9 June, 2005
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Globeville- The historic Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Cathedral Parish in Globeville (North Denver) announces the second annual "Orthodox Food Festival". The event is scheduled for Saturday the 30th and Sunday the 31st of July at the Church's 47th and Logan location and at the adjacent Argo Park. The times are 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Saturday and from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Sunday.

The two-day event will feature the cuisine of the various cultures, which have found a home in Globeville and in the Holy Transfiguration Community. Visitors can sample foods and deserts from Russia, Ukraine, Romania, Greece, Italy, Serbia, Slovakia, Mexico and Southwestern and Western American.

Entertainment will be provided, throughout the festival, by local musical, vocal and folk dance groups. Many games and attractions will be provided for children. Tours of the Church, music by the Church Choir, an exhibition of Orthodox Iconography will be featured. There will also be kiosks, with Eastern European and Eastern Orthodox books, jewelry, devotional, decorative and gift items.

Father Joseph Hirsch, Dean of the historic Church, points out that the recent Designation of Holy Transfiguration as a "Cathedral" was not a recognition of its size but, specifically, of its historical importance as one of the half dozen oldest Orthodox Temples in the lower 48 states and of its continuous and recent contribution to the civic culture and improved quality of life of the Globeville Neighborhood.

"We have had this mid- summer event for 107 years," the priest states, "but last year, we decided that we should take advantage of it as an opportunity to invite the whole Front Range to come down and share the fun with us, to learn a little bit about our Historic Church and about the neighborhood in which we were planted and where we have chosen to remain. It was a terrific success and we received many compliments on the quality and variety both of the food and of the entertainment."

He explains that, when he and his family arrived in the early 1980s, all of the traditional Protestant Churches had moved out of the Neighborhood. Both Roman Catholic parochial schools had closed down and many members of Holy Transfiguration felt that the Parish had little choice but to move to the suburbs. However, after much serious soul searching, the congregation developed a strategic plan, which committed its people to, "Bloom where we were planted." As the two decades have passed, the Parish has lived out this commitment by building a large Community Hall on the property, selling its south Denver property, and assisting the Globeville Community to fend off a series of threats which included a plan to convert it into an industrial park, a proposal to close down the Highway ramps serving the neighborhood and bad publicity resulting from the discovery of pollution in the residential lawns.

The Priest's wife, Paulette Hirsch, has served for most of twenty years as an officer of the Registered Neighborhood Organization. She has served as a consultant to the ASARCO Medical Monitoring project, the CDOT "Mousetrap" Design Team, as well as city bond, zoning, recreation and transportation task forces. She has been a member of the Board of Laradon Hall and is, presently, President of the Globeville United Neighbors and serves on the Board of the Elyria, Swansea, Globeville Business Association.

"The truth," Fr. Joseph states, "is that it was her idea to turn our annual Parish event into an opportunity to draw attention to the entire neighborhood." In fact, this is a landmark year for both the Parish and the Neighborhood as it marks both the long awaited widening and redevelopment of the Washington Street Corridor and the Church's application for an historical preservation grant from the "Sacred Structures" project of the Colorado Historical Society. "First," says Fr. Joseph, "We want to make sure that this Church Building is in condition to survive another hundred years. Then, we plan to build a larger Church right here in Globeville to accommodate our new arrivals, which include refugees from, Uzbekistan, Eritrea and Ethiopia and spiritual ÔPilgrims' from almost every nationality and culture in America." One of the purposes to which income from the Festival will be applied is to secure matching funds for the Historical Preservation Grant.

"We are hopeful", says Fr. Joseph, "that by continuing to hold this event, we will be establishing a tradition that will become part of Globeville and Denver's annual summer calendar."