FACES AND PLACES: A wedding like no other! (07/09/06)

FACES AND PLACES

by Myron B. Kuropas

A wedding like no other!

My godson, Taras G. Szmagala Jr., married Helen S. Jarem in Cleveland, on June 24. I was there and it was a wedding like no other.

Taras, a practicing attorney, comes from a distinguished UNA family. His grandfather on his mother's side was Gregory Herman, the Ukrainian National Association's supreme secretary from 1950 to 1957. His grandmother on his mother's side was Anna Herman, who was UNA supreme vice-presidentess from 1958 to 1966. His grandfather on his father's side was a UNA supreme advisor for many years. His father, Taras Sr., was a UNA supreme advisor for many years, ending his career as a UNA auditor. His godfather well, you know the rest.

Helen, also a practicing attorney, is of Slovenian heritage. Her father was once a national officer in a Slovenian fraternal. Like the young Taras, she too is proud of her ethnic heritage and fraternal background.

The wedding ceremony was performed at St. Vitus Catholic Church, built in the St. Clair neighborhood of Cleveland in 1893. It remains the largest Slovenian church in the United States with a seating capacity of some 1,500 people in its sanctuary. "While the neighborhood has been in decline and many Slovenian residents have moved away," wrote Plain Dealer reporter James F. McCarty recently, "St. Vitus continues as an anchor for Slovenian traditions with a membership of 1,100 households and 215 children in school ..."

The betrothal ceremony followed Ukrainian tradition with singing by the Ukrainian Bandurist Chorus. Later, the Fanti na Vasi, a Slovenian choir, sang. The bride and groom were met at the church entrance by the celebrants, two Slovenian priests and a Ukrainian deacon. Taras and Helen exchanged rings, and became "engaged." Their right hands bound by an embroidered rushnyk, they were then led into the church by the celebrants, the icon-bearing starosta and starostyna, and the wedding party.

During the Latin mass, the first reading was rendered in Slovenian, the second in Ukrainian. Taras and Helen were "crowned" in the Ukrainian/Byzantine Catholic tradition and exchanged vows in the Latin tradition. The entire ceremony was, in the words of Deacon Michael Kulick, "a seamless integration of two Slavic cultures."

The reception was held at the Slovenian National Home just down the street. Not much from the outside, the hall inside was huge, modern and very comfortable. Enormous orchid and flower bouquets sat on elevated pedestals at each table. Taras and Helen were greeted at the door by their parents and the starosty with gifts of bread, salt, honey and wine. The traditional wedding bread, the "korovai," was also presented to the new couple.

All of this, the wedding ceremony as well as the reception ceremony, was explained, step by step, in a pamphlet made available to all guests upon entering the church. One could tell it was written by two lawyers, one of whom was given to occasional jocular commentary.

Following a delicious, more than generous dinner, a Ukrainian dance band from Toronto provided the entertainment. A special treat for Lesia and me was to be seated at the same table with Andrew Fedynsky, The Ukrainian Weekly columnist, and his wife, as well as the editor-in-chief of Svoboda, Irene Jarosewicz. Did we discuss the UNA? Ya think?

Spending so much time in a Slovenian setting left me intrigued, so I did some research. I discovered, among other things, that the 44,000 Slovenians in northeast Ohio have many claims to fame, including people like the late U.S. Sen. Frank Lausche, the current U.S. Sen. George Voinovich, the late, great accordion player Frank Yankovic, as well as cultural contributions such as the Slovenian-style polka and six Slovenian singing societies.

I also learned that one of the largest Slovenian fraternal benefit societies is the Slovenska Narodna Podporna Jednota or SNPJ which, in contrast to some other fraternals, appears to have a vision for the future. "The Slovene American market niche is not large enough to depend on for membership growth," writes Matjaz Klemencic in a 2004 article in Slovenia Magazine. "The children and grandchildren of immigrant members who did not retain their membership may have left the organization because of the SNPJ's lack of expertise in appealing to younger generations. This group could be pursued by the society in the future with a more attractive benefit package. SNPJ's strategy for the future includes developing a more skilled staff through continuing education for its life insurance, office management and marketing staff. Any fraternals that do not do this might find it difficult to survive in today's environment of increasingly stringent insurance regulations and requirements."

Lack of expertise in appealing to the younger generation? More attractive benefit package? Skilled marketing staff? Sound familiar?

Sorry, Taras and Helen. I just couldn't resist passing along a bit of Slovenian wisdom after a wedding like no other.

Myron Kuropas's e-mail address is: [email protected].

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