Specifically, Snydertown, St. Mary's Byzantine/Greek Catholic Church and Cemetery.
Then: (1932)
Now: (2016)
Also in Snydertown, in the shadow of St. Mary's Church, are two social clubs of the local Rusyn and Slovak American residents. I'm looking for information on the names of their founders, vintage photographs of the inside of the clubs or their members, etc. Please get in touch if you can help with this info.
The American Greek Catholic Beneficial Society, founded 1916.
The American Slovak Society Home, founded 1923.
Original material is © by the author, Richard D. Custer; all rights reserved.
Hello. I was raised in this town. The church was our pivot for most of the towns daily activities. The Slovak club was our local family pub with shuffle board and Shirley Temples. Funny how I remember the smells associated with places. This one was of whiskey, cigars and Halupki cooking in the kitchen where Baba's fed every one passing through.The scent of this church was incense, beeswax candles and the pews were dotted with the many colorful babushkas. I do not ever remember us claiming heritge to Rusyn. Only to Slovak. Czechoslovakian. The early mass was voiced in Slovak and the second mass was English. Thanks for this article.
ReplyDeleteDiana Gulas
My Grandparents, George & Helen Gozdick, and my Grandmother Helen's parents, Thomas & Julia Yancy,(my Great-Grandparents) raised all their kids in the house shown adjacent to the church property. When I stayed with her, we would attend church at St. Mary's Byzantine Greek/Catholic church and I LOVED the smell of this church & the beautiful stained glass windows. I remember Mr. Suhaun (Sp?) who rang the bells every morning @ 6am & every evening @ 6pm, and I would wait for him on the swing in the evening because when he was finished ringing the bells, he would stop & give me a piece of gum! I'm not even sure if he spoke English because when he talked to my Grandmother, it was always in "Slovish."That is what my Grandma called it. We served homemade chicken soup & noodles to the priest of this church every Sunday after performing his Masses. We wore white-lace coverings on our heads before ever entering the church. At Christmas time, I would get to see Santa Clause at the Slovak Club & he gave all the kids a treat bag. I ate many handmade Pierogi's and Halupki's here! At Easter time, we would get all of my Grandma's nutroll's & homemade bread blessed in the basement of the church before we ate Easter Dinner. I absolutely loved this place growing up and still do! My Grandma always said she was from Czechoslovakia. It was unclear to me where my Grandfather was from, but I remember her mentioning maybe Hungry or Austria. And I also remember my Grandmother referring to the "Gulas's" as one of the neighbors; specifically "Ann Gulas."
ReplyDeleteThe comment above was written by Janice Hill Eggers, oldest grand-daughter of George & Helen Gozdick, and daughter of Judith Ann Gozdick (Hill), the oldest child & daughter of George & Helen, all of whom where born and raised in Snydertown, PA at the property pictured adjacent to the St. Mary's Byzantine Greek Catholic Church.
DeleteI am just finding this. How exciting to meet you Janice.yes to all those same memories. I am Anne Gulas's niece. Her brother Pete is my Dad. The namesyou mentioned sound familiar but it has been a long time. I went to Bradenville elementary school. I am now 67 and my kids are grown. Since Aunt Sis passed there has been no one to check the family headstones. Hoping to get back this year sometime.would be fun to stroll through Snydertown. You do not live in Snydertown then?
DeleteHi Diana! I am just now finding your message too! I also attended Bradenville Elementary School (4th grade)and would walk with my Grandma to the Bradenville Post Office before there was mail delivery to her home in Snydertown. I just visited there this past summer & we had a 4th of July party in my Grandma's backyard (right next to the church) commemorating her life since her birthday is July 3rd! I walked up to both the St Rose Cemetery & St. Mary's Cemetery next to her house. The bells of the St. Mary's Greek Catholic Church still bring me peace as I lay awakened by them in the mornings. To me, there is no better way to greet the day than by hearing those bells & the sound of little birds chattering about as the rays of the sun shine through the window & bring in a new day! Her house is in the process of being sold, but the good news is, it will be sold to a family member; one of her youngest grandchildren. I do not live there anymore (been in Texas for quite awhile) but I do travel back there as often as possible since that is where all of my family lives. I love going back there & revisiting so many childhood memories. My next trip there I want to go to one of the Masses held at "the Greek Church" as my Grandmother would have called it. It's the one pictured in this post and it is so incredibly beautiful inside! I still remember my Grandma making references to "Anne Gulas" but I never knew who she was; just that she was one of her neighbors! Such a small world!
ReplyDeleteI am sitting here with my Dad, Richard Sobota, on Father's day 2022. We were talking about his childhood in Latrobe and he mentioned the American Greek Beneficial Society and we looked it up and here we are! My Dad is the eldest child of Mary Soltis and Edward Sobota and he remembers tagging along with his Dad to the American Green Beneficial Society as a young child (something his younger siblings maybe didn't get to do). It gave him a great sense of connection to the Slovak/Rusyn community. He can also remember the smells of the church and the halupki. Thank you for helping to bring this memory alive for him. - Mindy Sobota
ReplyDeleteThat’s great! Hope you enjoyed your time together for Father’s Day! I remember the “Sobota’s” working on my grandmother’s home in Snydertown when she updated it in the mid-late 60’s (including the first flushing toilet & bath tub!) I also remember the tragic death of Pat Sobota, who was a very good friend of my Uncle Danny Gozdick. My grandmother broke down & cried in her kitchen when she heard the news & I think that was the first time I began to understand what death was because I had met Pat when he came by the house for my Uncle Dan. I was just a young child, but I remember that day because it was the first time I saw my grandmother cry! You don’t forget that :-(
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