Our next membership meeting will be in person, Saturday, April 18 at the New Brighton Community Center! As always, there will be goodies and socialization! Mike Koski will announce our Member of the Year. And Joe Valencic will present a 40 minute documentary film about Slovenians in Minnesota’s Iron Range almost 40 years ago. You might see yourself or your relatives in this fascinating film!
Joe Valencic is National President of the Slovenian Union of America. He has documented the Slovenian-American experience in films, presentations and exhibitions in the U. S. and Slovenia. He represents Slovenians in the U.S. on the international advisory board of Slovenia’s Office for Slovenes Abroad. He is a founder of the National Cleveland-Style Polka Hall of Fame.
Joe will provide the backstory on the making of the documentary. This film was part of a series on Slovenian TV. He assisted the director, Dorica Makuc, in the production of the Cleveland chapter of the series. Joe will also translate the Slovenian dialogue into English. The film’s title:
Following Slovenians around the World — The Land of Endless Possibilities: Minnesota
1987, 40 minutes
Dorica Makuc & Mija Janžekovič, directors
The myth of a promised land across the ocean drove many oppressed Slovenians to the United States. Instead of gold and freedom, they were met with hard work, alienation and exploitation. But some of the most persistent and resourceful managed to earn a decent living and preserve the memory of their roots. They are also remembered by their descendants as indomitable pioneers who helped build what is today the most powerful country in the world.
This chapter of the documentary series, Following Slovenians around the World, captures the stories of Slovenians in Minnesota’s Iron Range, from Ely to Chisholm to Duluth, nearly forty years ago. Among the interviewees are legendary publisher Veda Ponikvar and Congressman James Oberstar. Scenes include a Slovenian sing-along in Ely’s Jugoslav National Home.
