone, or what may be the worst gift of all, nothing. Needless to say, on his visit to St. John Nepomucene Parish, St. Nicholas judged all the children to be good and presented each of them with appropriate pres-ents and treats. The program included an expla-nation of the tradition of St. Nich-olas along with a sing-along of beloved Christmas songs. A vari-ety of delicious refreshments were also enjoyed by the youngsters along with their parents, grand-parents and guests who were in attendance. Needless to say, a ter-rifi c time celebrating the wonder-ful the tradition of St. Nicholas, the real Santa Claus, was had by all in the best time-honored tradi-tions of Slovak fraternalism. This year, the participating Slovak fra-ternals enjoyed milestones in their long histories. 2015 marked the 125th anniversary of the founding of the First Catholic Slovak Union and the 110th anniversary of the founding of the Slovak Catholic Sokol. The New York lodges of these organizations have enjoyed an active role in the life of St. John Nepomucene Parish. The offi cers of Assembly 182 express thanks and gratitude to Father Baker as well as all who had a hand in the success of this year’s St. Nicholas Day festivities.

St. Nicholas(Brian Korcek) is shown above with the Angel and Kram-pus with young Sokolky of Assembly 182, Victoria and Claudia Bodo. Their dad, Jozef Bodo serves as vice-president of Assembly 182.

Assembly 182 President, Dr. Larry Korcek right, is shown chatting with St. Nicholas and some of the youngsters present at the celebra-tion. Looking on left is Father Stefan Chanas, associate pastor of St. John Nepomucene Parish.

Thomas Marticek Present Video on Slovakia

Nate Barsky, program chairman of the Senior Men’s Club of the Baldwin Center in Stratford, Conn., presents a memento to Thom-as Marticek, president of Assembly 9 in Bridgeport, Conn. shown above left. Brother Marticek presented a video presentation and lecture on Slovakia to the members of the Senior Men’s Club on Friday, November 20, 2015 at the Baldwin Center in Stratford, Conn. Brother Marticek presented an interesting, colorful and memorable presentation on Slovakia which celebrated its 23rd anniversary of independence on January 1, 2016. Present at the lecture were members of the men’s club as well as Sokols and Sokolky of Assembly 9, Wreath 1 and the Slovak Alliance of Great-er Bridgeport. During the coffee break, the participants enjoyed homemade Slovak cookies. An enjoyable time was had by all.

On Sunday, December 6, the ac-tual feast of St. Nicholas, the Slovak Heritage Society of Northeastern Pennsylvania hosted its annual St. Nicholas Celebration. The time-hon-ored event was held at St. Matthew’s Slovak Lutheran Church in the northend section of Wilkes-Barre, Pa. Approximately 60 guests from near and far attended the celebration which included a Slovak hymn sing featuring many of our traditional Advent and Christmas carols once heard in our Slovak churches. Serving as the leader of Song at the celebration was our Sokolka of Assembly 59, Bernadette Yencha. John Simkovich was the organ-ist and sang the Slovak carol, “Spi Dieta, Spi” as a solo. The traditional Slovak Vins was presented by Helen Savinski followed by a humorous Slovak Night Before Christmas story in English offered by Anna Hudock. All of these were very much enjoyed by all. Magdalen M. Benish, also our As-sembly 59 Sokolka, read an inspiring Christmas Story and spoke of all the past Slovak Christmas traditions, the Vilija(the Christmas Eve ritual), the bell ringers and the caroling by the Betlehemci(strolling shepherds) who went from house to house bringing festive wishes and good cheer. There was great participation as all remi-nisced of Christmas celebrations of the past. Following the traditional singing which lifted the spirits and moods of the participants, the highlight of the afternoon was the appearance of St. Nicholas himself. Portrayed by Magdalen M. Benish, St. Nicholas came to visit and presented a gold coin(really chlorate) to each individ-ual for good luck. To the delight of all, traditional Slovak hospitality fol-lowed in the church hall with many more past Christmas stories shared

by all. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed this year’s St. Nicholas Celebration and left with a great Slovak Christmas spirit. The Slovak Heritage Society, who sponsor an array of seasonal Slovak celebrations, hopes to con-tinue the annual Slovak hymn sing in the future. For additional informa-tion on the Slovak Heritage Society, check out their website: www.shsne-pa.org. Professor Philip A. Tuhy serves as president of the group. The Slovak Heritage Society ob-serves its 40th anniversary in 2016. It was founded during the observance of the American Bicentennial and the 40th International Eucharistic Congress in 1976 under the leader-ship of our Honorary Supreme Of-fi cer, Monsignor Francis J. Beeda, S.T.L., then pastor of the former Sa-cred Heart of Jesus Slovak Parish in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.

Traditional St. Nicholas Celebrationheld in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. church

St. Nicholas himself at St. Mat-thew’s Church in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. on December 6th, ably por-trayed by none other than Mag-dalen M. Benish.


The traditional celebration of the Vilija or Stedry Vecer(bountiful evening) has been a time-honored tradition at New York’s St. John Nepomucene Parish. For genera-tions, its parishioners and friends have gathered as a parish family to recall the traditions of the Christ-mas Eve supper in a Slovak home. This year’s celebration was unique in that it was the fi rst Vigil Dinner since the recently merged parish which now incorporates, St. John Nepomucene, St. Francis Xavier Cabrini and St. John the Martyr. The East Side Parish includes St. John Nepomucene Church in Manhattan as a worship site and St. Francis Xavier Cabrini Church located on Roosevelt Island as the other worship site. The former St. John the Martyr church has been closed. The merger was effective as of August 1 as part of the Mak-ing All Things New project of the Archdiocese of New York. Father Richard D. Baker, the

Celebrating the Traditional Slovak Christmas Vigil Dinner at New York’s St. John Nepomucene Parish

recently installed pastor and our Chaplain of Group 1, for the fi rst time welcomed faithful from the three Manhattan East communities at this year’s Vilija. More than 250 guests attended the dinner and fes-tive program in the colorfully dec-orated parish social hall beginning at 1 p.m. The Vilija was hosted of-fi cially by Branch 45 and Branch 716 of the First Catholic Slovak Union and Assembly 182 of the Slovak Catholic Sokol. Assembly 182 President, Dr. Larry Korcek was the chief chef of the committee which prepared all the traditional foods enjoyed at the Christmas Eve dinner in a Slovak home. Following the welcome and blessing by Father Baker, serving as the mistress of ceremonies was committee member Henrieta Dait. She introduced the parish’s paro-chial vicar, Father Stefan Chanas who described each of the culinary specialities on the menu. The din-ner began with the sharing of the

Oplatky, the unleavened wafers imprinted with Christmas scenes, eaten with honey. They remind us of the unleavened bread of the Old Testament story of the Pass-over, as well as the Manna which God fed the people of Israel during their journey in the desert follow-ing their Exodus from Egypt. In Exodus, the Manna was described as “tasting like wafers made with honey.” And fi nally, and most im-portantly, the Oplatky remind us of the Eucharist. We read in St. John’s Gospel, 6:47-51 “I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlast-ing life. I am the bread of life. Your forefathers ate the Manna in the desert, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heav-en. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my fl esh, which I will give for the life of the world....” After sharing the Oplatky, the traditional Bobalky were enjoyed as well as fruit and nuts. Next came the traditional

Sharing the Oplatky - Father Richard D. Baker, second from the right, is shown sharing the Oplatky and honey with Father Matthew J. Er-nest, S.T.D., professor at St. Joseph’s Seminary in Yonkers, N.Y and a weekend assistant at the parish. Looking on are, from the left, Father Stefan Chanas and Father Paul Pratap Reddy Gatla, parochial vicars at the parish. The Oplatky was the fi rst culinary specialty on the menu.

Father Richard D. Baker, center, is shown with members of the committee and guests at this year’s celebra-tion. Shown with him are from the left, Rev. Stefan Chanas, Rev. Paul Pratap Reddy Gatla, Henrietta Dait, Father Matthew J. Ernest, Magda Vanco, Editor Daniel F. Tanzone and Dr. Larry Korcek, president of Slovak Catholic Sokol, Assembly 182 who supervised the kitchen for the celebration.

soup. A choice of two included, Kapustnica, a soup made with mushrooms and sauerkraut, tradi-tionally enjoyed in eastern Slova-kia, or Lentil soup which is com-mon in western Slovakia. Since by tradition the meal is meatless, a generous portion of fried fi llet of soul served with potato salad was enjoyed by all. Warm white or red wine, varene vino was enjoyed for toasting. The meal was crowned by an array of fruits and traditional homemade nut and poppyseed kol-ace for dessert. The program continued with Father Baker and Father Chanas offering remarks and commen-tary. Guests enjoyed the overhead projection which offered lyrics to beloved Christmas songs sung in Slovak and English. The musical

presentation was under the direc-tion of Radoslav Lesay. At the con-clusion, Father Baker extended the best wishes of the parish commu-nity and extended an invitation to all to attend the various liturgies in Slovak and English over the Christ-mas season. This year’s Vilija was a huge success due to the hard work of the committee and marked a new beginning of this historic parish. St. John Nepomucene Parish was founded on Fourth Street on Man-hattan’s lower east side in 1895. This year’s celebration of Christ-mas marks its 120th anniversary. With the combined faithful of the two merged parishes of St. Fran-cis Xavier Cabrini and St. John the Martyr, a new chapter in the life of the Catholic community on Man-hattan’s East Side has begun..

Father Stefan Chanas and Father Richard D. Baker are shown with some of the youngest guests at this year’s Christmas Vigil Dinner - Vilija.

Members of the young adult group and parish staff are shown above with their pastor, Father Richard D. Baker and associate pastor, Father Stefan Chanas at this year’s Stedry Vecer - Vilija on December 13th.



Introducing the Members of the Supreme Assembly who will serve ourOrganization’s New Administration for the Term of Offi ce, 2016-2019

John M. UnderationSupreme Physical Director *

James F. KnisSupreme Auditor

Brian M. SuchySupreme Auditor

Frank P. Laury, IIISupreme Assistant Director

of Sports and Athletics

Katie SwiftSupreme AssistantPhysical Directress

Dusan DorichSupreme AssistantPhysical Director

Nancy KropolinskyMember of the SupremePhysical Fitness Board

Julie LauryMember of the SupremePhysical Fitness Board

Martin DegnanMember of the SupremePhysical Fitness Board

Philip J. WalshMember of the SupremePhysical Fitness Board

Honorary Supreme Offi cers

Rev. Msgr. Francis J. Beeda, S.T.L. Susan L. Blosser



Julie Ann Dobbs Dr. Mary Z. Gasparik Larry M. Glugosh Andrew J. Hvozdovic

George J. Kostelnik Frank E. Macey Roger J. Manyak J. Gregory Milanek

Michael J. Pjontek, Jr. John D. Pogorelec, Sr. Esq. Steven M. Pogorelec, F.I.C. Daniel F. Tanzone



What's making headlines in our ancestral homeland

News and Views from Slovakia...

Selected stories are provided by TASR-Slovakia, the Slovak Republic’s offi cial News Agency.


