Srbadija Folklore recently announced their 2016-2017 Board Members that will help lead the youth folklore group at St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Church in Merrillville, Indiana.

Karen Knezic, president of the board again this year explained, “It is an honor to help continue leading this group and helping to connect young people who will cherish this experience throughout their lives. It’s also exciting to have such an enthusiastic group of parents stepping forward in leadership positions to that will really help strengthen the group.”

Knezic also added, “We are fortunate to have board members taking the lead in various aspects of Srbadija Folklore, but we couldn’t do any of this without the tireless dedication and effort from each and every parent, grandparent, and the other special people who bring the youth to the practices, the performances, and volunteer at our events. It really is a team effort and we are excited to move forward together in the year ahead.”

Srbadija Folklore Board Members for 2016-2017:

• President – Karen Knezic
• Vice President – Lela Jensen
• Secretary – Vesna Radjenovich
• Treasurer – Anka Dinich
• Special Events Coordinator – Billie Vrbica
• Fundraising Coordinator – Ursula Brboric

For more information about Srbadija Folklore, visit www.saintsava.net/folklore, follow the St. Sava Facebook Page or the Srbadija Facebook Page.

Srbadija Folklore is canceling he 3rd Annual Potato Creek Outing scheduled to take place Saturday, June 11 at Potato Creek State Park near South Bend due to a lack of confirmed participation by folklore group members.

Although the Potato Creek event is cancelled, all youth in Srbadija Folklore, from neighboring churches, and the general community are invited to experience more fun and fellowship at the St. Sava Summer Camp which begins Monday, June 13.

For more information about St. Sava Summer Camp, click here.

It’s all about fun and fellowship at the 3rd Annual Potato Creek Outing taking place Saturday, June 11 at Potato Creek State Park near South Bend with the youth folklore group Srbadija of St. Sava Church of Merrillville, Indiana playing the host.

The event is open to any youth at St. Sava, friends, and family, or anyone in the Northwest Indiana or Chicagoland region with young people looking for a fun start to the summer vacation. Everyone is welcome so please share this information! This is a great opportunity to learn more about the youth activities available at St. Sava Church in a fun and relaxing environment.

If you’re looking for more youth activities at St. Sava – please consider Summer Camp 2016 at St. Sava beginning Monday, June 13 – Click here to learn more

Srbadija Folklore will be providing grilling tools and charcoal for the grill at the shelter. As in years past, please bring food and games to share.

There will be opportunity to go boating and spend time at the beach so bring please remember towels, sunscreen, bathing suits, blankets and chairs.  Bug spray might be a good idea too.  Activities begin as early as 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time and the shelter is reserved until 11:00 p.m. so we can stay and build a fire/roast marshmallows as well. Feel free to come at any time during the day – stay for part of the day or stay all day and into the night!

For more information, please contact Karen Knezic at karen.knezic@saintsava.net or call her at 219-406-7910 if you need to contact her during the the event June 11.

For more information about Potato Creek State Park, please visit http://www.stateparks.com/ potato_creek_state_park_in_ indiana.html

They youth dance group Srbadija Folklore of St. Sava Serbian Orthodox Church, Merrillville, Indiana will be one of many groups celebrating culture through dance at the Second Annual Intercultural Dance Festival taking place Saturday, May 7 at 6:00 p.m. in the Pavilion at St. Sava Church, 9191 Mississippi Street, Merrillville, Indiana.

Srbadija Folklore, host of the event that is becoming an annual tradition, will also have Serbian cuisine, beverages, and famous bake sale items available for purchase throughout the evening. General admission tickets are open to the public and available at the door for $10. Everyone in the community is welcome to attend.

For those desiring a more complete cultural experience, a Serbian “Zabava” (open dance party) will be available for all participants and audience members with music provided by DJ Vinko at the conclusion of all the official performances in the program by the featured dance groups.

Scandinavian, Irish, West African, and Serbian are among the cultures to be represented through dance during the official program portion of the festival.

Participating dance groups include (in alphabetical order):

• Bozur Folklore Ensemble, Chicago, IL – Facebook Page
• Frula Folklore Ensemble of St. Elijah Serbian Church, Merrillville, IL – Facebook Page
• Gavrilo Princip Folklore Ensemble of St. Simeon Serbian Church, 114th South Chicago, IL – Facebook Page
• Kolo Folklore Ensemble of St. Archangel Michael Serbian Church, Lansing, IL – Facebook Page
• Mayer School of Irish Dance, Chesterton, IN – Website | Facebook Page
• Nordikids, Munster, IN – Website | Facebook Page
• Hoosier Strings Jr. Tamburitza, Merrillville, IN
• South Shore Dance Alliance, Griffith, IN – Website | Facebook Page
• Srbadija Folklore of St. Sava Serbian Church, Merrillville, IN – Website | Facebook Page
• Tromedja Folklore Ensemble of St. George Serbian Church, Schererville, IN

This year there will be some familiar dance groups from the inaugural festival and some new additions to the lineup. More information about the performers, new additions to the program, and what you can expect to experience at the festival will be available as the event draws near.

The inaugural Intercultural Festival hosted in May 2015 took place in the new Pavilion at St. Sava and drew more than 400 people.

Last year groups represented different regions of Serbia, Mexico, Greece, Ireland, and India in the performance. Several of the Serbian troupes traveled from Illinois, Wisconsin, and Canada.

Please save-the-date Saturday, May 7 for the Second Annual Intercultural Festival, hosted by Srbadija Folklore at St. Sava Church, 9191 Mississippi Street, Merrillville, IN 46410. For more information, visit the www.saintsava.net/folklore website.