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Celebrating Carpatho-Rusyn customs
Carl Litman
Lynda Greenlee/Daily Courier
Making pirohi
Lynda Greenlee/Daily Courier
Bernadette Myers can be reached at bmyers@tribweb.com or 724-626-3539.
Carpatho-Rusyns come from the northern and southern slopes of the Carpathian Mountains in the heart of Europe. Although the Carpatho-Rusyns do not have a distinct political territory, their homeland, "Carpatho-Rus," which is an area about the size of West Virginia, is situated where the borders of Slovakia, Poland and Ukraine meet. There are smaller groups of Rusyns in Romania, Hungary, Yugoslavia and the Czech Republic. Western Pennsylvania has the largest settlement of Carpatho-Rusyns in the United States.
Those who came to the area in the early 1900s, founded several churches, including St. John's.
Bonnie Balas, one of the organizers of the event, says the Carpatho-Rusyn people's lives traditionally centered around their church, and one of the first things they did when coming to the United States was establish a church to preserve and perpetuate their unique style of worship.
By studying Carpatho-Rusyn customs, Balas says, she better understands why the church is the focus of a Carpatho-Rusyn's life.
"It helps me to understand myself better," she says.
The Rev. Tom Wesdock, pastor of St. John's, says of the 450 families in the parish, approximately 75 percent are from a Carpatho-Rusyn background.
Wesdock, who is "three-quarters" Carpatho-Rusyn, as a new pastor at St. John's will be participating in his first Carpatho-Rusyn celebration.
"I've heard quite a bit about it. I'm really looking forward to it," he says.
Wesdock notes that the whole parish, regardless of ethnic background, has joined to prepare for and promote the festival.
Besides the opportunity for fellowship and entertainment, Wesdock says the festival is also educational.
Speakers for the celebration, who will present Carpatho-Rusyn family customs, both secular and religious, and genealogy, and report from recent trips to the Carpathian homeland, include John Righetti, president of the Pittsburgh-based Carpatho-Rusyn Society; the Rev. Joseph Bertha from EWTN; and Dean Poloka, Carpatho-Rusyn Society vice president.
Wesdock will speak on "Eastern Christianity: Not what you think." He says the presentation will include the differences between the Byzantine Catholic Church of the east and the Roman Catholic Church of the west.
The Pittsburgh-based Carpatho-Rusyn Society plans to have a display at the celebration, which includes crafts, religious artifacts, videos and photographs. The Carpatho-Rusyn Society will also display traditional folk costumes, known for their vivid colors and embroidery.
The celebration will feature demonstrations of pysanky (egg decorating), embroidery, wood burning and other folk art.
Guests will be invited to browse tables of crafts for sale, with both contemporary and traditional Carpatho-Rusyn folk crafts.
The Slavine Folk Ensemble, dancers and singers from the Holy Ghost Byzantine Catholic Church, McKees Rocks, will perform. Jerry Jumba of McKees Rocks will lead a Rusyn music sing-a-long.
Church tours of St. John's will include a look at the new icon screen, and recently added chapel with a smaller version of the icon screen.
Guests can also review a pictorial display of the past 20 Carpatho-Rusyn celebrations at St. John's.
Children's activities for the celebration include making small versions of pysanky (decorated eggs), crosses, icon bookmarks, coloring sheets, decorated cookies and storytelling.
Balas says the event is a good opportunity for families from a Carpatho-Rusyn background to share traditions and customs with their children and to help generations connect.
"If parents can't explain something, grandparents can," Balas says.
Raffles for many items, including a queen-size quilt made by St. John's Ethnic Craft Club which honors the victims of 9-11, will be held. Proceeds from the quilt raffle will benefit the future "Thunder on the Mountain Flight 93 Memorial Chapel" in Shanksville.
The celebration will also offer plenty of delicious, traditional Carpatho-Rusyn foods such as holubki, halushki, pirohi, kolbasi and sauerkraut, potato pancakes, soups and baked goods, including kolachi (apricot, nut and poppyseed rolls), pagach and breads.
Cookbooks will be available for guests to purchase.
The public is welcome at the celebration, and admission is free.
For more information, call 724-437-2462 or 724-437-2462.
