Trustees Honor Roll

Balasko, Fr George

Polka Priest (1934)
Inducted on November 28, 1992

As creator of the Polka Mass, Father George Balasko has made a truly unique contri-bution to Cleveland-style polkas. Father Balasko grew up with polka music in his Cleveland neighborhood. When the Vatican permitted musical variations on the liturgy in the 1960s, Father Balasko reworked the beloved melodies of his youth with English lyrics that appealed to church-goers of all nationalities. Accompanied by the Bobby Timko Orchestra, he celebrated the very first Polka Mass on Memorial Day, 1972, at Holy Rosary Church in Lowellville, Ohio, near Youngstown. He subsequently released "All Ye Nations, Sing out Your Joy: The Polka Mass Goes International." Father Balasko co-founded the Jewish-Christian Dialogue in 1974, hosting pilgrimages to the Holy Land and a syndicated TV series. His Polka Mass is a feature of many community festivals.