Anna M. (Zajac) Gacek, 99, of New Bedford died Thursday December 4, 2008 at Hathaway Manor Extended Care Facility. She was the wife of the late Bronislaw J. Gacek.
Born in Northbridge, she was the daughter of the late Michael and Mary (Dynko) Zajac.
She was a graduate of Hyannis Teachers College and was the fifth grade teacher at the Parting Ways School in Acushnet from 1935- 1971. She studied at the Jagellionian University in Krakow and the University of Warsaw during the summers of 1936 and 1939 under the auspices of the Kosciuszko Foundation in New York. She taught Polish classes at the Pilsudski School of Polish Culture in New Bedford for many years.
Mrs. Zajac was a very dedicated person in regard to Polish culture and history here in the United States and also in Poland. She was the founder of the Polish Women's Business and Professional Club of Greater New Bedford in 1937 and received recognition for her devotion to the club and was made an honorary member at the 50th celebration of the organization in 1987.
She served as president of the Massachusetts Federation of Polish Women's Clubs Inc. from 1940-1943 and was honored as Woman of the Year in 1979 at the annual convention held in Three Rivers, MA.
In 1945 she became involved with the Sarmatia Art Guild, which was a national organization which sponsored art competitions throughout the United States in which children and adults participated. She was chairman of the competition during the millennium of Poland in 1966. She was the director of the local Sarmatia Folk Dancers and was the choreographer for several years.
She was awarded first prize, a hand painted dowry chest from the Lowicz district in Poland which was filled with many hand made folk articles, in a international competition sponsored by the Polonia Organization.
In commemoration of the 110th and 160th anniversaries of Ignace Jan Paderewski and Frederic Chopin, Mrs. Gacek issued unique blue prints that she prepared and Matthew Gacek of Syracuse, NY (no relation) was commissioned to draw up. The print was published on October 17, 1970 and commemorative prints were distributed throughout the country to various libraries and also in Poland. She wrote an "Ode To Poland" which was published in the Catholic Digest and was chosen for the Braille Edition. "America, I Speak To Thee" was written after the Yalta Treaty and was published by the Polish American United Organizations in New Bedford and was sent to every member in Congress.
She organized her own publishing house known as the Sarmatia Publications and published three books which reached folk art enthusiasts throughout the country. The books were on "Wycinanki", Polish folk paper cuts, and "Pisanki", Easter egg decorating.
A display case was donated to the Pulaski School in New Bedford by the Polish Women's Business and Professional Club and Mrs. Gacek donated the Polish artifacts and costumes that are on display. Even though she never had children of her own, she devoted her life to educating her students and many other children regardless of their cultural background. She received the "Honor of Merit Cross" from the Polish government in exile in 1953 for meritorious service and also was awarded a citation from the Sarmatia Universal, Inc. in Cambridge in 1960. Mrs. Gacek was awarded "Hats Off" by the Standard-Times in 1938, 1952, and 1961.
Mrs. Gacek was a member of the Delta Kappa Gamma Society for Teachers. She was a composer of original songs and poems which were published in many Polish and American periodicals. She was awarded poet of the year in 1991 and 1992 by the World of Poetry. Many of her treasured artifacts and publications were donated to the Orchard Lake Schools, in Orchard Lake, Michigan. A room in the archives was dedicated to her. The Kosciuszko Foundation in New York and the Polish Cultural Center in Washington, D.C. also received donations.
She is survived by four nephews, Michael Zajac and his Ann and Peter Zajac and his wife Judith, all of New Bedford, Henry Zajac and his wife Kathy of Mattapoisett, and Mort Zajac and his wife Barbara of Mashpee; four nieces, Janet Shartle and her husband Len of Fairhaven, Rosemary Bowman and her husband Walter of Mattapoisett, Suzanne Whitehead and her husband Paul of Rochester, and Paula Lambalot and her husband Charles of Mansfield; and many great-nieces and great-nephews.
She was the sister of the late Thaddeus Zajac, Henry Zajac, Bertha Debski, Wanda Zajac, and Micheline Zajac.
Her Funeral Mass will be celebrated on Tuesday at 10 AM at St. Julie Billiart Church. Burial will follow in St. Mary's Cemetery. Visiting hours will be on Monday from 3-6 PM at the Saunders-Dwyer Home for Funerals, 495 Park St., New Bedford. For directions and guestbook, please visit www.saundersdwyer.com.