Group of Assyrian Christians fromIrag welcomed in Kosice A group of 149 Assyrian Christians from Irag, who are being accepted as part of Slovakia’s voluntary contri-bution to resolving the migration crisis, arrived in Slova-kia at 10:25 p.m. on December 10, TASR learned on the same day. A plane with 25 families from northern Iraq landed at Kosice airport. Heightened security measures were in place at the time of their arrival. The group of Iraqis, who fl ed from their homes due to the Islamic State, has been accommodated in the Interior Ministry’s asylum facility in Humenne(Kosice region). Initially, the asylum seekers were to have arrived from the Iraqi town of Erbil in Slovakia a few days ear-lier, but due to security issues, their fl ight was delayed. Interior Ministry spokesperson Ivan Netik described their admission to Slovakia as a rescue mission. They would have faced death if they hadn’t fl ed from their homes. The people lived in a monastery for 15 months prior to com-ing to Slovakia. They began learning the Slovak language there under the auspices of the Serenity and Goodness Civil Association. “This is the only group coming to Slovakia as things stand, while there are plans for others to go to Poland and the Czech Republic. This is all we can offer right now so that their integration will be smooth and successful,” said Netik. The group will spend the Christmas holidays in peace and security and they attended their fi rst religious service in the asylum facility in Humenne on December 11. According to Netik, the asylum seekers will fi rst be quarantined for approximately three weeks in order to carry out health checks and other mandatory procedures. After that they’ll be free to move. The standard integra-tion process for asylum seekers in Slovakia lasts from six months to two years. “We need to teach these people the Slovak language fi rst. They will be the basis for further integration into our society,” stated Netik. There are edu-cated people in the group. The ministry will later look for work for them based on their professions. “In cooperation with the Church, civil associations and volunteers that have signed up, we’ll place them(the Assyrian Christians) where they won’t disturb Slovak so-ciety in any way and where people will be willing to ac-cept them,” added Netik. A Chaldean Catholic priest, Douglas Al-Bazi, who accompanied the group, thanked Slovakia for helping them to escape from the terror ISIS “I thank the people of Slovakia who have opened their arms to persecuted Christians in need of a safe haven and shelter. We appreci-ate your security and we assure you that our people are peaceful and will gladly become part of your society,” said Father Al-Bazi, who will return to Iraq in a few days. Peter Benkus, a Roman Catholic priest from the Ni-tra Diocese and the Serenity and Goodness Civil Associa-tion chairman, got to know the situation faced by the refu-gees in Iraq personally. “These people aren’t that different from us when it comes to our values. And if so, then it’s because they take these values far more seriously than we do. In relation to many of our own people, we can see that we often don’t live up to the values that we proudly sign up to,” said Father Benkus.

University Science Parkopens in Bratislava A new university science park for medicine was ceremonially opened at the Slovak Academy of Sciences (SAV) in Slovakia’s capital city of Bratislava on Decem-ber 15.

The scientists working in the new center in the Bratisla-va area of Patronka are set to conduct research into heart dis-ease, diabetes, obesity, autoimmune diseases and cancer. The facility is the largest of its kind in Slovakia. “This kind of center makes sense not only for science, but also for the health of people in Slovakia,” SAV head Pavol Sajgalik said. The research in the facility, dubbed BioMedPark by scientists, will employ advanced therapies, such as stem cell use, and the development of state-of-the-art diagnostic procedures. Modern laboratories, areas for technology and knowl-edge transfer as well as offi ces for the researchers and the management will all be in the center. Covering an area of 193,000 square feet, the new facility will bring together re-search and innovation and the business sphere. It will involve several of SAV’s institutes, most of them located in the Medi-cal Science Pavilion, which is currently being completed. Up to 500 researchers will be able to work in the new park, which had a price tag of $42 million. Over $34 million of this was covered from European Union funds, the remain-der came from the state budget.

Lajcak discusses commonUS and EU challenges Slovak Foreign and European Affairs Minister Miro-slav Lajcak visited Washington, D.C. on December 17 and participated in negotiations at the US Department of State and delivered an address at the political foundation German Marshall Fund, the ministry’s press department told TASR on December 19. Together with Deputy Secretary of State Tony Blinken, Lajcak discussed the cooperation between Slovakia and the US on bilateral and international levels as well as within NATO structures. They also discussed the migration crisis, energy securi-ty within Europe, developments in Ukraine and the Western Balkans. Lajcak reiterated that the European Union should play a pivotal role in the coordination of reforms in Ukraine. Lajcak also met with Bathsheba Crocker, Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs , to discuss effective functioning of international organizations, mainly the UN, and their role in addressing global challeng-es. Slovakia’s chief of diplomacy also visited the German Marshall fund, whose main aim is to strengthen political and security cooperation between the United States and Europe. The common challenges of Europe and the US and how they should be addressed were up for discussion. Lajcak also got to meet former secretary of state Mad-elaine Albright, with whom he talked about the US engage-ment in the current crisis in Ukraine and Syria, about the migration crisis and the situation in the Western Balkans. Lajcak invited Albright to come to Slovakia for another visit after almost 20 years.

Cabinet approves grant forBratislava to prepare for presidency The Slovak Government at its session of December 16 approved $16 million for the city of Bratislava to make preparations for Slovakia’s presidency of the Council of the European Union in the second half of 2016, TASR learned on the same day. The fi nances will be channeled from state-run legal en-tities such as Tipos, the Slovak Guarantee and Development Bank, the Slovak Electricity Transmission Network, the Slo-

The Tatra Mountains are among the most majestic moun-tain ranges in the world. They are in fact Europe’s second highest range. They form the natural boundary between Slovakia and Poland. About two-thirds of the range are in Slovakia with about one third lying in Poland. According to geologists, the High Tatras are a core range which began to be formed about a million years ago, after dry land had replaced the sea. Liptov folk believe that they are of heav-enly origin. The Tatras are a popular tourist attraction all year round. The town of Tatranska Lomnica, located in the heart of the High Tatras is one of the most popular tourist centers. It is a skiing and hiking resort best known for its cable car to Lomnicky Stit, one of the steepest in Europe and remarkable for its lack of support pylons between the two stations. The Tatranska Lomnica railway station is one endpoint of the Tatra Electric Railway, which con-nects the town to Stary Smokovec, another popular resort in the area. During the current winter season, Tatranska Lomnica is fi lled with tourists from around the world. The skiing facilities are among the best in the world. In a joint effort, Poland and Slovakia were unsuccessful in their bid to host the 2022 Winter Olympics.


JANUARY 19 James L. Mudrak, Carteret,

N.J., a member of Assembly 162,

Clifton, N.J.

John J. Pavlica, Clifton,N.J., a

member of Assembly 162, Clifton,

N.J.

Sister Anna Marie Pavlik, S.C.N., Pittsburgh, Pa. a member of Wreath 22, Pittsburgh, Pa. Geraldine Sabol, Massillon,

Oh., a member of Assembly 127,

Monessen, Pa.

JANUARY 20 Rev. Thomas G. Gallagher, Ph.D., Seaford, N.Y., a member of

Assembly 219, Yonkers, N.Y.

George W. Hizny, Exeter, Pa.,

a member of Assembly 86, Port

Griffi th, Pa.

Richard Shedlock, Wilkes-Barre,

Pa., a member of Assembly 59,

Wilkes-Barre, Pa.

JANUARY 21 Joseph W. Matlon, Springfi eld,

Va., a member of Assembly 34, Min-

neapolis, Minn.

Gail G. Jarnigan, Morristown,

Tenn., a member of Wreath 22,

Pittsburgh, Pa.

JANUARY 22 Fred A. Graham, Wilkes-Barre,

Pa., 2ndVice-President of Group

7, and a member of Assembly 59,

Wilkes-Barre, Pa.

Diane Janis, Orland Park, Ill.,a

member of Assembly 11, Chicago,

Ill.

Vincent T. Solar Jr., West Nyack,

N.Y. a member of Assembly 182,

New York City.

Pauline P. Kubiniec, Des Plaines,

Ill., a member of Assembly 257,

Chicago, Ill.

JANUARY 23 Jennie Irene Matuschak, Mar-

blehead, Mass., a member of Wreath

15, Perryopolis, Pa.

Agnes E. Sulek, Deltona, Fla., a

member of Assembly 162, Clifton,

N.J.

Irene M. Tupy, Chicago, Ill., a

member of Assembly 11, Chicago,

Ill. Happy 103rd birthday!

JANUARY 24 Nancy J. Fedor, Hudson, Pa.,

Financial Secretary of Group 7, and

a member of Assembly 59, Wilkes-

Barre, Pa.

Charles J. Holodak,Yonkers,

N.Y., a member of Assembly 219,

Yonkers, N.Y.

Hon. Vincent Obsitnik, Peachtree

City, Ga.., a member of Assembly

219, Yonkers, N.Y.

Sokol Birthdays

JANUARY 25 Brianna Gordulic,Youngstown,

Oh., a member of Wreath 54,

Youngstown, Oh.

Stephen A. Roman, Catasau-qua, Pa., fi nancial secretary of As-sembly 72, Catasauqua, Pa.

JANUARY 26 Richard B. Janosik, Lake Mills,

Wis., a member of Assembly 127,

Monessen, Pa.

Brian M. Hill, Meriden, Conn., a

member of Assembly 219, Yonkers,

N.Y.

Wendy L. Adams, Pittsburgh,

Pa., a member of Wreath 22, Pitts-

burgh, Pa.

JANUARY 27 Anthony J. Kubasek, Shick-

shinny, Pa., a member of Assembly

136, Nanticoke, Pa.

Alexis Taylor Macurak, Ac-worth, Ga., a member of Wreath 22 in Pittsburgh, Pa.

JANUARY 28 Agnes M. Evanko, Canton, Oh.,

Vice-President of Assembly 180,

Canton, Oh.

JANUARY 29 Brian F. Casey, Dallas, Tx., a

member of Assembly 257, Chicago, Ill.

Kathleen M. Gigliotti, Monon-

gahela, Pa., a member of Assembly

127, Monessen, Pa.

JANUARY 30 Margaret M. Jacobbauski, Van

Nuys, Ca., a member of Assembly

188, Lansford, Pa.

Patricia Latshaw, Reading, Pa.,

a member of Wreath 155, Read-

ing, Pa.

JANUARY 31 Theresa Hanrahan, Katonah,

N.Y., a member of Assembly 219,

Yonkers, N.Y.

FEBRUARY 2 Kathy Graham, Plains, Pa.,

member of Assembly 59, Wilkes-

Barre, Pa.

Michael J. Knies, Jr., Lansford,

Pa., a member of Assembly 188,

Lansford, Pa.

David Mudrak, Woodbridge,

N.J., a member of Assembly 162,

Clifton, N.J.

FEBRUARY 3 Marianne R. Baloga, Wilkes-

Barre, Pa., a member of Assembly

59, Wilkes-Barre, Pa.

Christine Maslar, Reading, Pa.,

a member of Wreath 155, Read-

ing, Pa.

