Wauconda church blesses Easter baskets in Polish, English ceremonies

In her Sunday best, with white flowers in each pigtail, Carmen Korsak plopped down with her Easter basket in her lap and tore off the lace cover.

Her mom, Magda, slightly embarrassed, tried her best to pry her 2-year-old daughter from the goodies. And then she softened and pulled out a camera. There was no turning back.

Carmen, proceeded to dig into a hard-boiled egg, unfazed by the religious ceremony going on around her. A few steps away, Rev. Ron Gollatz blessed Easter baskets filled with candies and sweet pastries.

Then, it was the grown-ups' turn. The priest blessed traditional Polish Easter baskets, stuffed with what will become the families' hearty Easter dinner: grated horseradish, smoked hams and sausages, salt, cheese, bread and a candle.

Two services were held, one in English, and another, more popular one in Polish at Transfiguration Parish in Wauconda Saturday.

While the tradition has its roots in Eastern Europe, Latino families are embracing it, too, Gollatz said.

"The very ordinary things of our life always can connect us with God, with the spiritual," said Gollatz, pastor of the Catholic church. "Here, it's the instance of food."

Families will indulge in the spread Sunday after 40 days of fasting and sacrifice during Lent.

"You're supposed to behave for 40 days and then after that ... that's why we came here to celebrate with the church," said Daniel Polonyi, a Slovakian native, who snapped pictures with his wife and two kids, Daniel and Alexandra.

Growing up in a Polish enclave on Chicago's Near North side, Gerald Zonca dressed in his finest and joined hundreds walking through their neighborhoods to church to get their baskets blessed.

"It was a real experience to go to that service in those days," he said. "The community was strong. When everybody came together, it was a large community event."

Saturday's ceremony was much more intimate, but Zonca, now living near Crystal Lake, made sure to pass along the significance of the event - giving thanks, gathering as a family - to his granddaughter, Afton.

Head to toe in pink, with an Easter bonnet capping off her outfit, the 6-year-old girl carried a more modern basket with chocolates. Zonca and his wife Barbara fashioned another with authentic breads and meats.

"We try to keep everything as you remember it," he said.