This year we observe the one-hundredth anniversary of Poland regaining its independence. Many people and many factors influenced this historical event. The crucial moment in Poland's return to the world map was the support of United States President Thomas Woodrow Wilson, who in his address to Congress in January 1918 staunchly supported the existence of an independent Poland with access to the sea, and that became the basis for the Treaty of Versailles. Neither can we pass over the contribution of the United States-Polish community, which produced 20,000 volunteers to form so-called the Blue Army, which fought with the primary goal of restoring Poland's independence.
In 1926, more than 5,500,000 citizens of the Second Polish Republic signed wishes for Americans on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of U.S. independence and to thank America for the support it showed to Poland and the Poles in regaining the country's independence in 1918. Among the signatories was the President of the Republic of Poland Ignacy Moscicki, Prime Minister Kazimierz Bartel and Marshal Jozef Pilsudski. The 111 volumes with 30,000 pages of signatures are currently deposited in the United States Library of Congress.
In observing the hundredth anniversary of Poland's regaining independence, we would like to repeat the initiative of the Poles from 1926. The Polish & Slavic Federal Credit Union invites all Polish ethnic organizations, parishes, schools and individuals to join the campaign to sign a petition thanking the United States for its contribution to the cause of Polish sovereignty in the past and today. "We, the sons and daughters of the Polish Nation, on the Hundredth Anniversary of Polish independence, wish to extend our thanks to the United States of America for its enormous contribution to the cause of Polish sovereignty." Every Pole or American of Polish descent will be able to affix their signature under that caption.
We are collecting signatures on this website as well as on specially printed sheets available at the branches of the Polish & Slavic Federal Credit Union, and at events held by Polish-American organizations. We are planning the culmination of the campaign during the traditional General Pulaski Day Parade, which will be held on October 7 on New York's Fifth Avenue. All signatures collected will be bound in volumes and given to representatives of the highest United States authorities at a special ceremony in Washington planned for October 2018.
We sincerely encourage you to join this campaign. We would like this "Thank You, America" to make its mark in this special year, the one-hundredth anniversary of Poland's regaining its independence, in gratitude for the help of the United States one hundred years ago, as well as for its support in Poland's accession to NATO and the presence of American soldiers in Poland today.
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Original text from www.deklaracjapolonii2018.org