Jozef Cieminski

He was the first of ten children born to Franciszek and Maryanna Darzyn Cieminski, who emigrated from Prussian Poland (Kashubia) to the United States in 1881 aboard the paddle steamer Grimsby, which made him a participant in the Kashubian diaspora.

His first parish assignment transferred him to Saint Stanislaus Kostka in the newly established Diocese of Winona, where he served as assistant to the pastor, Father Jakub W.J.

The fact that Archbishop Ireland dispatched his secretary out of the diocese to work alongside the extremely capable Father Pacholski suggests that the disturbances at Saint Stanislaus were more substantial than the available information would indicate.

In 1907 Father Cieminski was recalled by the Diocese of Winona as pastor of Saint Casimir's Church in Wells, Minnesota; his three years in the little Faribault County town appear to have been free of any major troubles.

Holy Cross had been in turmoil for several years, due to a scandal which possibly involved its longtime pastor, Father Henryk Jazdzewski.

Sensing an opportunity, a faction of "independents" had already broken away from Holy Cross and founded Sacred Heart Polish National Church.

In 1946, his retirement after fifty-one years in the priesthood was celebrated with an outpouring of gratitude of respect from his parishioners, his fellow priests, and the Winona community.

Over his ninety-two years he had experienced - and taken an integral part in - dramatic changes for both the Roman Catholic Church in Minnesota and the Kashubian community of the Upper Mississippi Valley.