Boniface Mikulka, Parkville,

Md., a member of Assembly 9,

Bridgeport, Conn.


ners: (Boys 8-9), Ethan Kandcer, Gr. 14, Pittsburgh, PA; (Boys 10-12), Mitchell Rakow, Gr. 4, Chicago, IL; (Boys 13-15), Daniel Underation, Gr. 5, Cleveland, OH; Men, Dal-ton Pribula, Gr. 14, Pittsburgh, PA; (Girls 8-9), Rozie Popik, Gr. 19, To-ronto, Canada; (Girls 10-12), Cath-erine Perekiszka, Gr. 14, Pittsburgh, PA; (Girls 13-15), Skylar Manyak, Gr. 3, East Douglas, MA; and Senior Women, Erica Pribilla, Gr. 14, Pitts-burgh. Record setting performances for the 2015 Slet included: Alec Gold-enburg, Group 3, East Douglas, MA; 400 Meter Run, 54.5 seconds; Wom-en, Makenzie Cyr, Gr. 3 East Doug-las, MA, 1500 Meter Run breaking her previous record, 5:12.60; Chelsea Laury, Group 5, Cleveland, OH’ 100 Meter Run, 12.80 seconds, 200 Meter Run, 26.96 seconds, Running Long Jump, 16’9” and Javelin Throw, 92’10.5”. Men’s 400 Meter Relay, Group 5 Cleveland , OH, 47.70 sec-onds and Men/Women Mixed 400 Meter Relay, Group 5, Cleveland, OH 50.50 seconds. Chelsea set a new record for all four of her track & fi eld events and was also part of the record setting 400 Mixed Relay! Group 3, East Douglas, MA., won the John J. Stofko Spirit Award, as voted on by all of the participating groups. The fi nal announcement of the evening was awarding the In-ternational Slet Winner. Group 14, Pittsburgh, PA, captured the Interna-tional Flag with a total of 609 Points The winning team placed fourth in the Team Drilling, second in Track & Field and fi rst in Gymnastics. Group 3, East Douglas, MA., placed second with 579 points, and for the second consecutive Slet was the Track & Field Winner with 346 points and fi rst in Team Drilling and fourth in Gymnastics. Defending Champi-ons Group 5 placed third, second in Gymnastics, third in Track & Field, and fi fth in team Drilling. The 47th International Slet was a great success and all of the partici-pants are looking forward to the 48th International Slet in 2017. All of the Slet Results including over 1650 pic-tures are posted on the Slovak Catho-lic Sokol website. The fi nal sporting event of the year was the 60th International Slo-vak Catholic Sokol Golf Tournament the weekend of August 14-16, at the Mountain Valley Golf Course in Barnsville, PA. The MainStay Suites was the host hotel for the nearly one hundred golfers and guests. Edward D. Moeller, the Supreme Director of Sports and Athletics, ar-rived on Thursday morning to make sure that everything was ready for the annual tournament. The Supreme Assistant Director of Sport and Ath-letics, James C. Matlon and John M. Underation, the Supreme Assistant Physical Director were also assigned to work the annual event. After the practice round on Friday evening the golfers remained at the clubhouse for a delicious buffet dinner . On Saturday and Sunday morning

the clubhouse at the Mountain Val-ley Golf course served a breakfast buffet for the golfers and guests. The golfers received a sleeve of golf balls and a commemorative SCS golf ball marker. A few of the golfers had excel-lent rounds at the Valley Course, a Par 72, 5,529 Yard Course from the white tees. Adam Macurak and Dave Iskra, Sr. both shot a 76, which was the best scratch scores on the Valley Course. Tom Iskra, Jr., shot an 80. Greg Stofko and his brother Chris Stofko both had excellent rounds as Greg shot an 82 and Chris shot an 84 on Saturday. On Saturday afternoon our Su-preme Chaplin Reverend Andrew S. Hvozdovic celebrated Mass outdoors for all participants and guests. Father Andrew is the Pastor at Epiphany Parish in Sayre, Pa., and made the two and half hour drive to celebrate Holy Mass to satisfy the Sunday obligation for all of the golf-ers and guests at the at our annual sporting event. The outdoor venue was a big hit for the golf banquet enabling every-one to enjoy the pleasant mountain air and scenic views from the club-house. Following the banquet the Supreme Director of Sports and Ath-letics, Edward D. Moeller extended a warm welcome to all of the golfers and guests and introduced the guest speaker of the evening, Supreme Secretary Steven M. Pogorelec, FIC. Brother Pogorelec thanked all of the fellow golfers for attending the 2015 Golf Tournament to enjoy the fraternalism and camaraderie that is always present at the fi nal annual sporting event of the year. Brother Pogorelec announced the Frank S. Petruff Memorial Sports Award win-ner for 2015, Robert S. Harak from Reading, Pennsylvania. Brother Bob Harak has participated in the annual SCS Golf Tournament for decades and continues to promote our frater-nal society at the group and national levels. Past recipients of this award were in attendance including Joseph L Genet, Thomas P. Muldoon, Jr., Loretta G. Swift, Karol Talafous, and Peter S. Underation. On Sunday morning all of the golfers moved to The Mountain

Course is a Par 72, 5,635 Yard Course nearly 100 yards longer than the Valley Course. Dave Iskra, Sr., also had the best scratch score on the Mountain Course with a 71. Dave’s brother, Tom Iskra, Jr., shot a 78, fol-lowed by Jim Macurak who shot an 82 and Linda Frank from the Wom-en’s Flight shot a 99. Dave Iskra, Sr., from Wilkes-Barre, Pa., won the A/B Flight with a net score of 133. Tony Rasimas, another veteran golfer also from nearby Wilkes-Barre, Pa, had a net score of 141 that was good for 2nd Place. Zach Oravetz and Tom Iskra Jr. fi nished in a 3rd Place tie with 36 hole total of 146. In the C Flight, Corey Shedlock fi nished in 1st Place with a net score of 122. Carson Cunningham fi nished in second place with a 125 and Rob-ert Shedlock fi nished in third place with a 140. In the Senior Division Frank Wakmunsiki fi nished in 1st Place with a 122, Don Koval placed second with a net score of 137 and Frank Pompiano place third with a net score of 138. Ryan Burfi eld fi nished in fi rst place in the Callaway Division with a net score of 146. Dave Iskra, Jr., fi nished in a second place tie with Joe Karaffa as both shot a 150. In the Women’s Division, Stepha-nie Skorupka fi nished in 1st Place with a net score of 150. Linda Frank fi nished in 2nd Place with a net score of 152 and Carolyn Macko fi nished in 3rd Place with a 153. This was the last Fraternal Sport-ing Event for Supreme Director of Sports and Athletics for Edward D. Moeller. It was a pleasure to work with Ed and I would like to person-ally thank him for all of the hard work and dedication in the past eight years for the Slovak Catholic Sokol. Congratulations to all of our members who participated in one of more Local, Group or International activities sponsored by the Slovak Catholic Sokol in 2015. Scheduled activities in 2016: Basketball/Volley-ball Tournament in April, Bowling Tournament in May, Softball Tour-nament in June, Clinic in July and Golf Tournament in August.

Zdar Boh!

A Recap of our 2015 Slovak Catholic Sokol International Sporting Events

For additional information call Jim or Kay Bench. They must be doing something right as people are returning for their 5th and 6th time. The tour makes changes yearly. Kay and Jim are seasoned travelers and have a luncheon several weeks before the tour leaves along with Paul Hudak to answer questions. They tell you what type of clothing to take, how to pack, weather con-

ditions, money exchange, where and how to carry your money, medications etc. Jim Bench cell phone 724-858-5843 e-mail [email protected] Kay Bench cell phone 724-771-7900 e-mail [email protected] Travel arrangements are made through Adventure International Travel Call Paul Hudak at 216-228-7171 or 800-542-2487 or Fax 216-228-7174. E-Mail [email protected]


Visit Slovakia ----“The Old Country”

Pre-Lenten Slovak celebrationin Milwaukee on February 6 Continuing in the time-honored Slovak pre-lenten tradition, Assembly 20 of the Slovak League of America in Milwaukee, Wis. will host a celebration in the tradition of “Ostatne Fasiangy” on Sat-urday, February 6. The festivities will be held at the WG Banquet Hall(the former Knights of Columbus Hall) located at 3200 South 103rd Street in Greenfi eld, Wis. beginning at 6 p.m. Admission is $5.00. An array of traditional Slovak culinary specialities, along with Slovak baked goods will be available throughout the evening. Music for dancing and listening pleasure will be provided by a live band. A cultural program beginning at 7:30 p.m. will feature the spirited artistry of the Tatra Slovak Dancers. The ensemble will per-form an array of dances and song from the various regions of Slova-kia. An enjoyable evening is assured. Members of Wreath 93 are cordially invited to enjoy the fes-tivities as we celebrate before the solemn season of Lent. For more information, contact our Sokolka, Betty Valent at 414-425-6137 or Ellen Tavela at 262-893-7483.


For students currently attending a Catholic High School

Slovak Catholic Sokol Abbot Jerome M. Koval, O.S.B. Memorial

High School Grant As a fraternal benefi t, the Slovak Catholic Sokol is pleased to offer $500.00 grants to one young Sokol or Sokolka in each of our organi-zation's nineteen Groups. These 19 Grants are available to any qualifi ed Sokol member currently attending a Catholic High School.

Eligibility

A. Applicant must be a member of the Slovak Catholic Sokol in good standing, holding a permanent Life Insurance Certifi cate in the amount of not less than $3,000, and has been a member for at least fi ve year.

B. One parent must be a S.C.S. member.

C. The principal of the Catholic High School must verify the enrollment of the applicant.

Application

ALONG WITH THE APPLICATION you must submit a typed or written essay DOUBLE SPACED in 100 to 200 words on the following topic:

“WHAT DOES THE SLOVAK CATHOLIC SOKOL MEAN TO ME?” This essay must be submitted along with the application. This application must be received on or before, March 31, 2016 with a clear, small (2"x3" wallet size) head and shoulders photograph.

Application is also available on the Internet @ www.slovakcatholicsokol.org

Disqualifi cation An applicant who neglects to submit or com-plete any part of these requirements before the established deadline will automatically be disqualifi ed.

Acknowledgment An acknowledgment of the Grant should be made in writing by the recipient as soon as pos-sible, if you are awarded a Grant.

Return of Grant If for any reason the Grant is not used by the recipient, the entire (or portion of) grant not utilized must be returned.

✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄

(Detach here)

SLOVAK CATHOLIC SOKOL ABBOT JEROME M. KOVAL, O.S.B. MEMORIALHIGH SCHOOL GRANT APPLICATION

Group #_______________ Assembly/Wreath #_______________

Name____________________________________________________________________

Address___________________________________________________________________

City________________________ State________________ Zip Code________________

Date of Birth_________________________________________ Current Age __________

Home Phone (_____)________________ High School Phone (_____)________________ area code area code

S.C.S. Insurance Certifi cate #______________ Face Amount_____________________ S.C.S. Insurance Certifi cate #______________ Face Amount_____________________

S.C.S. Insurance Certifi cate #______________ Face Amount_____________________

Father's name_____________________________________ Are you a member? ______

Mother's name_____________________________________ Are you a member? ______

Parent’s S.C.S. Insurance Certifi cate #_____________________ Face Amount___________

Parent’s S.C.S. Insurance Certifi cate #_____________________ Face Amount___________

Are you a previous Slovak Catholic Sokol Scholarship Recipient? _________ If yes, please (yes/no)

indicate Grade School or High School. What year?_________

High School verifi cation (to be completed by High School Principal)

I,______________________________ Principal of________________________________ (Principal's signature) (Name of School)

Catholic High School, verify that__________________________________ is a student at (Name of student)

the above school and will be attending ______ ___ Grade in the 2016-2017 school year.

Are you currently participating in Slovak Catholic Sokol Activities? Yes_____ No_____

Deadline for receipt of this application is March 31, 2016. Return completed application to:

Slovak Catholic Sokol High School Grant205 Madison St., P.O. Box 899, Passaic, NJ 07055


News and Views from Slovakia...

vak Consolidation Agency, the Slovak Eximbank, the Slovak Post Offi ce, Transpetrol and gas utility Slovensky plynarensky priemysel. A total of $15 million will be used for projects that come under the jurisdiction of the Bratislava City Offi ce and $1 million for projects under the jurisdiction of Bratislava’s Old Town borough. The amount will be invested in reconstructing the infrastructure and engineering buildings, revitalizing public spaces, reconstructing cul-tural protected landmarks and buildings, projects aimed at cleanliness and greenery as well as marketing, communications and culture.

Unemployment rate in Slovakiastood at 10.77 percent in November The unemployment rate in Slovakia stood at 10.77 percent in Novem-ber, announced Labor, Social Afairs and the Family Center(UPSVaR) di-rector Marian Valentovic at a press conference on December 20. Compared to October, when it stood at 10.98 percent, unemployment fell by 0.21 percentage points. It decreased by 1.48 percentage points, year-on-year. The number of jobseekers available for work reached 290,512 in No-vember. “Month-on-month, the number went down by 5,758 compared to October. It went down by 40,005 year-on-year, which is 12.10 percent lower,” said Valentovic. The unemployment rate calculated from the total number of jobseek-ers reached 12.50 percent in November, down by 0.26 p.p., month-on-month and by 1.36 p.p. year-on year. The total number of jobseekers reached 337,031 in November, down by 2.08 percent, month-on-month. “It fell by 36,987 year-on-year, which is 9.89 percent,” said Valentovic. At the end of November there were 35,468 job vacancies at job cen-ters, a month-on-month increase of 2,750. “The highest number of them were in the Bratislava region, the lowest in the Kosice region,” said Va-lentovic.

Lajcak: Slovak stance on quotaswon’t harm its position in presidency Being thumbs down on mandatory quotas on the resettlement of refu-gees won’t affect Slovakia’s upcoming presidency of the Council of the European Union, July 1 - December 31, 2016, Foreign and European Af-fairs Minister Miroslav Lajcak told TASR on December 30. Each of the 28 countries belonging to the EU serve a six-month presidency of the Council of the European Union. “We’ve been building our positions for years. We are perceived as strongly pro-European... at the absolute core of European integration,” said Lajcak. Lajcak considers the discussion on migration as a misunderstanding, as not only Slovakia but the other countries of the Visegrad Four(Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland) also have critical opinions on this issue along with some other EU countries. He said that the Slovak stance was considered and perceived very simplistically by some, and in a way that it made it look like Slovakia is against European solidarity. Lajcak said he tried to explain to them that Slovakia considers the migration crisis as a Europe-wide problem, which needs to be addressed at that level, and that Slovakia wants to be a part of the solution. Lajcak pointed out that the arrival of migrants in an EU country isn’t the end of a story but the beginning of their integration. He said that nobody is interested in creating a parallel society, in which people have different values and live separated from the domestic population and speak a differ-ent language. He rejected criticism of Slovakia on the grounds of its willingness to accept only Christian refugees. “We have never said we won’t accept Mus-lims. Our history and asylum practice show that we have never done selec-tion on the basis of ethnicity or religion. It was only said that Christians have a better chance of integrating in our society,” said Lajcak.

Peter Sagan awardedGolden Pedal for 2015 Slovak Road cycling racer Peter Sagan has triumphed again in a survey carried out by Zlaty Pedal(Golden Pedal) for its 36th annual awards in 2015, with the results ceremonially announced at a gala at the Tower Stage theatre in Bratislava on the evening of December 28, 2015. Sagan, 25, who races for World Tour team Tinkoff-Saxo, won the poll for the sixth time. The runner-up was Erik Baska(AWT-Greenway, the Tin-koff-Saxo team as of next season), while third was mountain bike trial rider Tatiana Janickova of STC Puchov. In the past season, Sagan became world champion at the UCI Road World Championships, won the green jersey in the Tour de France for the fourth time, won a stage of the Vuelta a Espana(Tour of Spain) and recorded two stage wins at the Tour de Suiss(Tour of Switzerland). “I value this award very much, but I shouldn’t be standing alone on the stage. There are many people who were behind my results. I want to thank my family, who brought me to cycling, also the entire national team,




Lodge Jottings For students entering a Catholic Grade School (Grades 2-8)

Slovak Catholic Sokol Catholic Grade School Grants

Deadline for receipt of this application is March 31, 2016.Return completed application to:

Slovak Catholic SokolGrade School Grant

205 Madison St.,P.O. Box 899Passaic, NJ 07055

✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄✄

(Detach here)

SLOVAK CATHOLIC SOKOL CATHOLIC GRADE SCHOOL GRANT APPLICATION

Group #_______________ Assembly/Wreath #_______________

Name ___________________________________________________________________

Address _________________________________________________________________

City________________________ State________________ Zip Code ______________

Date of Birth_________________________________________ Current Age __________

Home Phone (_____)________________ School Phone (_____) ________________ area code area code

S.C.S. Insurance Certifi cate #____________ Face Amount_____________________ S.C.S. Insurance Certifi cate #____________ Face Amount_____________________ S.C.S. Insurance Certifi cate #____________ Face Amount_____________________ Father's name_____________________________________ Are you a member?______

Mother's name_____________________________________ Are you a member?______

Parent’s S.C.S. Insurance Certifi cate # ______________________Face Amount________

Parent’s S.C.S. Insurance Certifi cate # ______________________Face Amount________

Are you a previous Slovak Catholic Sokol Scholarship Recipient? ___________________ (yes/no)

If yes, what Year?____________

School verifi cation (to be completed by Grade School Principal)

I,______________________________ Principal of_______________________________ (Principal's signature) (Name of School)

Catholic Grade School, verify that_________________________________ is a student at (Name of student)

the above school and will be entering _________ Grade in the 2016-2017 school year.

Are you currently participating in Slovak Catholic Sokol Activities? Yes_____ No____

As a fraternal benefi t, the Slovak Catholic Sokol is pleased to offer $250.00 Grants to our young Sokols and Sokolky in each of our organization's nineteen Groups. Two grants each per Group are available to any qualifi ed Sokol member entering a Catholic Grade School (Grades 2 through 8).

Eligibility

A. Applicant must be a member of the Slovak Catholic Sokol in good standing, holding a permanent Life Insurance Certifi cate in the amount of not less than $3,000, and has been a member for at least fi ve years.

B. One parent must be a S.C.S. member.

C. The principal of the Catholic Grade School must verify the enrollment of the applicant.

Application This application must be received on or before, March 31, 2016 with a clear, small (2"x3" wallet size) head and shoulders photograph. Application is also available on the Internet @

www.slovakcatholicsokol.org

Disqualifi cation An applicant who neglects to submit or com-plete any part of these requirements before the established deadline will automatically be disqualifi ed.

Acknowledgment An acknowledgment of the Grant should be made in writing by the recipient as soon as pos-sible, if you are awarded a Grant.

Return of Grant If for any reason the Grant is not used by the recipient, the entire (or portion of) grant not utilized must be returned.

the members of Assembly 36 who passed away in 2015. The minutes of the 2014 annual meeting were re-corded and accepted. Under old business, it was the de-cision of the members in attendance that the Assembly 36 meeting be held in conjunction with the annual meeting of Group 16. While they are separate entities, it is diffi cult to at-tract members for both meetings. A majority of the Sokol activities that take place are usually joint efforts of Group 16 and Assembly 36. On a motion by John Papcun, seconded by LaVerne Eland, it was agreed that one meeting be held for the two enti-ties. In continuing our fraternal out-reach, on a motion by LaVerne Eland, seconded by John Papcun, the following donations for 2015 were approved: $200 to the Building Fund of SS. Cyril and Methodius Parish in Sterling Heights, Mich. and $100 to the Goodfellows Fund of Detroit. This fund provides Christmas gifts for needy children in the Detroit area. A basic budget was approved in which 2016 donations should to-tal $400 including a $200 donation to the annual Slovak festival of SS. Cyril and Methodius Parish and $1200 for members attending Sokol events. Election of offi cers were held. The individuals elected will serve for a four-year period following the national convention held this past August. The following were elected to serve as offi cers: Rev. Benjamin Kosnac, chaplain; Mark Papcun, president John Papcun, vice presi-dent; Stephen Papcun, fi nancial secretary-treasurer; LaVerne Eland, recording secretary; and Michel Ro-manchik and Marcella Kovalchik, auditors. Before the meeting ad-journment, Brother John Papcun an-nounced that a new member, Brian Papcun was enrolled as a new mem-ber of Assembly 36. With no further business, the meeting was adjourned on a motion by Mark Papcun, sec-onded by Andrea Ames Papcun. The meeting concluded at 7:45 p.m. Re-spectfully submitted, Zdar Boh! Andrea Ames Papcun acting recording secretary

NEW YORK, NYAssembly 182

The annual meeting of our lodge is scheduled for Sunday, March 6 at St. John Nepomucene, located at the corner of East 66th Street and First

Avenue. This year’s annual meeting has been scheduled earlier due to the early date of Easter. As has been our long-standing fraternal tradition we will also host the traditional celebra-tion honoring our Assembly’s patron, St. Joseph. Our program begins with attendance at the 10:30 a.m. Slovak Mass which will be celebrated for the living and deceased members of our Assembly. Following the liturgy, we will gather in the parish social hall for our meeting and luncheon program. All members are cordially invited to attend. In 2015, we enjoyed an active fra-ternal and social year. Our lodge was represented at the 32nd national con-vention of our organization in Pitts-burgh and our members have partici-pated in many local Slovak, religious and cultural activities. We thank all who had a hand in the success of both our St. Nicholas Day celebra-tion as well as the Vilija Dinner held in our parish. Our offi cers and mem-bers were active at both events. This year marks the 93rd anniver-sary of the founding of our Assem-bly. It was in the spring of 1923 that a group of young Slovak men gathered at St. John Nepomucene Parish to establish a new lodge of the Slovak Catholic Sokol. They selected St. Jo-seph as patron of the lodge and over the years, our members have enjoyed an integral part of the fraternal, reli-gious, and cultural activities of the New York area Slovak community. We have much to be proud of. Father Richard D. Baker will be present at this year’s St. Joseph’s Day celebration. It will be his fi rst since becoming our pastor. Father Baker himself is an active Sokol. He serves as the chaplain of Group 1, whose patron “Msgr. Stephen Kra-sula served as a beloved pastor of St. John Nepomucene. In 1916, we observe the centennial of Msgr. Kra-sula’s appointment as pastor of St. John Nepomucene. Msgr. Krasula served for 52 years as pastor until his retirement in 1968. He passed away in 1970. Reports of our offi cers will be pre-sented and plans for our upcoming fraternal activities will be discussed. Election of offi cers will also take place. We look forward to seeing a good turnout of our members at his year’s patronal feast day observance. With best wishes for a happy, healthy and prosperous new year, may I re-main Zdar Boh! Anna Korcak Financial Secretary

co-racers, the coach and the cycling union. They also stood behind me. I enjoy every such moment,” said Sagan. Sagan will start the next season in Argentina in the Tour de San Luis(January 18-24. Baska became European champion in under 23 road cycling. Janckova became European champion and was runner-up at the World Championships, topped the UCI rankings and was overall winner of the respective world cup. In all, Slovak cyclists won seven medals from world champion-ships, four from European championships and topped two UCI World Cup rankings. The prizes have been awarded annually by the Slovak Cycling Federation(SZC) since 1980.

