Special recognition for East Village Slovene parish

Slovenia’s Foreign Minister Dimitrij Rupel visited the Church of St. Cyril (62 St. Mark's Place) as the parish celebrated its 90th jubilee.

He bestowed the Award of the Government Office for Slovenes Abroad on the parish, in recognition of the church’s work preserving Slovene culture and language among immigrants, and promoting Slovene culture to the general public in New York City.

"The St. Cyril Parish was for long the door through which Slovenian immigrants entered the US and where they found their first shelter," Rupel said on Sunday, thanking the Slovenian Franciscan order for establishing the church.