The 3rd annual Polish Festival at Our Lady of Czestochowa Church in Houston was held on Saturday, May 2, 2009 on the church grounds in Spring Branch. A large crowd enjoyed the beautiful weather, good food, cold piwo and a wide variety of entertainment. The festival began at 10:00 am and was still going strong when I left at about 9:30 pm. I met up with a lot of old friends and made some new ones. It was pretty obvious that everybody in the large crowd was having a good time.
Delicious food such as pierogi, golabki, kielbasa and barbeque was served all day and there was lots of beer, wine and soft drinks to wash it down with. There was face painting, games and other fun activities in the children’s area and the silent auction hall and raffle ticket booth were busy all day.
As always, the entertainment was the highlight of the festival. The children’s choir of Our Lady of Czestochowa sang, danced and entertained the crowd at intervals throughout the day. The Slavic Heritage Band with plenty of brass instruments played dance music in the morning and Dunajec, a Polish song and dance ensemble from Michigan delighted the crowd with their energetic dance moves.
In the afternoon, Texas-Polish dance band fiddler Brian Marshall entertained the crowd along with talented musicians Mark Rubin on bass, Bradley Jay Williams on the concertina, Tim Walsh playing his horns, Chuck Bolin on drums and Ron Kasowski playing the guitar. A problem with the festival sound system caused a delay in Brian’s performance, but judging from the smiles on the dance floor, the crowd thought it was well worth the wait. The highlight of the evening was when Brian’s young son’s joined him up on stage, playing their instruments just like the pros. It’s pretty obvious where those boys get their talent.
Texas cowboy accordionist Chris Rybak and his lovely wife Edita rounded out the evening with their unique brand of entertainment which included a variety of lively dance songs.
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.