MEMBER FOCUS
From New Prague to Old Bohemia
Journey To Discovering Czech Roots
For BetterLife board member, Duane Jirik, this past summer ' s journey to the Czech Republic with his wife marked a lifelong dream, as his family has deep roots in the country. He explains, " That was my first time, so for me, it was a bucket list thing. I turned 60 this past summer, and my wife, Amy, said, ' If we don ' t do it now, when are we going to do it?'"
Duane ' s family story goes back to 1905, Staňkov, Bohemia, where his grandmother was born under the family name Javurek. At the age of one, she immigrated to the United States. Duane ' s grandfather was born in the United States, but Duane is unsure where the Jirik side of his family originated. He thinks it might be Moravia, a historical region to the east of the Czech Republic. They moved to the US before World War I, which makes him a " second-generation " American.
Special Foods and Traditions Duane warmly points out that the food is one of the best reminders of his Czech heritage. " The food is the most meaningful to me, so I was happy to find out when we visited that ethnic foods have not changed much," he said. " Pork dumplings, sweet sauerkraut with caraway seed, bread dumplings— those were all Czech favorites every time there was some type of meal." He still remembers when his grandmother made special breads, known as kolache and rohlíky.
Language is another important aspect of Duane ' s heritage. " I wish I had learned the Czech language. My father and grandparents spoke it fluently. When I was young, it seemed everyone spoke Czech or German in New Prague, [ MN ]." But now, he says, it is " fading." He knows a few words and how to say " hello ", but not as much as he wishes." Back then, you ' d go into a bar, you ' d hear German on one end, and you ' d hear Czech on the other!"
The town of New Prague, MN, still holds a Czech Harvest Festival called Dožínky. Other towns, like Wilber, NE, also keep the tradition going strong.
14 betterlifeins. com