News and Views from Slovakia...(Continued from page 14)


The annual meeting of Group 17, under the patronage of the Rev. Francis Skutil, was held on Sunday, November 15 in Youngstown, Oh. The program opened with the offi -cers and delegates attending the 11 a.m. Mass at Our Lady of Sorrows Parish - St. Matthias worship site at 11 a.m. The liturgy was celebrated for the living and deceased mem-bers of Group 17 by the pastor, the Rev. Martin Celuch. The offertory gifts were presented during the lit-urgy by Sister Loretta Smith and Sister Edie Babik. Following the liturgy, the offi cers and delegates met at Bruno’s Res-taurant. Group 17 President James G. Jerek called the meeting to or-der at 12:30 p.m. He welcomed the delegates and called on Sister Edie Babik to them in the Grace before meals. He then called on Brother Glen Kramer to lead the assem-blage in the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. Brother Jerek called on Sister Carol Gonda for the roll call of offi cers and delegates. Excused were offi cers Sister Sue Babik and Brother Ken Hlebovy who were absent due to work commitments. The president then asked for the ac-ceptance of the minutes of the 2014 annual meeting held on October 19, 2014, which had been published in the Slovak Catholic Falcon. On a motion by Sister Loretta Smith, seconded by Brother Tom Shirilla, the minutes were accepted as print-ed. At this point, on a motion by Sister Judy Babik, seconded by Sister Mary Olexa, the meeting broke for a brunch. After enjoy-ing a delicious brunch, the meet-ing resumed at 1:30 p.m. at which time Brother Jerek called for the activity reports of the offi cers. Brother Jerek vacated the chair and called on the Vice President, Brother Glen Kramer to preside. Brother Kramer then called on Brother Jerek to present his report. The president indicated that he ful-fi lled all his duties as Group Presi-dent as per our S.C.S. bylaws. He reported that he attended the annual children’s Christmas party as well as the pre-convention meeting for all delegates. He indicated that he worked with the Babik family to select the right shirts for our 32nd convention. Brother Jerek attended the convention and was elected as the S.C.S. Board as Chairperson of Supreme Auditors. He also con-gratulated our own Sister Nancy Kropolinsky on her reelection as a Member of the Supreme Physical Fitness Board. He indicated that he attended the Group 17 Golf Outing and had a great time and thanked all who had a part in its success, golf-ers and non-golfers alike. Brother Jerek’s report was ac-cepted. He called on the Vice Presi-dent, Brother Glen Kramer for his report. Brother Kramer indicated that the past year left little time for outside activities. He fulfi lled all his duties as per our bylaws and as-sisted the president whenever nec-essary. He also attended and helped

out at the Group 17 Golf Outing. The president then called on the Secretary, Sister Carol Gonda to present her report. Sister Carol reported that on October 21, 2014, she mailed the minutes of the 2014 annual meeting along with a list of offi cers to Sokol headquarters and the Slovak Catholic Falcon. She represented Wreath 54 at the annu-al Vilija at the Father Snock Center. She was a delegate to the 32nd na-tional convention where she served on the balloting committee. She attended the Group 17 Golf Out-ing as one of the non-golfers. She sent notices of 2015 Group 17 an-nual meeting to the Slovak Catho-lic Falcon, local parishes as well as Assemblies and Wreaths belonging to group 17. On a motion by Sister Virginia Bartos, seconded by Sister Patty Gordulic, the report of the secretary was accepted. President Jerek then called on the Treasurer, Brother Tom Shirilla for his report. Brother Shirilla in-dicated that he attended the Vilija as well as the children’s Christmas party at Camelot Lanes. He at-tended the pre-convention meeting and was a delegate to the national convention where he served as a sergeant at-arms. He also attended the golf outing, not as a golfer but at a chef. On a motion by Sister Elaine Kana, seconded by Brother Ronnie Trimble, the activities report of the treasurer was accepted. The auditors then presented their report. Sister Edie Babik presented the report. She indicated that the auditors met on November 2nd at her house and found all books to be in order, however they had to wait until they audited the checkbook which Brother Shirilla forgot to leave. Brother Shirilla brought the checkbook before the meeting and the auditors checked it and found everything to be in order. On a mo-tion by Sister Patty Gordulic, sec-onded by Sister Nancy Kropolin-sky, the report of the auditors was accepted. The president then called on the Sports Director, Brother Ronnie Trible to present his report. Brother Trimble indicated that he attended all activities hosted by Group 17. He indicated that he would like to recognize the following Group 17 members who participated in the international sporting events hosted by our organization. Participating at the 47th International Slet were the following: Stephen Franke, Steve Bartos, and Candace Krykovich. Participating in the international golf tournament were Linda Frank, who took 2nd place honors in the Women’s Flight; Loretta Smith who took 5th place honors in the Women’s Flight; and Judy Babik and Mary Starr who participated. On a motion by Sister Anne Ad-ams, seconded by Steve Bartos, the report of the Sports Director was accepted as presented. The Physical Fitness Board then presented their report. Sister Edie Babik was the fi rst to make her re-port. Sister Edie reported that she organized and attended the Group

Minutes of the Annual Meeting of Group 17, “Rev. Francis Skutil”

17 annual children’s Christmas party and also attended the an-nual Vilija dinner at the Father Smock Center. She also indicated that at the Slet, she judged the par-ticipants in the Junior and Senior Drilling competition and also at-tended the closing Slet exhibition. She also volunteered at the annual Youngstown Slovak Fest at Our Lady of Sorrows Parish. She also participated in the annual Group 17 Golf Outing. On a motion by Sister Loretta Smith, seconded by Sister Marlene Shipley, the report was ac-cepted. Member of the Physical Fitness Board, Sister Judy Babik then pre-sented her report. Sister Judy re-ported that she created the t-shirt design worn by the Group 17 par-ticipants at the international Slet and national convention. She also served as a judge of junior and se-nior drilling at the Slet and attended the closing exhibition. She attended the pre-convention meeting of del-egates and attended the national convention where she served as sergeant-at-arms. She enjoyed her participation at the international golf tournament. She also helped organize the 4th annual Group 17 Golf Outing and also participated in the competition. On a motion by Brother Joe Adams, seconded by Sister Elaine Kana, Sister Judy’s report was accepted. Sister Virginia Bartos then pre-sented her report a as a member of the Physical Fitness Board. She indicated that she assisted at and attended the children’s Christmas party and also attended the closing exhibition of the 47th International Slet. She as a fi rst-time delegate at the 32nd national convention in Pittsburgh which she very much enjoyed. The highlight of the convention was attending Mass at Saint Paul Cathedral which she indicated was absolutely beautiful and breathtaking. On a motion by Sister Anne Adams, seconded by Sister Marlene Shipley, the report was accepted. Due to the absence of Physical Fitness Board member, Sister Su-san Babik, the report was presented by Sister Judy Babik. Sister Susan indicated that she attended the na-tional convention and also attended the Group 17 Golf Outing. On a motion by Brother Joe Adams, sec-onded by Sister Elaine Kana, the report was accepted. President Jerek then called on the budget committee to make its presentation. Brother Glen Kramer, the spokesman, indicated that the current budget should be main-tained. All were in favor. President Jerek then called for any Old Business. Sister Carol Gonda reported that Brother Tom Shirilla reissued the missing 2nd Quarter Assessment due to the loss. Brother Shirilla indicated that he accidently thew it away with other papers. Sister Edie Babik reported that the children’s Christmas party was highly successful and plans were currently in progress for this year’s event. Brother Glen Kramer reported that the Group 17 Golf Outing was organized in a com-pressed time frame. It was held on

September 20, 2015 at the Mahon-ing Country Club. He indicated that the number of golfers was down this year for various reasons. He noted however that those who missed the event missed an enjoy-able fraternal afternoon. Golf was again structured so score was un-important. Skill awards were the play of the day. Sister Judy and he planned the dinner. President Jim Jerek assisted Brother Tom Shirilla did the grilling. Brother Kramer thanked all who assisted in organiz-ing the fraternal event was well as all the participants. Brother Jerek then called for any New Business. Sister Edie Babik indicated that $750.00 was need-ed to fund the annual children’s Christmas party which was sched-uled for December 6 at Camelot Bowling Lanes from 1-3:30 p.m. On a motion by Sister Marlene Shipley, seconded by Brother Steve Bartos, the delegates approved the $750.00 request. Brother Kramer indicated there would be a golf out-ing in September 2016. As soon as he confi rms the date, he will share with all. The president then asked if anyone had any comments they wanted to bring up. Member of the Supreme Physical Fitness Board, Sister Nancy Kropolinsky made a motion to compensate the three families who brought the children to the 47th Slet as well as the three judges who drove back and forth each day of the Slet. On a mo-tion by Sister Nancy Kropolinsky, seconded by Sister Patty Gordu-lic, it was recommended that the three families as well as the three judges each receive $75.00. Ac-cepted. Sister Nancy wants to give a big Thank You to Johanna Leso of Philadelphia,Pa. who donated a gift of money to Nancy for a pizza party for the three children who participated in the Slet. Sister Jo-hanna was very impressed with them. Due to the time frame, there were was no pizza party so Sister Nancy said she would honor these

youngsters at this year’s children’s Christmas party. These youngsters include Steven Bartos, Candace Kraykovich and Steven Franke. The president then called for any resolutions. Sister Loretta Smith made a motion to recognize Sister Edie Babik for her 20+ years of dedication in organizing and plan-ning the annual Group 17 chil-dren’s Christmas party. Accepted. Sister Judy Babik also moved that the Group recognize and congratu-late Sister Nancy Babik Kropolin-sky on her reelection as a member of the Supreme Physical Fitness Board as well our Group 17 Presi-dent, Brother James G. Jerek on his election to the position of Chair-person of Supreme Auditors at the national convention. Following the presentation of the resolutions, Sister Nancy and Brother Jim both received a great round of applause. Since this year’s annual meet-ing follows the national conven-tion, the bylaws call for the election of Group offi cers to serve for the coming four-year period, 2016-2019. Brother Jerek then asked the current offi cers if they were will-ing to continue to serve in their respective positions. He then asked for any other nominations, which there were none. Brother Jerek asked three times and after the third time, all the current offi cers were reelected for the coming four-year term. He went on to thank all of the offi cers for all their help and hard work in promoting the high ideals of Sokol fraternalism. President Jerek than asked if anyone had anything further to bring up. With no further business, on a motion by Sister Pat Gordulic, seconded by Brother Glen Kramer, the meeting was adjourned. Broth-er Jerek than called on the Vice President, Brother Glen Kramer to lead the assemblage in the closing prayer. Zdar Boh!

