‘You feel so refreshed’
Thousands of Poles complete pilgrimage from Chicago to Merrillville
“Wstawaj kolego, idziemy,” the man said to a younger boy, who was resting his head on his hand with his eyes closed.
Translated into English, “wake up, friend, we’re headed out,” the man gently prodded the boy to get moving.
“Wyspałeś się?” another man asked a teen boy, asking him if he slept well.
At around 6:30 a.m. Aug. 8, hundreds of Polish people were either sprawled through the parking lot or sat around religious shrines at the Carmelite Fathers Monastery in Munster preparing for the second day of their pilgrimage.
The pilgrimage started Saturday from St. Michael’s Church at 83rd Street and South Shore Drive in Chicago, where thousands of Poles walked 22 miles to the monastery in Munster. On Sunday morning, the group walked the final 11 miles of the pilgrimage to Our Lady of Czestochowa Shrine in Merrillville, where they attended Mass.
Dozens of tents were spread out across the monastery, but those without tents braved the night sleeping on pews inside the church. Robert Rygiel, 46, of Chicago, said he first fell asleep on a pew inside the church but he ended up sleeping outside on a bench because he was too cold inside the air-conditioned church.
To prepare for the second stretch of the pilgrimage, everyone had different approaches: Some wrote final intentions or prayers, which is a way to dedicate the walk on behalf of a person or cause; some sat with their heads bowed or kneeled in front of statutes on the monastery grounds; and some ate pastries and drank coffee.
In Poland, people walk from various major cities across the country — like Szczecin and Warsaw — to Czestochowa, located in south central Poland, to the shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa, or the Black Madonna, which is located in a monastery on a hill called Jasna Gora, said Margaret Sniezko, a Polish school teacher from Lemont, Illinois.
The history, Sniezko said, dates back to 1655 when the Swedish invaded the area of Jasna Gora but the Poles were able to defeat them. Ultimately, Mary was honored as Our Lady of Czestochowa, the queen of Poland, she said.
“Mary saved Czestochowa ... and in Merrillville there is the same portrait of Mary,” Sniezko said.
A little after 7 a.m., the pilgrimage started south on White Oak Avenue with people taking up the majority of the road. There were multiple work vans, with speakers, driving slowly amid the sea of people so that everyone could hear the prayers, songs and testimonies.
As they started walking, the second day
of the pilgrimage began with a prayer and then a priest addressed the crowd in a motivational, homily-style speech about how life — like a miles-long walk — is full of challenges. But, the priest said, as long as people push forward — or put one foot in front of the other — and stay focused then life is more manageable.
Iwona Jakubiak, of Palos Hills, Illinois, was walking along with her 14-year-old daughter, Gabriela, and said the pilgrimage helps her grow her faith. Listening to the speakers while walking, Jakubiak said, makes her feel like things can only get better.
“You feel so refreshed. Once you finish the final Mass, you feel fulfilled,” Jakubiak said.
Karolina Stachacz, 31, from Lemont, said it was her fifth time walking this pilgrimage. Stachacz was walking with Patrycja Niemczura, 33, of Streamwood, Illinois, who said it was her fourth time walking this pilgrimage.
The pair said they started the pilgrimage from Chicago but then went home to shower and sleep before returning to finish the pilgrimage Sunday.
Stachacz said she enjoys walking the pilgrimage because is allows her to deepen her faith along with so many other people.
“I like meeting new people and renewing my faith,” Stachacz said.
The pilgrimage presents many challenges: hunger, body pains and weather elements, Stachacz said. But, “then it goes away” as you talk to people or focus on the prayers and songs.
The pair walked together, but Stachacz said she usually motivates Niemczura toward the end of the walk and carries her friend’s backpack.
Niemczura said it’s worth it.
“I always cry when we enter the chapel,” Niemczura said.
Sniezko, the Polish school teacher from Lemont, said she has done the pilgrimage in Poland from Gdańsk to Czestochowa. Gdańsk is located in Northern Poland, along the Baltic coast, so the pilgrimage to Czestochowa takes 16 days, she said.
The Polish pilgrimages are organized by multiple parishes in cities along the route to Czestochowa, Sniezko said, so the families within a church agree to house and feed those walking for a night. Some families are able to offer a spare room in a home and others let walkers camp out on their property, she said.
The day before making it to Czestochowa, the walkers walk up a hill where they are instructed to apologize for something they’ve done, Sniezko said, with the hopes of letting that burden go at the top of the hill. Some people carry a rock up that hill, she said, and leave it at the top to symbolize that release.
“A pilgrimage has meaning,” Sniezko said. “Some do it to give thanks or to ask for help or to apologize.”
Doing the pilgrimage from Chicago to Merrillville is a way to pass on the tradition to her five children, Sniezko said. In years past, Sniezko said she wanted to take her children to Poland to do the pilgrimage, but finding 16 days of vacation time was challenging.
But this local pilgrimage gives them the same experience on a smaller scale, she said, adding that they always camp on the Carmelite Fathers property to get the most of the experience.
“I’m happy about that,” Sniezko said.
Veronica Alvardo, 18, of Chicago, said she enjoys praying, singing and hearing people’s stories as she walks. This year, Alvardo said, she was glad the pilgrimage was still planned because the priest who originally started the pilgrimage the Rev. Jozef Zuziak died July 27.
“It’s good to do this, to honor him,” Alvardo said.
Alvardo was walking with her friend, Maja Keska, 19, of Lake Zurich, Illinois, who said this was her first time at the pilgrimage. The two camped together, Keska said, which she enjoyed along with the praying and sense of community.
The worst part, they both agreed, is the foot pain and the blisters. But, that’s why people walk in small groups so they have support and encouragement.
“Friends push through it with you,” Alvardo said.
The sun and heat started to intensify around 10:30 a.m., when the group stopped for an hour near Main Street and Gatlin Drive in Calumet Township. During the break, most people ate sandwiches, while others laid in the shade.
This was the only break of the day, about 4.5 miles away from the shrine in Merrillville.
When they picked back up, the crowd seemed quieter, in that there was less chatter among small groups of acquaintances, but united in prayer.
With seemingly one voice, the crowd was singing the verses of the rosary lost in the prayer.
As the group walked through Highland, cars honked and drivers waved. Throughout the whole walk, anyone outside their home or a business waved at the group and those walking waved back.
With about three miles to go, Niemczura handed her backpack to Stachacz, as she anticipated she would. Niemczura started limping slightly and walked a few feet behind her friend, so Stachacz reached her hand out behind her.
The two friends walked one in front of the other, holding hands and praying together.
Near the intersection of 57th Avenue and Broadway in Merrillville, about a half mile away from the shrine, two nuns stood along the route waving to those walking by.
“Jesteście dzielni,” one nun called out, telling the walkers they are brave.
As the group turned off of Broadway, just moments from the shrine, the walkers started waving yellow handkerchiefs — which symbolizes their love to Mary and their thanks for completing the walk — and singing powerfully to the Black Madonna.
Around the gates of the shrine, people stood clapping, crying and waving to their loved ones as they entered the grounds. Those standing also sang to the Black Madonna, amplifying the prayer.
Near the gates, Stachacz started tearing up.
“I’m excited. We’re happy we did it,” Stachacz said. “I’m crying.”
The walkers entered the shrine to kneel in front of Mary’s portrait. As they exited, many wept while others sat or laid in the grass — the final rest after a 33-mile walk.