Connecticut 2013

The site was chosen not by accident. After last year’s location in Chicago, it was time to move to the east coast of the US, with an equally strong and well-represented Polonia as the State of Illinois. The places, where the presentations, workshops and discussions were held – the Polish National Home in Hartford, CT; campus of Central Connecticut State University (CCSU) – are places with a rich history of Polish immigrants.

The conference was attended by participants, coming from all over the United States – from Wisconsin and Michigan, to the Tri-State-Area – but also from Montreal and Toronto in Canada, and even Australia. Most of them were American and Canadian college students, but there was also a strong representation of young professionals.

In addition to the presence of Polish diplomats, Ambassador of the Republic of Poland in Washington Ryszard Schnepf, Consul General in New York Ewa Junczyk-Ziomecka, and minister-counselor at the Poland’s MFA Krzysztof Kasprzyk, Members of Parliament (Sejm) Arkadiusz Mularczyk and Killion Munyama, a large group of American political and public figures visited New Britain and Hartford. Among them were the two U.S. Senators from Connecticut, Christopher Murphy and Richard Blumenthal, U.S. Rep. Elizabeth Esty, representatives of state parliament, and businessmen. It should be noted that the municipal authorities of New Britain announced “Quo Vadis Days” for the duration of the Conference.

The idea of Quo Vadis brings together more than 500 people – students, artists, scientists, engineers, and doctors of Polish origin. The Connecticut edition of Quo Vadis was dedicated to increasing the presence of Poles in American public life, and to discuss the opportunities for success in the U.S. The motto of the Conference was: “Growing our Roots – our roots, our identity”.

Taken from the Consulate General of the Republic of Poland in New York.