Respectfully submitted, Carol Gonda Secretary, Group 17

CHANGE OF AD DRESS OR REQUESTFOR SLOVAK CATH O LIC FALCON

P.O.BOX 899 • 205 MADISON STREETPASSAIC, N.J. 07055

NEW CHANGE CAN CEL LA TION

Certifi cate No.____________________________________

Name___________________________________________

New Ad dress______________________________________

City________________State_____________ Zip_________

Old Ad dress______________________________________

City________________State_____________Zip_________

(Editor’s note: We have noticed a number of returned copies of our Falcon due to incorrect ad dress es of our members. We ask that when individuals move, that they com plete the form below for a change of address or call the home offi ce. We thank you for your continued co op er a tion)


Keep Your Slovak Catholic Sokol

Home Offi ce Numbers Handy

TOLL FREE NUMBER – 1-800-886-7656

HOME OFFICE – (973) 777-2605 or 777-2606

DIRECTOR OF SALES – 1-855-874-9179 or (412) 381-5431

UNDERWRITING – (973) 777-4704

EDITOR – (973) 777-4010

FAX NUMBER – (973) 779-8245

E-MAIL – [email protected]

WEB SITE –www.slovakcatholicsokol.org

Remember the Memorial Schol ar ship Fund!!! Have you found yourself look ing for a way to memorialize a lost loved one or fellow Group/Wreath/Assembly mem ber? Why not make a do na tion in their honor to the Memorial Schol ar ship fund? Donations made payable to: SCS Memorial Schol ar ship Fund may be sent to:

Dennis J. ZifcakSCS Museum Treasurer

33 Pinecrest Rd.Uxbridge, MA 01569

or Edward D. Moeller

SCS Mu se um Chairperson2821 Waterman Avenue,

Pittsburgh, PA 15227


reservations at tel. 800-464-4642, 216-464-8015, www.fcsla.com and the home offi ce of the Ladies Penn-sylvania Slovak Catholic Union in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., for reservations call Theresa Kluchinski at 888-834-6614 or 570-823-3515 or email [email protected].

SAT.JAN.30 23rd annual Slovak Ball hosted

by the Slovak American Cultural Center of New York at The Royal Manor, Garfi eld, N.J. reception at 7 p.m., dinner and dancing to follow until 1 a.m.; $130 per person, for reservations call Zuzana Krcmar tel. 973-357-1209 or email zuza-

Sokol [email protected].

SAT.FEB.6 Traditional pre-lenten celebra-

tion “ostatne fasiangy” hosted by Slovak League of America Assem-bly 20 at the WG Banquet Hall, 3200 South 103rd St., Greenfi eld, Wis. beginning at 6 p.m. with Slo-vak culinary specialities available, cultural program begins at 7:30 p.m., $5.00 per person, for addi-tional information call Betty Valent 414-425-6137 or Ellen Tavela 262-893-7483.

FRI.FEB.12 Assembly 11 annual meeting un-

der the patronage of SS. Cyril and Methodius at the home of the Fi-nancial Secretary, Therese M. Buc, 9024 Del Prado Dr., Palos Hills, Ill. beginning at 1 p.m.

SAT.FEB13 Group 1 offi cers meeting at Slo-

vak Catholic Sokol headquarters, 205 Madison St., Passaic, N.J. be-ginning at 12 noon.

SAT.MARCH 5 64th annual Florida Slovak Day

at the cultural center of The Slo-vak Garden, 3110 Howell Branch Road, Winter Park, Fla., doors open at 12 noon, luncheon at 1 p.m., cul-tural program at 3 p.m., music for dancing and listening pleasure until 6 p.m., $30.00 per person, for reser-vations call 407-677-6894.

SUN.MARCH 6 Annual meeting of The Slovak

Garden in the cultural center, 3110 Howell Branch Road, Winter Park, Fla. beginning with Mass in Slovak at 9 a.m. meeting to follow. Call 407-677-6894.

Assembly 182 annual meeting and patronal feast day observance of St. Joseph at the Church of St. John Nepomucene, 411 East 66th St., New York City beginning with Mass in Slovak at 10:30 a.m. fol-lowed by the meeting and luncheon in the parish social hall.

MARCH 8,9,10 Annual audit of the S.C.S. Su-

preme Auditors for the year 2015 at the Home Offi ce beginning at 9 a.m.

MARCH 11-12 Quarterly Meeting of the S.C.S.

Board of Directors at the Home Of-fi ce beginning at 8:30 a.m.

MAY 20-22 70th International Bowling Tour-

nament at Airport Bowling Lanes, Buffalo, N.Y.

AUG.19-21 60th International Golf Tourna-

ment at Treasure Lake Resort, Du-Bois, Pa.

The United Slovak Societies of Lorain, Oh. actively promotes a variety of social and cultural activities in the area. Since the 1930s, the United Slovak Societ-ies, representing the local lodges of our Slovak fraternals, includ-ing our own Slovak Catholic So-kol, Wreath 111 has kept the ar-ea’s Slovak community united. In 2015, the group has hosted a vari-ety of activities. One of the 2015 activities was the Children’s Hal-loween Costume Party held at the American Slovak Home on Sun-day, October 25. Children from the local Slovak fraternal lodges enjoyed the annual event. The “spooktacular” event consisted of an afternoon of bowling at the American Slovak Home Bowl-ing Lanes followed by pizza a sweets. The highlight of the af-ternoon was the breaking of the pinata that was abundantly fi lled with toys and candy. The Hallow-een party is an annual affair and enjoyed by the youngsters. An

United Slovak Societies President Len Zilko and Secretary Michele Mager are shown with some of the children.

United Slovak Societies of Lorain, Oh. promote a variety of activities

Breaking the pinata at the Halloween Costume Party.

enjoyable time was had by all. Additionally, the United Slo-vak Societies hosted its traditional Vilija Slovak Christmas Eve din-ner in December as well as a polka brunch to benefi t the area’s veterans

in the spring. All of these events are opened to the public. To learn more about the events of the United Slo-vak Societies held at the American Slovak Club, visit www.ameri-canslovakclub.com.

For a Happy New Year Take 12 fi ne, full-grown months; see that these are thoroughly free from all old memories of bitterness, rancor, hate and jealousy. Cleanse from them completely every clinging bit of spite; pick off all specks of pettiness. Cut 11 of these months into 30 or 31 equal parts.(February leaps with 29 this year). Do not attempt to make up the whole batch at one time, but prepare one day at a time, as follows: * Into each day put equal parts of faith, patience, courage, work, hope, fi delity, liberality, kindness, rest, common sense and meditation. *Add about a teaspoonful of good spirits, a dash of fun, a pinch of folly, a sprinkling of play, and a heaping cupful of good humor. * Pour love into the whole and mix with vim. * Serve with quietness, unselfi shness and cheerfulness.

Congressional District in the House of Representatives which includes the Winter Park area and has ac-tively supported the work of The Slovak Garden over the years. The Slovak Garden offers one bedroom effi ciencies, as well as two bedroom apartments, poolside to individuals age 55 and older. A minimum 12-month lease is re-quired. For information contact The Slovak Garden at the telephone and email listed above. On Sunday, March 6, the annual meeting of The Slovak Garden will be held. Mass will be celebrated in Slovak at 9 a.m. with the meeting and luncheon to follow.

64th Florida Slovak Day(Continued from page 7)

Why Toast? The custom of the toast is over a thousand years old and is cred-ited to the Danes, who originally used it to commemorate their departed loved ones. The actual word, toast, however, is taken from the 17th century practice of dipping a piece of warm bread in wine to improve its fl avor.



Anne Marie Trethway Joseph R. Underation


On Sunday, December 13, 2015, the Doors of Mercy were opened at the Basilica of SS. Cyril and Methodius in Danville, Pa. The Basilica was named a place of pilgrimage for the Diocese of Harrisburg, Pa. for the Jubilee of Mercy Holy Year, which was solemnly inaugurated by Pope Francis at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome on December 8, the feast of the Immaculate Conception

In Danville, Pa.

Holy Year of Mercy Inaugurated at theBasilica of SS. Cyril and Methodius

“Put mercy before judgment, says Pope Francis”

when he opened the Holy Door. This extraordinary Holy Year of Mercy which will be observed De-

cember 2015 to November 2016. The rite of the open-ing of the Holy Door was preceded by a Mass with 70,000 pilgrims in St. Pe-ter’s Square. The Basilica, on the

grounds of Villa Sacred Heart in Danville, is the motherhouse cha-pel for the Sisters of SS. Cyril and

Methodius. The Basilica of SS. Cyril and Methodius was named after the spiritual patrons of the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius: the missionary brothers Cyril and Methodius who are the apostles of the Slavic nations and are co-patrons of Europe. The Basilica is the daily place of prayer for the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius, and is also the site of ecumenical gatherings, pilgrimages, weekend and week-long retreats and days of prayer, not only for the Sisters, but for the general public. During this Jubilee of Mercy Holy Year the Basilica will also house special Ju-bilee events, and welcome pilgrims throughout the year. Dedicated in 1939, the chapel was designated by Pope Saint John Paul II as a minor Basilica in 1989. The designation of a basilica is given to certain churches because of their architectural beauty, histori-cal signifi cance and importance as centers of worship and pilgrimage. The Basilica is visited regularly by many who admire beautiful build-ings, the stained glass windows and the mosaics. However, the Basilica of SS. Cyril and Methodius is pri-marily a place of prayer. Since the dedication of the cha-pel on October 17, 1939, the Ba-silica has been used for prayer by hundreds of thousands of people, and the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius have gathered here for prayer every day and have brought the whole world with them in their prayers. The Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius were founded by the Rev. Matthew Jankola in the Scranton Diocese in 1909 to ini-tially teach the children of Slovak immigrants. Father Jankola was among the pioneer generation of priests who came from Slovakia to minister to the spiritual needs of Slovak immigrants in the United States. In 1908, he was elected as the second Supreme Chaplain of the Slovak Catholic Sokol, a posi-tion he held until his death in 1912. The grave of Father Jankola is lo-cated in the cemetery of Villa Sa-cred Heart. Pilgrims are especially welcome to the Basilica of SS. Cyril and Methodius during the Jubilee of Mercy Holy Year.Events to be held at the Basilica of Saints Cyril and Methodius,

Danville, PA during the Jubilee Year of Mercy

The Basilica is open daily from 9:00 am-5:00 pm for private prayer and pilgrimage. Guided tours of the Basilica are available by calling in advance, 570-275-3581. Evening Prayer and Eucharistic Adoration – Every Sunday evening from 4:00 – 4:30 pm, January 10, 2016 - No-vember 13, 2016 there will be pub-lic celebration of Evening Prayer of the Liturgy of the Hours, coupled with Eucharistic Adoration. February 2, 2016 – Closing of 40

The Doors of Mercy through which pilgrims pass to enter the Basilica of SS. Cyril and Methodius in Danville. Shown left is Sister Michael Ann Orlik, General Superior of the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius.

