Oktoberfest to feature Bukovina Germans
OREN WINDHOLZ
SPECIAL TO THE HAYS DAILY NEWS
The Hays Daily News
Monday, August 20, 2007
(Posted with permission of the Hays Daily News, Hays, KS
Fall 2007
The annual Midwest Deutsche Oktoberfest, Sept. 15 and 16 at the Ellis County Fairgrounds, will feature two programs of interest to many residents of Ellis and other area people.
One of the most significant Immigrant groups to arrive in Ellis and points west were the Bukovina Germans who came from the Austrian Empire beginning in 1886, Among them were two sub groups, the Swabian Lutherans and the Bohemian Catholics. The forebears of these ethnic Germans had been attracted from Southwest Germany and Bohemia in Austria to settle the sparsely populated crown colony of Bukovina. Among them were skilled glass workers, forest workers and others in trades and farming to support the build up up of a glass industry.
The programs will start at noon Sept. 15 with Irmgard Ellingson’s material prepared on the Swabian Lutherans. This will be followed by a presentation created by Steve Parke on the Bohemian Catholics, Oren Windholz will be moderator for the sessions and those attending will also benefit from a question-and-answer Session with Bukovina Society board members. The Bukovina Society, an international heritage Organization, has been based in Ellis since its founding in 1988. Currently, there are 480 members including 41 from 11 foreign countries. A vast Web site can be viewed on Bukovina and the Society at www.bukovinasociety.org, the work of Werner Zoglauer, Naperville, IL. and Becky Hageman, Wichita, KS.
The two presentations are part of a series called German Heritage Days at Oktoberfest to be conducted in the Schenk Building in an air-conditioned meeting room. Information for the Oktoberfest is available at www.midwestdeutschefest.com
Oren Windholz is vice President of the Bukovina Society.