Kennywood To Continue Tradition Of Honoring Heritage Days

WEST MIFFLIN (KDKA) -- It's not all coasters and bungee jumps on a hot day at Kennywood Park.

Kennywood will continue their tradition of honoring different heritages by holding Italian Day on July 12th.

The day is being hailed as one of Western Pennsylvania's oldest traditional ethnic days.

Kennywood held Slovak American Day in 2013.

Descendants of mill workers celebrate the color and cuisine of those who came before.

More than 100,000 Slovaks live in the Pittsburgh area. And about 2,000 turned out for Slovak Day. For organizer Dolores Sakal, it's a recipe for remembrance.

"It's just part of our heritage," she says. "And I like to do it. And as long as we have good women that are able to do it, then we will continue."

Fr. Joe Grosko, of Saint Agnes Church, shares stories with Fr. Martin Stefanic of Slovakia.

Slovak Consul General Jana Trnoveova, based in New York, says this year marks the independent republic's 20th anniversary.

"I know that in Pittsburgh there's a huge Slovak community," she says. "That means that these people have to show to the others their culture because their culture contributed to the development of Pittsburgh."

Anna Golofski, 94, has attended every Slovak Day, including the one in 1937 when she met her future husband.

"I didn't want to go with him," she recalls, "and the girls said, 'Go ahead. Go.' He was in his soldier's uniform. So that was it."

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