Father James Lease, pastor of St. Joseph’s Parish in Danville, was cel-ebrant of the liturgy opening the Year of Mercy at the Basilica of SS. Cyril and Methodius on December 12.

Mor than 100 pilgrims attended the liturgy opening the Year of Mercy at the Basilica of SS. Cyril and Methodius.

Hours Devotion, coinciding with the end of the Year of consecrated Life. Services at 4:00 p.m. There will be a retreat specifi cal-ly for those discerning a vocation to Religious Life, May 27-29. There will be a series of Direct-ed 24- Hour Retreats. Feb. 19-20; March 18-19; June 10-11; Septem-ber 9-10; October 28-29. There will be a series of Silent Directed Retreat Weekends. Feb. 19-21; March 18-20; June 10-12; September 9-11; October 28-30. There will be two Taize Prayer Services March 11, 7-8:00 pm; April 15, 7-8:00 pm.

There will be two day-long Retreats. March 5, 10 am-3 pm, “People of the Passion”. April 23, 10 am-3 pm, “Compassionate Caregiving: Dimensions of Reli-gion and Spirituality in Health Care Settings”. The Sacrament of Reconcilia-tion will be available at the Basilica of Saints Cyril and Methodius for individuals or groups upon re-quest. For information on any event, about visiting the Basilica, or to make arrangements for a group pilgrimage, call 570-275-3581. Contact: Sister Barbara Sable, SS.C.M. 570-317-8920.

Sokol captures seat In the November election, our own Sokol of Assembly 9 in Bridge-port, Conn., Joseph Gresko captured the 5th District Councilmanic Seat in Stratford, Conn. Brother Joe serves as the Communication Coordina-tor of the House Democrats Offi ce in the Connecticut General Assembly. Stratford’s newest councilman is a member of Holy Name of Jesus Parish in Stratford. Our congratulations and fraternal best wishes go out to Brother Joe, a dedicated civil servant, on his election. He is a credit to the Slovak com-munity. Zdar Boh! – Eileen S. Wilson, President, Group 2

Following the annual meeting of Group 2, in which delegates contributed a large amount of non-perishable food items as part of their Care & Share project, Group 2 President Eileen S. Wilson took the items to the Sterling House Com-munity Center, Inc. in Stratford, Conn. The food items were pre-sented to Raymond A. O’Donnell, Program/Resource Connection Di-rector of the facility which provides assistance to the needy in the area. The thank you addressed to Group 2 read “Dear Slovak Catho-lic Sokol, A heartfelt “thank you” for the generous donation to the Sterling House Community Center Food Pantry. This act of kindness will enable us to provide emer-gency assistance to many families and individuals. We truly appreci-ate your thoughtfulness. Your sup-port will enable Sterling House to nurture the body, mind and spirit of youth and adults in the heart of Stratford. Again, thank you so much. Sincerely, Louis D. Permo,

Group 2 promotes outreach to theSterling House Community Center

AGSW, executive director, Sterling House C.C.” Our best wishes go out to Group 2 who actively promote a number of outreach projects which beauti-fully mirror the fraternal benefi t system’s commitment to serving those in need.

Group 2 President Eileen S. Wil-son with Raymond A. O’Donnell at the Sterling House Commu-nity Center.

ISSN: 0897-8107

Úradn¥ ™asopisSLOVENSKÉHO KATOLÍCKEHO SOKOLA

Zalo¢en¥ 15. apríla 1911 – Vychádza ka¢dú druhú stredu

Majitel« a vydavatel«:SLOVAK CATHOLIC SOKOL

Daniel F. Tanzone, redaktor Telefónne ™íslo: (973) 777-4010

V£etky ™lánky, príspevky a správy treba posielat« na adresu:Editor, Slovak Catholic Sokol, P.O. Box 899

205 Madison Street, Passaic, New Jersey 07055

SLOVENSKÝ KATOLÍCKY SOKOL, 13. JANUÁRA 2016 PAGE 19

Zaujímavosti o cibuli Na svete existuje viac ako tri-sto druhov cibule. Podľa farby sa delia na cibule s bielou, žltkastou až okrovou dužinou a modro-fi alové. Hoci chuť cibule nezávisí len od odrody, ale aj od podmie-nok pestovania, najostrejšia je cibuľa biela, nasleduje žltá a naj-menej ostrá je cibuľa modrofi -alová. Biela cibuľa má výrazne štip-ľavú chuť a hodí sa najmä na dusenie a pečenie. Žltá cibuľa je najpoužívanejším druhom cibule. Vyznačuje sa ostrou a štipľavou chuťou. Používame ju v surovom stave aj do tepelne up-ravovaných jedál. Červená cibuľa sa používa hlavne do šalátov a studenej kuchyne. Cibuľu pri pečení či vyprá-žaní nesolíme aby nepustila vo-du a prestala byť chrumkavá. Ak chceme pri vyprážaní cibule dosiahnuť jej zlatistohnedú far-bu, pridáme k nej malé množstvo cukru. Na prípravu zemiakové-ho šalátu môžeme nakrájanú cibuľu krátko povariť v malom množstve vody, je stráviteľnejšia a v šaláte chutnejšia.

Ach, tá naša slovenčina!Herečka Jennifer Lawrence pred-viedla mimoriadne zvodný look na premiére v Londýne.

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Fašiangová zábava v Greenfi eld, Wis. 20. zbor Slovenskej Ligy v Milwaukee usporiada Fašiangovú zábavu v sobotu, 6. februára v WG Banquet Hall, 3200 S. 103rd Street v Greenfi eld, Wisconsin. Trvať bude od 6.00 do 11.00 hodiny večer. V kultúrnom programe sa predstaví slovenský folkórny súbor Tatra Slovak Dancers. Vstupné je $5.00 za osobu. Na predaj budú sloven-ské jedlá, zákusky a koláče. Bližšie informácie: Betty Valent, tel. č. 414-425-6137 alebo Ellen Tavela, tel. cč 262-893-7483.

Ručne vyšívané kroje od Detvianky Jany Kucbeľovej, jednej z najúspešnejších dodávateliek krojov pre Slovensnko i zahraničie, má doma módna návrhárka Vivienne Westwoodová, politička Hillary Clintonová či ďalšie osobnosti z celého sveta. Pestro-farebné kroje sú v odborných i verejných kruhoch známe svojím precíznym vypracovaním. Výroba jedného kroja v ich dielni trvá približne týždeň. Vyrábať si ich dávajú folklórne súbory, heli-gonkári, ale aj bežní ľudia či Slováci žijúci v zahraničí. Najnovšie dva z nich v plnej kráse predviedli aj druhá vicemiss Slovenskej republiky Petra Denková, ktorá sa v polovici decembra stala aj najkrajšou ženou Európy, a tiež Miss Slovensko 2015 Lujza Stra-ková, ktorej kroj zožal na Miss World v Číne obrovský úspech.

- Foto: SITA.sk

myšlienky do diskusie o hľadaní riešenia pre blízkovýchodný región, prispieť k zastaveniu ší/riaceho sa extrémizmu a radi-kalizmu a navrhnúť účinnejšie riešenia, pokiaľ ide o prístup k Rusku. Nosnou časťou GLOBSEC-u 2016 bude trojdňové dis-kusné fórum, organizátori však prinesú aj podujatie ako GLOBSEC CITY TALKS, ktoré aj tento rok umožní stretnutie odbornej a laickej komunity s najzaujímavejšími rečníkmi GLOBSEC-u v Bratislave, Ban-skej Bystrici a Košiciach.

V Bratislave bude konferencia Globsec(Pokračovanie zo str. 20)

Fašiangy - najveselšie zvyky počas roka majú pôvod v predkresťanskom období a pa-tria k zvykom spojeným s prelo-mom zimy a jari. Predchádzajú veľkonočnému pôstnemu ob-dobiu (začínajú sa na Troch kráľov a končia sa Popolcovou stredou). V minulosti ako aj dnes sú obdobím veselosti a ho-dovania, vyvrcholením ktorého je fašiangová zábava s maskami vyjadrujúcimi „svet naruby“, v ktorom sa stierali spoločenské bariéry.

Fašiangy patria k zvykom spojeným s prelomom zimy a jari

Za najarchaickejšie fašiangové masky sa považujú masky, ktoré znázorňovali rôzne zvieratá. Najčastejšia bola maska turoňa (tura alebo býčieho človeka), kozy, medveďa a koňa. Fašiangy vrcholia posledný týždeň pred veľkonočným pôs-tom, počas ktorého chodia maskované družiny so spevom po dedine a vystrájajú všelijaké kúsky. Symbolom konca fašian-gov je pochovávanie basy, pri ktorom sa paroduje skutočný pohreb.

Do tradičného fašiangového jedálnika patria aj šišky, ktorých príprava je pomerne jedno-duchá.

POTREBNÉ PRÍSADY 3 dl mlieka, štipka soli, 3 lyžice rumu, 100 g masla, 8 žĺtkov, 3 kopcovité lyžice preo-siateho práškového cukru, 400 g polohrubej múky, 200 g hladkej múky, 1 sáčok droždia, vanilkový cukor, práškový cu-kor, olej na vyprážanie a lekvár na plnenie

POSTUP PRÍPRAVY Zmiešame droždie, múku, soľ a cukor. Pridáme roztopené maslo a mlieko, rum, 8 žĺtkov a vypracujte cesto. Cesto ro-zdelime na dve časti. Každú vyvaľkajte na hrúbku asi 1 cen-timeter. Okrúhlou formičkou

vykrajujte šišky, a ukladajte na čistú utierku. Nechajte postáť asi pol hodiny. Keď sa nám šišky asi po pol hodinke nadvi-hnú, urobíme prstami jamku. Pečieme v horúcom oleji, najprv “deravou” stranou dolu, potom obrátime. Hotové šišky obalíme vo vanilkovo-práškovom cukre a do jamky nakopíme lekvár podľa chuti.

