TO OUR READERS

Dear Friends,

We welcome everyone very warmly and encourage you to read the new issue of our Newsletter. This issue is released at the time of two important milestones in our Polonia community.  The recent event has been the ordination of Deacon Christopher Rusin, celebrated with great honor and joy.   The other was the successful conclusion of the Polish Language School’s first academic year.  The School was founded under the auspices of the PCM in September of 2006.  Our students seem to value their teachers’ work highly and… are eager to attend the classes again after their summer vacation!  We hope that our staff will be able to find enough time and energy to continue their work.  We would like to encourage all others interested, to take an active part in promoting the Polish language, culture and tradition.  We welcome any new volunteers who can assist in the teaching of our child and adult students with great appreciation!  

Here is more good news; our efforts aimed at renewing formal registration of the Mission at the IRS, as a non-profit organization, have been successful!  The continuity of the charity status has been retroactively maintained in effect since 1989. 

Our Organization is already 18 years old!  Anyone interested in learning more about its past and present can do so by browsing through “The Chronicle”, a document that is updated and beautifully maintained by Jadzia Miller.  First pages of the PCM history are starting to appear on our website thanks to Bob Schmidt.  They talk about various important and interesting past events, they also reflect the evolution of our Organization over the years.  This growth has been a natural consequence of changing circumstances and actual needs of our Polish community.  The extent of this process can be seen clearly by comparing our present Mission’s structure with its original form defined by the PCM Constitution of 1989.  A number of statements and definitions outlined in the original document have become outdated.  In conclusion, there seems to be a need to adjust the old text for the demands of today.

Therefore, we would like to make a first step and propose updated Statutes of our Organization for your consideration.  Our objective is to design a long-term document, which would be compatible with the current situation and with the needs of most members of our Polish community.   The draft will be sent out shortly to the PCM Members.  After reviewing it please give us your feedback.  We hope that together, with your suggestions included, we will be able to update our current Constitution; taking into account the present status and keeping the door wide open to all who are interested in Polish tradition, culture and language.

Executive Board

 FATHERS DAY

We wish all Dads God’s Blessings, kids love and best of everything on an occasion of Their holiday.

HAPPY SUMMER HOLIDAYS

Congratulations to all students on their successful completion of the school year. We wish you safe summer holidays full of joy and adventure.

UPCOMMING ELECTIONS

The current PCM Board has been elected for a period of two years and their term is going to end in December 2007. An election meeting is scheduled for October 20th to select a new PCM Board. In September, all current PCM members will receive invitation to the election dinner.

MEMBERSHIP DUES FOR 2007

We invite you all to take an active role in the live of our organization by paying the yearly dues, which will ensure taking part in the upcoming elections to the PCM’s Board. PCM membership and newsletter receipt information is provided at the administrative notes section of this newsletter. Just a reminder that the membership dues for year 2007 are payable by June 30. Please send your checks to the PCM Treasurer.

The 2007 membership dues are as follow:

• Family- 2 adults + children   $60

• Family- 1 adult   + children   $30

Anyone who cannot pay membership dues and would like to become a member of our organization is encouraged to contact any of the PCM’s Board members.

ADDRESS AND TELEPHONE #’S CHANGES

For the obvious reasons please inform us of any address or telephone number changes as we very diligently try to assure that you will timely receive all PCM correspondence.

BLESSED SACRAMENT CELEBRATED 95 YEARS AS A PARISH

On Sunday, June 10, 2007 Blessed Sacrament Church has celebrated the 95th anniversary of the founding of its parish. Father Bravata led the procession following the 10:30 a.m. Mass. After Benediction in the church, a reception prepared by the Vietnamese and Mexican parishioners was held in the gym. Present and former parishioners and students returned to honor this special event. Blesses Sacrament Church is located at 2564 Hale Ave. in Memphis.

JUNE PICNIC

We would like to invite everyone to our summer picnic. Mark your calendars for Saturday, June 16th, from 4 pm to 8 pm. As in prior years, we will meet at the park in Germantown, at the Johnson Road Park pavilion. PCM will provide kielbasa for the grill and the soft drinks. Please bring a dish to share with others. Viola Bute is coordinating the menu.

JULY’S PRESENTATION CELEBRATING POLAND

Public library located near the Bert Ferguson Center once in a while offers presentations, seminars or exhibits about different cultures and ethnic groups living in the Memphis metropolitan area. The year long, weekly meetings of the Polish Language School has inspired the library’s management to invite our Polish community to prepare an hour long presentation celebrating Poland. The event is scheduled for July 14th at 11 a.m., the topic will be “Vacations in Poland”. We encourage all interested in taking part in this event to direct their suggestions and offers of help to Halinka Dutkiewicz who is coordinating this event. The library is located at 8457 Trinity Rd. in Cordova.

SUMMER VACATION’S HOLY MASSES