Dozynki

POLISH HARVEST FESTIVAL CELEBRATES SPIRIT OF THANKSGIVING

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Festival to Feature Special Mass, Pierogi Contest, Polish Food, Music, Flea Market

Buffalo, New York – The 32st annual Dożynki Polish Harvest Festival at Corpus Christi Church in Buffalo will begin on Friday August 19th and run through August 21st.  This joyful celebration, which dates to the middle ages, is the Polish equivalent of America’s Thanksgiving holiday.  In Poland, this event marks the end of the wheat harvest. At Corpus Christi, Dożynki is an opportunity to give thanks for all manner of blessings.

The heart of the Polish Harvest Festival is to bring people together in a spirit of gratitude and appreciation to God for all we have been given.  This year’s Dożynki Festival activities will offer a chance to enjoy homemade Polish food including pierogi, gołąbki, naleśniki, along with grilled sausage, baloney, hot dogs and hamburgers.  Delicious Wendel’s Chicken Barbeque will be available on Sunday afternoon.  Our expanded Polish Café will offer mouth-watering desserts, a chance to throw a few balls down the newly repaired bowling lanes and visit the Flea Market.  Polish-American beer, The Grand Raffle, Theme Baskets, Farmers’ Market, and historic church tours will make this a summer event you don’t want to miss.

The festival opens on Friday, August 19th at 6:30p.m. with food from The Grill.  A special performance by Mona Lisa, a contemporary Polish singer, will begin at 7:15p.m.

Saturday,  the Festival begins with the 11:30a.m. Mass in the Chapel. The sounds of Al Kania’s Polka Smile Eastern Style will fill the air on Saturday afternoon, followed by the 4th annual Buffalo’s Best Pierogi Contest.  Mass at 5:30p.m., followed by dancing to the Concertina All-Stars, round out the evening.

The uniqueness of this celebration is expressed during the offertory procession during Sunday’s Dożynki Mass, to be held at 11:30a.m.,when a specially baked bread is presented along with a wreath made of grains and wildflowers. The special liturgy will be presented in English and Polish.  Music for the special Mass will be performed by Director Bruce Woody and will feature several talented performers. [Read more…]

Corpus Christi’s 31st Dozynki Polish Harvest Festival – 08/21 & 08/22

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This joyful celebration, which dates to the middle ages, is the Polish equivalent of America’s Thanksgiving holiday. In Poland, this event marks the end of the wheat harvest. At Corpus Christi, Dozynki is an opportunity to give thanks for all manner of blessings.

The heart of the Polish Harvest Festival is to bring people together in a spirit of gratitude and appreciation to God for all we have been given. The uniqueness of this celebration is expressed during the offertory procession during Sunday’s Dozynki Mass, to be held at 11:30a.m.,when a specially baked bread is presented along with a wreath made of grains.

Event Schedule:

Saturday August 21

  • 11:30a.m. The festival opens with a Mass in the restored Chapel, next to the church.
  • 12:30p.m. Music – Al Kania’s Polka Smile Eastern Style
  • 4:30p.m. Buffalo’s Best Pierogi Contest
  • 5:30p.m. Holy Mass
  • 6:30p.m Music – Concertina All-Stars. Dancing under the Main Tent.

Sunday August 22

  • 11:30a.m. Special Mass of Thanksgiving honoring Our Lady of Czestochowa, with music by Corpus Christi’s Music Director, Bruce Woody, and singing by Ludowa Nuta Polish Folk Choir
  • 12:45p.m.-5:30p.m. Joe Macielag’s Pic-A-Polka Band, along with additional performances by Ludowa Nuta Polish Folk Choir
  • 6:30p.m. Music by True Colors band. Dancing under the Main Tent.

The Harvest Festival ends at 10:00p.m. on both days. This year’s Dozynki Festival offers both familiar and unique Polish/American foods, including Polish Pizza; a large selection of Polish beers; live music; a Farmers’ Market; historic church tours; a Grand Raffle with cash prizes; a Best Pierogi contest with local celebrity judges; and many other activities.

Admission is free and all proceeds support the church’s historic restoration.

Corpus Christi Church is located at 199 Clark St. in Buffalo, one block east of the Broadway Market.

For more updated information about the Dozynki Festival and other events at Corpus Christi Church, visit www.corpuschristibuffalo.org.