Fašiangové šišky

Vlani požiadalo na Sloven-sku o azyl 169 ľudí, dostalo ho osem. Ako ďalej vyplýva zo štatistiky ministerstva vnútra, 120 žiadateľov azyl nedostalo. Doplnkovú ochranu, ktorá sa udeľuje na základe iných dôvodov ako azyl, dostalo v roku 2015 u nás 41 osôb, 21 ju Slovensko neposkytlo. Minis-terstvo vnútra vlani zastavilo v prípade žiadateľov o azyl 128 konaní. Slovenské občianstvo dostali v minulom roku dvaja ľudia. Od roku 1993 požiadalo na Slovensku o azyl 58 160 ľudí, za celý čas ho dostalo 653 ľudí. Doplnkovú ochranu dostalo 672 ľudí, Slovensko zastavilo ko-nanie v prípade žiadateľov o azyl v 49 418 prípadoch. Občianstvo od roku 1993 dostalo 235 ľudí.

Vlani požiadalo na Slovensku o azyl 169 ľudí Doplnková ochrana sa posky-tuje, keď človeku hrozí v jeho domovskej krajine trest smrti, ktorý Slovensko a únia ako členovia Rady Európy neuznáva-jú, alebo keď mu hrozí mučenie, kruté neľudské alebo ponižujúce zaobchádzanie a tretia ochrana je ochrana, ktorá je poskytnutá, ak na území domovského štátu zúri vojnový konfl ikt, a človek je vojnovým konfl iktom ohrozený. Krajiny Európskej únie môžu utečencom udeliť azyl alebo doplnkovú ochranu, pričom pri dôvodoch ich udelenia ex-istujú rozdiely. Ako vysvetlila predsedníčka Ligy za ľudské práva (HRL) Zuzana Števulová, azyl sa poskytuje na základe Ženevského dohovoru, a teda osoba je prenasledovaná a má opodstatnené obavy.

ÚRADNÝ ČASOPIS SLOVENSKÉHO KATOLÍCKEHO SOKOLA - 28 000 ČLENOV - HLAVNÁ ÚRADOVŇA: 205 MADISON STREET, PASSAIC, NJ 07055 – www.slovakcatholicsokol.org

VOLUME CV PASSAIC, N.J., 13. JANUÁRA 2016 ČÍSLO 5060

SLOVAK CATHOLIC FALCON

Za Boha a národ For God and Nation

Slovenský závod Kia Motors v Žiline rozbehol v decembri výro-bu nového modelu Sportage. V tomto roku chce predať 105 000 vozidiel. V minulom roku Kia predala 98 400 vozidiel.

Americká fi rma ICU Medi-cal Slovakia, s.r.o., sa rozhodla ukončiť výrobu lekárskych po-môcok pre vnútrožilovú ap-likáciu vo Vrábľoch. Za rozhod-nutím fi rmy sú ekonomické dôvody. Spoločnosť prepustí od januára do októbra postupne 278 zamestnancov.

Ceny bytov v roku 2015 zdraželi v hlavnom meste sloven-ska o 15 percent. V iných mestách na Slovensku zdraželi byty okolo 5 až 10 percent. Odborníci pred-pokladajú že ceny budú rásť aj v tomto roku.

Podnikateľská aliancia Slo-venska uverejnila štúdiu, podľa ktorej už vyše 300.000 Slovákov pracuje v zahraničí. K nim treba pripočítať 30.000 študentov, ktorí študujú v cudzine. Podľa pries-kumu 70% Slovákov žijúcich v zahraničí sa nechce vrátiť domov.

Odchod mladých ľudí má nepriaznivý vplyv aj na sociálny systém. Európsky štatistický úrad Eurostat vychádza z toho, že počet obyvateľov vo viacerých východoeurópskych krajinách bude dramaticky klesať. Počet obyvateľov Slovenska by sa mal do roku 2080 znížiť o viac ako 25%. V Rakúsku by sa mal počet obyvateľov v rovnakom čase vďaka migrácii zvýšiť zo súčasných 8,4 na 9,6 milióna.

Ako príklad pre obrovské roz-diely v príjmoch medzi Rakús-kom a Slovenskom poslúži zdra-votníctvo. Priemerný nástupný príjem zdravotnej sestry na Slovensku je menej ako 700 eur hrubého mesačne, v Rakúsku je to 1930 eur.

V minulom roku sa na Slo-vensku prvýkrát v jeho histórii vyrobilo viac ako milión auto-mobilov. (Pokračovanie na str. 19)

Investícia desaťročia na Slo-vensku - nový závod Jaguar Land Rover v Nitre prinesie Sloven-sku spolu niekoľko miliárd eur.Britský Jaguar sľubuje, že už pri výstavbe závodu v rokoch 2016 až 2020 celkovo preinvestuje 1,4 miliardy eur, z čoho slovenskí dodávatelia a stavebníci získajú zákazky odhadom asi za 450 miliónov eur. Po rozbehnutí plnej výroby v roku 2019 majú ročné tržby Jaguara dosahovať 5 miliárd eur. Stámilióny eur z tejto sumy by mali každoročne zostať na Slovensku, keďže komponenty na vyrobené autá by sa mali naj-menej z jednej tretiny vyrábať na Slovensku. Vo fabrike má pracovať tak-mer 3-tisíc ľudí a celkovo aj s dodávateľmi a vyvolanými pracovnými pozíciami v iných sektoroch vytvorí investícia takmer 15-tisíc pracovných mi-est. Priemerná mzda vo fabrike má podľa očakávaní Jaguara dosiahnuť 1 225 eur mesačne v hrubom. Samotná výstavba fabriky by mala pomôcť najmä slo-venským stavebným fi rmám a spoločnostiam, ktoré na Slo-vensku produkujú stavebný ma-teriál. Inštitút fi nančnej politiky (IFP) zverejnil aj dovoznú náročnosť vývozu automobilky

Jaguar Land Rover, a teda po-diel zo zahraničia dovezených komponentov do vyrábaných áut. Napriek širokej sieti subdodávateľských fi riem bude podľa odhadov štvrtá auto-mobilka dovážať až 67 percent komponentov pre svoje výrobky. Inak povedané, pridaná hod-nota štvrtej automobilky vrátane subdodávateľov zo Slovenska dosiahne 33 percent. Pri ostat-ných troch automobilkách pô-sobiacich na Slovensku dosahuje dovozná náročnosť exportu 69 percent, a teda ich pridaná hod-nota je o 2 percentá nižšia. Automobilka Jaguar Land Rover plánuje na Slovensku v rokoch 2016 až 2018 zamestnať 1 402 ľudí. V rokoch 2019 až 2020 sa počet zamestnancov zvýši na 2 834. Výrobca sľubuje svo-jim zamestnancom priemernú mesačnú mzdu vo výške 1 225 eur v hrubom. Po roku 2019 by sa mzda mala zvýšiť na takmer 1 300 eur. Je však otázne, či sú v priemerných číslach započítané aj mzdy manažmentu. Na porov-nanie, v bratislavskom Volkswa-gene bola priemerná mesačná hrubá mzda bez manažmentu v roku 2014 vo výške 1 750 eur, v trnavskom PSA Peugeot Citroën približne 1 100 eur a v žilinskej Kii 1 215 eur. V týchto prípa-doch však do priemeru nie sú započítané manažérske mzdy.

Jaguar prinesie Slovensku miliardy Krátke správy zo Slovenska

Bratislavský Starý most a prvá časť električkovej trate do Petržalky sú hotové. Objekty 16. decembra mesto podpísaním protokolov prebralo do svojho vlastníctva. “Dokončili sa všetky práce jedného z najväčších doprav-ných projektov, ktoré Bratislava v posledných rokoch zažila a po 54 rokoch pôjde opäť električka do Petržalky. A to všetko pri dodržaní ceny diela, čo považujeme za malý zázrak, ktorý sa nám podaril,” povedal na zrekonštruovanej Štúrovej ulici primátor Bratislavy Ivo Nes-rovnal. Starý most však naďalej ostá-va pre verejnosť zatvorený. Stav-bu totiž ešte čaká kolaudácia. Tú chce mesto rozdeliť na časti. Naj-prv chcú skolaudovať na moste chodníky a cyklotrasu pre peších a až potom električkovú trať. Projekt za 58,8 milióna eur bez DPH preplatí z 85 per-cent Európska únia, 10 percent prispeje štát a päť percent hradí hlavné mesto. Podmienkou, aby Európska únia projekt preplatila, bolo, že musí byť hotový a vyfak-turovaný do konca roku 2015. Prestavba Starého mosta sa začala 2. decembra 2013, keď začali rozoberať pôvodnú kon-štrukciu mosta. Práce vlani v júni zastavilo hľadanie možnej nevybuchnutej munície v Du-

Dokončili rekonštrukciu Starého mosta v Bratislave

naji, práce opäť obnovili v sep-tembri 2014. Do konca minulého roka postupne zbúrali piliere tri a štyri a začali rekonštruovať pilier číslo päť. Vo februári tohto roka začali vysúvať oceľovú konštrukciu mosta, ktorá spojila brehy Du-naja 22. októbra 2015. Nová konštrukcia Starého mosta bola kompletne dokončená 1. decem-bra 2015. Nový Starý most me-ria 465 metrov a váži približne 10-tisíc ton. Jeho súčasťou je okrem električkovej trate aj chodník pre peších a cyklistov i štyri vyhliad-kové balkóny s lavičkami. Pri výstavbe Starého mosta zbúrali pôvodné piliere číslo tri a štyri, ktoré nahradil jeden pilier číslo 34. V Dunaji sa tak rozšírila plavebná dráha na 140 met-rov, čo umožní popod most preplávať aj lodiam európskych parametrov. Prestavba Starého mosta spo-lu s vybudovaním elektročkovej trate, je súčasťou prvej etapy bu-dovania Nosného dopravného systému v Bratislave. Výstavba nového Starého mo-sta i vybudovanie električkovej trate boli síce náročné, no projekt skončil podľa mesta i zhotoviteľa úspešne. Potvrdil to aj stavebný dozor, ktorý na projekt dohlia-dal.

Foto: pravda.sk

Obnovenie solidarity a sú-držnosti v Európskej únii, stabi-lizácia Blízkeho východu, vzťah západu voči Rusku, čelenie propagande a rastúcemu ex-trémizmu budú hlavné témy tohtoročnej konferencie o bez-pečnosti a zahraničnej politike GLOBSEC 2016. Konferencia sa uskutoční 15. až 17. apríla v Bratislave. Pôjde už o 11. ročník podu-jatia, ktoré sa zaoberá globál-nou bezpečnosťou a spolu-prácou.

V Bratislave bude konferencia o bezpečnosti Globsec

GLOBSEC patrí medzi najprestížnejšie podujatia svoj-ho druhu. Podľa organizátorov bude úloha tohtoročnej kon-ferencie umocnená tým, že sa uskutoční tesne pred summitom NATO vo Varšave. GLOBSEC sa tak stane pô-dou, na ktorej približne tisícka hostí bude diskutovať o témach, ktoré budú dominovať aj summ-itu NATO. Okrem toho je ambíciou GLOBSEC-u 2016 vniesť nové

introducing the members of the supreme assembly who will … · 2016-01-13 · volume cv passaic,...

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