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New Board Installed at PACC Annual Meeting

March 31, 2023

The Polish American Chamber of Commerce (PACC) Annual Meeting and Business After Hours gathering on Thursday, March 23, 2023, was a remarkable occasion. The event was held at the Polish Museum of America (PMA). Celebrating its 150th anniversary year, the Polish Roman Catholic Union of America (PRCUA) was the main sponsor of the event.

At the beginning of the official program of the evening, outgoing PACC President Iwona Filipiak welcomed the large group of PACC members and other guests, which included, Consul Michal Arciszewski of the Consulate General of the Republic of Poland in Chicago; Head of Foreign Trade Office of the Polish Investment & Trade Agency (PAIH) Michal Rzeznik; Cook County Commissioner Bridget Degnen (12th District); Director of Public Affairs of the City of Chicago Department of Business Affairs & Consumer Protection (BACP) Elisa Sledzinska; President of the International Trade Club of Chicago Fabrice Bonvoisin; President of the Alliance of Polish Clubs Dr. Lucja Mirowska-Kopec; Honorary President of the Alliance of Polish Clubs and Constitution Day Parade Coordinator Jan Kopec; Director of the Queen of the May 3 Parade Pageant Ewa Ruminski; President of the Polish American Medical Society Dr. Peter Brukasz; Former IL State Senator Walter Dudycz; Chief Operating Officer of Selfreliance Federal Credit Union Peter J. Ilnyckyj; and President of Selfreliance Association Walter Tun.

Warm welcoming remarks on behalf of the sponsors of the evening were offered by the President of the PRCUA and Chairman of the PMA, James Robaczewski, and by the Managing Director of the PMA, Malgorzata Kot.

The official program of the event also featured a presentation of recent accomplishments and plans of the Chamber for the remainder of 2023 by PACC Executive Director Bogdan Pukszta and Marketing/PR Associate Monica Lebensztejn. The highlight of the presentation was the introduction and installation of the PACC 2023-2024 Board of Directors.

As a result of the recent election process, the 2023-2024 Board of the association will include the following Directors who were reelected:

  • Agnieszka Bastrzyk, PRCUAlife
  • Iwona Filipiak, BHHS Chicago Real Estate
  • Greg Handzel, Handzel & Associates LTD
  • Henry Kazmierczak, H & L Homes LLC
  • Jola Santocka, Polamer, Inc.
  • Stanley Skoczen, Omega Structures, Inc.
  • Aneta Szulakiewicz, General Masonry Supply Venture LLC
  • Anna Tukiendorf, TTI Medical Training

The following Directors are a new addition to the Board:

  • Greg Kaminski, Craftwood, Inc.
  • Agnes Mroczkowski, Saturn Title LLC
  • Donald Pasek, Omniterra Real Properties
  • Pawel Petrykowski, Paulo Gelato & Chocolate
  • Anna Pulit, Landtrust Title Services
  • Dan Ramir, LWSC Multilingual Safety Training
  • Elzbieta Unat, Ella Hair Studio
  • Sergiusz Zgrzebski, Zgrzebski Property Group LLC

President of the PRCUA James Robaczewski helped administer the traditional charge & oath of office. The new Board of Directors will serve the PACC for the next two years and will soon meet to elect Officers of the Board.

According to Executive Director Bogdan Pukszta, “The leadership skills and as well as business and organizational experience that Members of the 2021-2022 Board possess are superb and are the right combination at the right time for the PACC. I look forward to working with all of them, as we continue to serve the interests of our members and strive to contribute to Chicago area’s economic development and enhanced US-Poland business and trade.”

A special thank you was presented to the outgoing Board President, Iwona Filipiak, Secretary Lukasz Dudka, and Treasurer Margaret Borla.

The PACC also welcomed the following new members at the meeting:

  • Selfreliance Association
  • Selfreliance Federal Credit Union
  • PNC Bank, and
  • Nicole Budz

Upon acceptance of the PACC Membership Certificate, President of Selfreliance Association Walter Tun thanked the PACC for helping the Ukrainian Community at this dark time of war.

The program concluded with the drawing of door prizes, which were sponsored by Dziennik Zwiazkowy, the Polish Museum of America, TTI Medical Training School, Detroit City Distillery, and the Logan Square Chamber of Commerce.

Thank you to Andrzej Brach for capturing the evening’s moments. Please click to view Photo Gallery 1 and Photo Gallery 2.