Kosciuszko Foundation Hosts the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity in Washington
Everyone is invited!
Wielka Orkiestra Swiatecznej Pomocy, a popular charity movement from Poland, invites you to participate in a fundraising program filled with fun and arts.
Place: Kosciuszko Foundation, 2025 O St., N.W., Washington, DC 20036 (map)
Date: Sunday, January 13, 2013
Time: 2 PM - 7 PM
Program & Attractions:
- 2:00 Greetings from Jurek Owsiak.
- 2:15 – 3:00 "Christmas Eve at an Internet Cafe" (Wigilia w kafejce internetowej), a theater play directed and produced by Dorota Ponikiewska, performed by youth actors (in Polish). Musical performances by Polish School students.
- 3:00 – 4:00 Singer Laura Grazyna Kafka-Price, soprano, will be accompanied by Wanda O'Brien-Trefil on piano. Actors Wieslaw Malachowski and Waldemar Izdebski will sing and recite selected works.
- 4:00 – 4:45 Snacks and refreshments. Auction (VERY ATTRACTIVE ITEMS WILL BE UP FOR GRABS!!! CHECKBOOKS WILL BE HIGHLY USEFUL.) Prize lottery. The auction at the Kosciuszko Foundation will feature, among others, stunningly beautiful photographs of Polish landscapes by Marek Konarzewski (Minister Counselor, head of the Polish Embassy's Public Affairs, Science, Education and Technology Section) and great graphics designed by Andrzej Zmudzki. A visit by the Polish Ambassador Ryszard Schnepf around this time (with a special surprise!). Activities in break-out groups. A word from Jurek Owsiak.
- 4:45 – 5:45 Performances by members of the Art Salon from Baltimore: a classical music trio, Anna Nejman (reciting her own poetry), Andrzej Krawiec (singing poetry, playing guitar), Malgosia Bondyra (violin, pop).
- 5:45 – 6:30 Snacks and refreshments. Auction, continued.
- 6:30 – 6:45 Singer Dave Beczak will perform popular hits.
- 7:00 Jurek Owsiak will count down to our Lights to the Sky celebration.
- Music provided by DJ Ryszard Gruszka
- Activities for Kids: On the upper floor of the Kosciuszko Foundation building, children are invited to participate in drawing activities. Balloons squeezed into heart shapes will also be made for kids. Meanwhile, the Polish Library* will be open this Sunday to play movies for children.
- Book Fair: The Polish Library* will also hold a book fair fundraiser this Sunday.
*The Polish Library is located at 1503 21st Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20036 (map), just around the corner from the Kosciuszko Foundation. Their phone number is (202) 466-2665.
All donations made to this campaign are tax-deductible in the United States.
All checks should be made payable to the Polish Students Organization. The Polish Students Organization is a New York City-based group which works in partnership with the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity and will transfer all funds to the Orchestra's headquarters in Poland as it did in the campaigns in previous years.
Honorary Patron: Embassy of the Republic of Poland
Host: Kosciuszko Foundation (Washington Office)
Sponsors:
- Creative European Cooking
- Kielbasa Factory
- Falcon Construction
- Construction Made Easy
- Sunrise Kids Day Care Center
- Oby Lee -- coffee roastery, winery, creperie
- European Quality Home Improvement
Social Media Partner: Polish Global Village
For more information on the up-coming fundraiser in Washington,
- on Facebook, visit this event page
- in Yahoo! Groups, subscribe to Polish Global Village
- on Meetup, visit Poles and Friends of Poland in the Washington-Baltimore Area
- visit this page again
Online Donations: If you cannot make it to our January 13 event at the Kosciuszko Foundation, you can support this cause by donating online.
For general information about the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity, visit
- official site of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity
- Wikipedia
- YouTube
History: The very first campaign of the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity in the Washington metropolitan area was carried out in 2003 by a group of students enrolled in the Polish School (affiliated with the Embassy of the Republic of Poland) and led by Adelina Janiak. DC-based volunteers collected $685.00 in donations at the time and forwarded that sum to the Orchestra's representatives in New York City, from where all funds were transferred to Poland. The 2003 initiative enjoyed the support of the leaders of the Polish School, the pastor of the Catholic parish of Our Lady Queen of Poland and St. Maksymilian Kolbe in Silver Spring and the then-president of the Polish Library, the late Tadeusz Walendowski. After ten years of absence, the Orchestra returns to Washington, this time thanks to the initiative of Magdalena Kubicka and support from many other local Poles.
