Bishop Pękala/School Xmass Party+Xmass (Home)
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A home movie from a trip to Storybook Park in Addison, and some parts were also filmed in front of the Holly Innocents Grammar School attached to Holy Innocents Church [Kościół Młodzianków] in Chicago.
Complete catalog record
Date: circa 1957
Cfa collection: Victoria Agatha Wielgus Sendra Collection
Notes: The film documents a visit to one of Chicago’s Polish diaspora churches—most likely Holly Innocents Church—by Karol Pękala, Bishop of the Diocese of Tarnów in Poland, during his second trip to the United States in 1957. The bishop hands out holy pictures to people in line, including Victoria’s mother, Mary K. Wielgus. Victoria’s daughter, Mary Anselmo, also appears briefly on camera. The second part of the film shows a Christmas school play at Holy Innocents Grammar School performed by the children, followed by Santa Claus handing out gifts. The children wave at the camera while trying to shield their eyes from the glare of the camera lights. The film has been collected and preserved as part of the Not-So-Ordinary project, supported by the European Union (Grant Agreement No. 101109803). The digitization of the film was funded by the Institute for the Development of the Polish Language.
Cfa elements: Reversal Positives, 100 feet
Cfa records: https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/39271
Cfa collection: Victoria Agatha Wielgus Sendra Collection
Notes: The film documents a visit to one of Chicago’s Polish diaspora churches—most likely Holly Innocents Church—by Karol Pękala, Bishop of the Diocese of Tarnów in Poland, during his second trip to the United States in 1957. The bishop hands out holy pictures to people in line, including Victoria’s mother, Mary K. Wielgus. Victoria’s daughter, Mary Anselmo, also appears briefly on camera. The second part of the film shows a Christmas school play at Holy Innocents Grammar School performed by the children, followed by Santa Claus handing out gifts. The children wave at the camera while trying to shield their eyes from the glare of the camera lights. The film has been collected and preserved as part of the Not-So-Ordinary project, supported by the European Union (Grant Agreement No. 101109803). The digitization of the film was funded by the Institute for the Development of the Polish Language.
Cfa elements: Reversal Positives, 100 feet
Cfa records: https://collections.chicagofilmarchives.org/Detail/objects/39271
Sources
- Chicago Film Archives · record ↗ — title, year, format, color, sound, description, catalog record
Record added 2026-11-08 21:25:26