Soggy, muggy weather didn’t stop a large crowd from celebrating the 59th annual homecoming bazaar at St. Stanislaus Catholic Church in Anderson, Texas on Sunday, October 13, 2013. The day began as always with Holy Mass celebrated by pastor Fr. JoJo Cal-Ortiz. The choir sang a beautiful rendition of bądźże pozdrowiona in Polish and English as the communion hymn.
At 10:30 am, Fr. JoJo gave a blessing as the parish hall filled up with parishioners and guests ready for a delicious barbecue brisket and sausage meal with all the fixings, home made deserts and ice tea. There were lots of booths for the adults and games and jump houses for the kids in the covered pavilion and out of the rain. ‘Babusha’s Porch’ had plenty of homemade food, crafts and decorative items.
Grimes County auctioneer extraordinaire Tommy Szymczak and his crew sold lots of nice items including homemade bread and sweets, beautiful cedar furniture and framed vintage photos of the church. A raffle drawing with lots of great prizes was held after the auction ended.
In the early afternoon, Polish Texans of all ages gathered under the big white tent as the Texas Paradise Band took the stage for the 25th consecutive year. Polish dance band fiddler Brian Marshall and his large group of talented musician friends and relatives played old time Polish and Texas Country music as the dancers filled the wooden dance floor. One of the highlights of the day was Kyle Berger playing the Berger’s Waltz, a tribute to his father Phillip who passed away last year. This year the list of musicians and singers included Brian Marshall, Sonny Janczak, Larry Vivian, Charlie Brossman, Chuck Bolin, Cathy Bolin, Jim Mazurkiewicz, Ron Kasowski, Jacob Kasowski, Frank Motley, Donovan Pavlock, David Johnson and Bill Mock.
Below are a few photos of the fun and there is a slideshow of more photos on page 2. There are a few music videos in the Polish Texans Video section or you can see more videos on our YouTube Channel.
James Smock has always held an interest in his Polish ancestors and heritage. He is a native Houstonian with Polish roots in Bremond, Marlin and New Waverly, Texas.