BOROUGH OF SNPJ, Pa. — The SNPJ Slovenian Heritage Center Museum and Library will open the doors for its 32nd season Sunday, April 20. The Heritage Center Committee has been busy over the winter getting ready for the new season. Some changes have taken place, and articles and books have been added to both the library and museum.

The museum and library continue to receive donations that enhance the vast collection already on display. Just when I think I’ve seen everything, along comes another object of great importance. Such was the case back in 2007 when I received a few boxes of material from Robert Dragan of Milwaukee. We were able to work all of the donated items from the Dragan family into the displays. There was even Gorenjska-style female attire among the donations that will be displayed on a mannequin in the library area.

Please be reminded that we continue to receive contributions for the patio bricks and blocks for donations of $100 and $250. We still have room for the $1,000 base blocks that line the hallway of the Recreation Center. There is also room for additional $5,000 plaques. Just recently we added two $5,000 donor plaques. Pictures and information about the donors will appear in a future Prosveta issue. If you are interested in purchasing any of the above mentioned items, phone the SNPJ Home Office at 1-800-843-7675 or e-mail the Heritage Center at snpj@snpjheritage.com.

The Heritage Center will be sponsoring some interesting events this season. On Sunday, May 18, we are pleased to announce that Rose Marie Jisa (643) will be on hand for a genealogy seminar. Rose Marie is the president of the Slovenian Genealogy Society. She has been to the Heritage Center on many occasions over the years to speak on genealogy. If you are just starting or have already started researching your roots and need some additional help, make it a point to be here. Rose Marie will also be available for a few hours during Slovenefest in July. Those sessions will mostly entail answering questions on genealogy. Times will be reported in a future article.

The Heritage Center will have Ed Trebets (604), a wine master from Debonnet Winery, on hand to present a demonstration on wine making Sunday, June 8. This wine making demonstration will be a first for the Heritage Center. I’m sure we’ll see a nice crowd at this event; several people have already shown interest. If there is a large turnout, we will hold the demonstration in the downstairs meeting area.

The weekend of July 11-13 is Slovenefest XXVII. Hopefully you will make it a point to stop by the Heritage Center during your visit to the SNPJ Recreation Center. Slovenefest is always the busiest week-end for the Heritage Center. The gift shop will be stocked with many items for you to purchase as gifts or for yourself. On Aug. 24, the Heritage Center will host a sing-along with the Joe Grkman Orchestra. This event always attracts a large crowd, and the music is the finest west of Ljubljana.

The Heritage Center will host its annual bake fair Sunday, Sept. 14. We will be soliciting baked good donations from all our friends. At a date yet to be determined, we will have PROSVETA Slovenian Editor Vida Kosir host a baking demonstration. This is always well attended, so we plan to hold it in the downstairs meeting area where it will be more roomy. Articles will be printed prior to the listed events. Watch PROSVETA for information as we publicize these avtivities and any additional events that come up.

The SNPJ Slovenian Heritage Center is preparing to compile a cookbook. Two members of the Heritage Committee are currently collecting recipes. If you’re in the Cleveland area, you can contact Carol Maruszak at (440) 944-4229. If you are in the Western Pennsylvania area, contact Joan Gaspersic at (412) 200-2504. You can also submit your recipes to the SNPJ Heritage Center via e-mail to snpj@snpjheritage.com.

The SNPJ Heritage Center has purchased the Tour Mate Audio System. As of this writing, a script is being prepared for the audio system. We hope to have the system up and running by May. In brief, visitors will receive a wand from the gift shop. As they browse through the museum or library, dialing a three-digit number will allow them to hear a complete description of the contents of any display. We constantly hear questions raised by visitors about the items displayed. This audio system should eliminate those questions and better define the answers. The TourMate Audio System is used in museums, art galleries and numerous other venues throughout the world. We will mention in a future article when the system is working and available.