The Polish Side
My grandparents on my mom’s side of the family emigrated from Poland to Minneapolis, Minnesota for a better life. I have many fond memories of Polish food, Polish relative gatherings, and events at the Polish White Eagle club while growing up.
My mom (left side) circa 1928 with four of her five siblings
The only downside was trying to remember how to spell my mom’s last name (Majkrzak) on all those forms that asked for “Mother’s Maiden Name.” And by the way, you’ll never pronounce it correctly without help, unless YOU’RE Polish, too!
Little did I know that when I moved to Chicago in 1978, it had the second largest population of Poles after Warsaw!
Solidarity Drive
Chicago’s Solidarity Drive pays homage to Poland’s Lech Walesa, whose Solidarity movement freed Poland from Communist rule in 1989.
Solidarity Drive connects Lake Shore Drive to the Adler Planetarium. As you walk along the north side of Solidarity Drive, the views of the city skyline to the north and to the west are simply spectacular. There’s a stepped walkway around the planetarium that allows you to dip your toes in Lake Michigan.
There’s also a statue of Thaddeus Kosciuszko, Polish hero of the American Revolution on the Drive. After arriving in America in 1776, Kosciuszko joined the Continental Army. A skilled engineer, he made significant contributions to the war by designing fortifications for several strategic locations including Philadelphia, West Point, and Saratoga. Kosciuszko later returned to Poland to lead his native military in a 1794 uprising.
The Shot
My hard-earned rule is to practice, practice, and practice some more before using a new piece of photo gear. Well, I violated my rule by not reviewing the camera settings for my new drone before heading downtown recently.
Accompanied by friends Jon Christofersen and Scott Fuller, we arrived about an hour before sunset to scout out locations near the Adler Planetarium. Jon and I were flying drones, and a composition looking down Solidarity Drive towards the city looked promising. And I liked the Polish connection.
The sky really cooperated, and I thought I had taken several nice photographs.
In reality, I mistakenly captured just two seconds of video footage.
This is a single low resolution video frame from that footage. While I can’t enlarge it and make a big print, it is large enough for social media and small screens.
Thanks for looking,
Chuck Derus