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WEST DEER: For the past 39 years, members of St. Michael Orthodox Church have been pinching out homemade pierogi during the Lenten season.

And they've used the same dough-rolling machine almost the entire time.

The Rev. Alexander Poshyvajlo and his wife, Anna, came to St. Michael in 1963 and began making pierogi as a church fund raiser.

When they started, church members rolled out the dough by hand and sold pierogi for 65 cents per dozen.

A few years later they bought a used manual roller for $150. "And it's been rolling ever since," Rev. Poshyvajlo said.

The pierogi sale brings in most of the money the church raises.

"The money helps us beautify our church," Anna Poshyvajlo said.

Pierogi funds have been used to add pews, stained-glass windows, altar tables, domes, a furnace and more.

Rev. Poshyvajlo questioned whether the church would be able to keep going if not for the sale.

"We are adept at making pierogi because of our Slavic background. It was a natural choice for us," Anna Poshyvajlo said.

And adept they must be.

The sale has blossomed over the years. During the past seven weeks the members have made about 400 dozen pierogi per week. That's more than 33,000 pierogi.

And people still are calling for more.

"We have to limit the number we sell each week because we have a limited number of people to help," Anna said.

Anywhere from 15 to 20 helpers pack into the church basement every Thursday and Friday to roll, cut, stuff, pinch, boil and box the pierogi.

"Our helpers range from 11 years of age to 90," said church member Irene Ocvirk of West Deer.

The oldest member currently helping is Anna's mother, Jenia Kyryczenko, who came from New Jersey to help.

Over the years the church members have set up a routine to best utilize their time and resources.

Phone orders start coming in Mondays - only pre-ordered pierogi are sold.

On Wednesdays, between 200 and 250 pounds of potatoes are peeled - by hand. The fillings are made and scooped into balls.

Four fillings for pierogi are usually made: potato, sauerkraut, cottage cheese and lekvar, or, prune butter.

Ocvirk said they have made other fillings in the past, but it was difficult for them to make so many kinds at once.

Thursdays and Fridays require the most helpers, who show up at 9 a.m. and sometimes stay as late as 4 p.m.

Rev. Poshyvajlo rolls out the dough, and members cut it into circles.

Then about a dozen women place the filling on the circles and pinch the pierogi closed. Then members boil the pierogi.

Finally, the food is boxed and ready for pickup.

Ocvirk said people who have ordered pierogi start showing up at the church about noon on Thursdays and Fridays to pick up their orders.

"I always bought Mrs. T's pierogi at the grocery store," said first-time customer Dolores Bogarty of West Deer. "Then a friend told me about St. Michael's pierogi and I had to try them."

Bogarty arrived at the church Thursday afternoon with a large basket to collect her goodies.

Anna Poshyvajlo likes to say the church's pierogi are "well-traveled." Members recall instances when the pierogi were taken far out of the state.

One member, Anastasia Less of West Deer, said her son took 265 dozen to Kuwait with him during the Persian Gulf War.

After focusing on pierogi for so many weeks, Anna Poshyvajlo said she will be able to relax once the sale is over.

"Once we are done, I will do a couple of yoga exercises and put my feet up," she said.

She won't have to wait long: today is the last day the church will be making pierogi this year.

If you haven't placed an order already, you'll have to wait until next year.

No more orders

St. Michael Orthodox Church sells pierogi every year during the Lenten season, but no more orders are being taken.

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