Wash the paczki down with a cold one at Polka Fest

By Torin Yeager
Sun staff writer
Polka, kielbasa, beer galore! The 22nd annual Cedar Polka Fest, sponsored by the Cedar Chamber of Commerce, will bring a homesick Pole, or anyone else for that matter, back to Warsaw for four fun days of dancing, food and spirits in the Polish capitol of Leelanau County.

From July 3rd through July 6th, two large tents will grace the tennis court in downtown Cedar, one filled with people enjoying the latest polka tunes, as well as some old favorites. “There are two major types of polka,” says local Sonny Czerniak. “There is the traditional three-beat ‘oompa-oompa’ sound, which most people recall when they think of polka, and then there is the newer Chicago style, which is much faster and more energetic.” Both styles of polka will be played at the Polka Fest by bands from as far away as Chicago and Pennsylvania. A 40 by 80 foot wooden dance floor will be available for boogying, and newcomers to polka are welcome to try their luck as well. “It’s great fun for everyone on the dance floor, which is why I come every year,” says Czerniak.
In and around the tents are vendors of many fine Polish delicacies, such as kielbasa, also known as Polish sausage, which is a spicy blend of pork and veal. Also popular is paczki, pronounced “punch-key”, which is a delicious pastry resembling a jelly doughnut. Paczki-making actually has its own Polish holiday just before Catholic Lent, known as Fat Thursday (Fat Tuesday in the United States). On this day, all the sugar and other fattening substances in a Polish kitchen are used to make the sweet doughnuts, ridding the house of any tempting foods during a time of relative fasting. You may learn the secret of how to make a perfect paczki at a baking session on Friday at the Cedar Fire Department. Another ethnic delight is golabki, pronounced “glumpky”. This odd-sounding dish is made of spiced beef, pork, or veal wrapped in cabbage, then served with a sweet tomato sauce. A well-known Polish/German treat, sauerkraut, is also available at the Polka Fest. In case you’ve been out of the loop, sauerkraut is made of pickled cabbage, fermented in large vats, that is cooked and served alone or with many other Polish and German dishes.
Having a hard time convincing your stomach to go to Krakow with you? There are plenty of American foods available as well, such as hot dogs, hamburgers, pizza and elephant ears from vendors’ stands. Oddly enough, most of these “normal” foods have their roots in European countries, including Poland.
Not to be forgotten are the truckloads of beer sent into the “Beer Tent”, which shares space with the other food vendors. Sponsored by Budweiser®, this portable bar helps raise money for the primary organizer: the Cedar Chamber of Commerce. Dozens of beer kegs are downed each night, but security officials will make certain that not one drop goes to any minors. “The security gets better every year, which makes it more enjoyable and safe for everyone,” says local mother Carole Mikowski.
Special events will be held each day, the first being a flag-raising ceremony on Thursday. Friday will bring the paczki baking, all of which will be sold during the remainder of the Polka Fest. On Saturday, a parade will coast by for the whole family to enjoy: Floats, classic cars and bands will all pass through downtown Cedar, not far from the tents. On Sunday the bishop from Gaylord will preside over a Mass on the Polka Fest grounds. Polka music by Pan Franek and Zosia Polka Towners will accompany the service, as will television cameras from the local news stations, making the event visible to all of northern Michigan.
Although the under-21 age group won’t have access to the Polka Fest after 8 p.m. without a parent, there are still plenty of activities during the day. Sidewalk chalk art will begin on Friday, followed on Saturday by face painting. A softball tournament will get into full swing for the Polka Fest, as well as various other games for children. Also, as the tents are located in a park, there is a playground too.
The Polka Fest is obviously about Polish heritage, but how did Cedar come to have such a large Polish community? According to the extensive research of Lucia Novak and the Leelanau Historical Museum, the first few Polish families came to the area in the late 1860’s, around 1868. They were simply scouting out the county for their relatives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, another large Polish community, in response to the Homestead Act of 1862. This act allowed land to be purchased at just $1.25 per acre for farming. The scouting families found the area to be to their liking, and so by the 1870’s a large wave of immigrants spilled into Centerville Township, but not directly to Cedar. The small farming community the Poles called home was Isadore, just 2 1/2 miles north of Cedar, which is now the home of the Holy Rosary Church. The Poles continued to live in Isadore until the first generation of immigrants began to retire. The succeeding generations moved to Cedar, then a near-treeless ghost of a logging town, and called it home. Isadore is now a ghost town except for the church, but the residents of Cedar are once again celebrating their heritage at the 22nd annual Polka Fest. Come on over, and bring on the paczki!