Konekt Polish Canadian Professionals

06/07/2026

🪖🎖️

Poland has formally requested a permanent US military base on its soil — and the numbers behind this request tell the whole story.

Poland currently hosts over 10,000 US troops, making it one of the largest US military presences in Europe. But Poland isn't just asking for protection — it's paying for it.

In 2024, Poland became the first NATO country in history to spend 4% of GDP on defense. In 2025, that number climbed to 5% — making Poland the single highest defense spender in the entire NATO alliance, ahead of the United States itself (3.4%).

For comparison:
🇵🇱 Poland: 5% of GDP on defense
🇺🇸 United States: 3.4%
🇩🇪 Germany: 2.1%
🇫🇷 France: 2.1%

Poland has purchased 96 F-35 fighter jets, 250 M1A2 Abrams tanks, and 500 HIMARS rocket systems — all from the US. It has also committed €2.5 billion to build a 700km fortified wall along its border with Russia and Belarus, called the East Shield.

This is not a country asking to be defended. This is a country that has already built its own army — and is now asking for a permanent partner.

Source: NATO, Polish Ministry of Defense, 2025

06/06/2026

Real Ones Know 💅🍺🌲

Thanks to for supporting Konekt Polish Canadian Professionals.

06/06/2026

❤️😢

In 2014, a Columbia University student named Emma Sulkowicz picked up a fifty-pound dormitory mattress and refused to put it down until the institution that cleared her assailant was forced to look at what it had done.

Sulkowicz, an American art student born in 1991, had reported a sexual assault to Columbia's internal disciplinary office. The university cleared the accused. So Sulkowicz turned the complaint into an object and carried it everywhere.

The protest, titled "Carry That Weight," ran for nearly two full semesters. Sulkowicz brought the mattress to class, across campus, and finally to the 2015 graduation ceremony. The accused student filed his own lawsuit against the university. Federal regulators were already watching. The protest fed directly into a national reckoning over how Title IX was being applied, or not applied, at American universities, and contributed to rule changes that reached well beyond Columbia's campus.

The institution's failure was invisible until it was fifty pounds and impossible to ignore.

She made the room hers.

06/01/2026

Happy Pride Month! We are super proud that we are one of the few Polonia organizations that’s outwardly & explicitly inclusive, regardless of sexual orientation, identity, race, language ability, political or religious beliefs. We celebrate diversity and your right to practice your “Polishness”, free from bigotry. Our only ask of all the community? Be inclusive! Be kind! Don’t be as***le! You don’t have to “like” everyone’s lifestyle, beliefs or personhoodin order to Konekt, but we do ask for kindness and tolerance. It’s this formula that’s built a vibrant community, filled with many types of people… some of whom aren’t even Polish!

We are honoured that our community has allowed so many to (re)connect with their Polish identity. Did you know the original Konekter BOD were publicly disparaged for our explicit stance? Accused that we would destroy Polonia? (This actually happened 😂)

Worth it! The formula worked. I’m elated that we proved the bigots & haters wrong. ☮️🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️❤️🙏🏼🙏🏾🙏🏿
🌈

05/31/2026

🌕✨ Under May’s Blue Moon, we celebrate the beautiful Polish folk tradition of Sypanie Piasku (sand sprinkling). Originating from Małopolska and around Kraków, this folk art is a ritual believed to:

🌾 Promote fertility and healthy harvests
💰 Attract abundance and prosperity
🛡️ Protect homes, families, and communities
🐍 Ward off evil, envy, lies & mischief
🤝 Strengthen goodwill and unity among neighbours
✨ Bless the season ahead with growth and opportunity
🚪 Create boundaries against thieves and those who would do harm
✝️ in Polish Catholicism, it was also a way of welcoming Christ into the community 🌱 for Spring and “paving a path”

What makes Sypanie Piasku special is that everyone participates! Young, old, families & friends working together to create something beautiful while collectively blessing and protecting their community. The temporary art is appreciated and then blown away. There is something powerful about people joining together with good intentions, especially when faced with negativity, division, or those who work against the greater good. 🌿

As we align with this rare Blue Moon, may we manifest abundance, fertility, prosperity, strong friendships, and protection for our families & our community 🌕✨

Some traditions endure because their wisdom never goes out of style. ❤️🇵🇱

05/29/2026

😢 Very disappointing & disturbing news. Konekt members and the greater Polish Canadian community rushed to the aid of the Ukrainians - fundraising, arranging housing, transport, protesting, lobbying and supply drives.

🇵🇱🇺🇦 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s decision to name the Independent Special Operations Center "North" after the "Heroes of the UPA" provokes strong opposition and deep concern, directly undermining Polish-Ukrainian relations.

It must be stated unequivocally that the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA), operating alongside the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), was the principal perpetrator of the genocide against the Polish civilian population, which claimed the lives of over 100,000 people.

Since the very first day of Russia's full-scale aggression, Poland has stood in full solidarity with Ukraine, providing humanitarian, military, and diplomatic support. Given this magnitude of commitment and goodwill, the official commemoration of a criminal organization by the Ukrainian authorities is an act that severely damages mutual trust.

By the standards of the Western world, to which Kyiv aspires, such actions are incomprehensible. Building lasting, good-neighborly relations between Poland and Ukraine is impossible unless they are rooted in a foundation of historical truth and mutual respect.

05/28/2026

❤️🇵🇱

Poland’s beloved rosół 🇵🇱🍲 may soon gain global recognition!

The Museum of King Jan III’s Palace at Wilanów is campaigning to add the “tradition of rosół in Poland” to UNESCO’s intangible cultural heritage list. More than just chicken soup, rosół is a symbol of Polish family traditions, Sunday dinners, hospitality, and generations of home cooking.

From grandmothers’ kitchens to holiday tables, rosół has been bringing people together for centuries — and now it could become part of the world’s protected cultural heritage.

Do you think rosół deserves a place on the UNESCO list?

05/26/2026

😍 Guess what! Konekt attended the reception for Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz to celebrate the 80th of the Polish Combatants’ Association (SPK) in Canada, an organization committed to preserving the memory of our veterans and creating spaces for commanderie.

Last night, two of our Konekt Members were honoured for their service.

Congratulations to Konekt Members:
🏅 Monika Kardyś - President of the Main Board of SPK in Canada
🏅 Jim Wielgosz - President of SPK 20 Branch

The evening also honoured veterans of World War II: Mr. Edward Zimny (2nd Polish Corps) and Ms. Stanisława Gryz (Peasant Battalions). It was moving and emotional for many in the room.

The event was enjoyed the presence of longtime Konekt lecturer, Polish Ambassador Witold Dzielski, Minister of Long Term Care Natalia Kusendova Bashta (Konekt Member ❤️), Consul General of Poland in Toronto Marek Ciesielczuk, and President of the Canadian Polish Congress Dominik Roszak (Konekt Member ❤️).

What a moving & star studded night!

02/20/2026

Due to Member’s Interest, our Summer Social will be a millennial throwback...

Metric Concert
with Broken Social Scene & Stars

Friday August 7th
Door Open 6 pm
Konekt Members - $77 (tax incl.)
The Look Out Deck includes private bar & private restrooms

Sale ends on Feb 26th to secure our group rate.

To register, please e-transfer your payment to [email protected]

Members can buy tickets for friends at the member rate.

Not a member? Find tickets on Ticketmaster. This is a member appreciation event :)

02/13/2026

Great Pączki Day at SPK Branch 20 Toronto 😋