A Polish flag was draped on the table as members of the Polish Society of Penn State dug into a meal of traditional Polish food during their Christmas dinner Tuesday night.
Robert Dziuba (freshman-business) founded the Polish Society this semester to bring together people interested in Polish culture and to "celebrate and promote it."
"It means getting to know other people who have similar tastes and similar backgrounds and celebrating my identity," Dziuba said.
The dinner, held in Beaver Hall, was for club members to get together before winter break. Club officers and a few members spent the last few days cooking to prepare for the Christmas feast, Dziuba said.
"We miss our Polish culture. There's something about it. At home, it's a big community. It's a unique bond, especially if you know the language," Vice President Daria Koscielniak said.
Although the dinner wasn't a traditional Polish Christmas dinner, it featured many traditional Polish dishes such as pierogies and apple pancakes, Julia Tomaszewsky, club secretary, said.
A traditional Polish Christmas dinner would include fish and Oplatek, both of which were not included in the dinner Tuesday night.
Oplatek is a large rectangular wafer, similar to a Communion wafer offered in Christian churches. During a Polish Christmas dinner, the host would break the wafer into pieces for everyone. Attendees then breaks a piece off of everyone else's wafer and wish them well.
The Oplatek was not included because it is religious, Tomaszewsky (sophomore-public relations) said.
Tomaszewsky said she was born in Poland and had thought about starting a Polish club in the past. She described the club as "finding a home away from home" and a base that allows people to "connect with others on a certain level culturally."
Justyna Baginska (freshman-chemical engineering) came to America three years ago and said the meal reminded her of home and of celebrating Christmas at home.
"It's a good substitute since I won't be home for Christmas," she said.
Joey Domino's grandmother is 100 percent Polish and he wanted to join the club "to find out traditions to go home and impress her ... and cook her a recipe for Christmas," he said.
Even though he was excited to learn some of the Polish traditions, his favorite part of the club is the people involved.
"Polish people are more friendly. They're all open. No one is afraid to introduce themselves. They're a good bunch of people," Domino said.
The club is planning a New York trip in late March and plans to offer Polish classes to interested students, Dziuba said.
