Local Photographer Wins Nationwide Photo Competition

The 32-year-old Lakewood resident last month was selected as the Grand Prize Winner of Lufthansa Airlines’ photo contest and was awarded two round trip tickets to Poland. The Celebrate Polonia photo contest was sponsoring to "showcase how you cherish and celebrate your Polish heritage." The promo coincided with the German airline’s effort to promote to their service to Poland to U.S. audiences. 

Aundrea Cika Heschmeyer: 
Guess who he has asked to accompany him on his free trip? ME!! I told him about the contest so he thinks it is only fair. Yeah! I hope you will share this unbelievable good providence and life-changing travel opportunity with your readers on www.poland.us

“I couldn’t believe it was real when I got the email and didn’t really believe it until I saw my name on their website,” says Stoll, a manager at Airport Fast Park who has never been out of the country. “I entered on a whim and just hoped for the best.” 

The winning photo is an action shot taken with his Nikon D50 during the performance of the group Zespol Goralski Siumni (Polish Highlander Folk Ensemble) in Chicago in April of this year. The photo captures a male dancer in midair performing the fancy footwork of the southern Poland mountain dances.


Trip winnig pic

What has the area’s Polish community excited is that although Stoll isn’t born of Polish heritage, he embraces the culture more than many native born Poles. “By birth I am pretty much a Heinz 57 variety,” he says, adding “but my friends say I’ve become more Polish than they are.”

His appreciation began when a friend invited him to join Syrena Polish Folk Dance Ensemble in Slavic Village 10 years ago. “I so enjoyed the dance that it encouraged me to learn more about the country, the people and their traditions. Poland has such a rich colorful history and has overcome so much! And the Polish and Polish-American people I’ve met are so proud of this legacy that their enthusiasm is contagious. I think anyone who gets exposed to it would get hooked just like I did.”

Stoll only purchased his camera in 2011, but he got into the hobby in a big way; when he shoots, he just doesn’t stop. “I must have a million images by now,” Stoll laughs. “The advantage of today’s digital photography is that you aren’t limited by amount of film and can just shoot until you get something you like.”

Stoll has until May 2013 to make his trip which has no restrictions on duration. “I’d like to travel during a holiday time, maybe Christmas or Easter, because the Polish people celebrate so many traditional customs during these times that would be awesome to photograph,” he says, mentioning the elaborate szopki, nativity crèches using the historical buildings of Kraków as a backdrop, as an item on his photo wish list. “But I haven’t booked my trip yet because I am trying to put together the money to cover costs of accommodations, local transportation, etc.”

Several fundraising events are currently in the works! For information or interviews, please contact Tim at 216-214-9763 or polish.dancer@yahoo.com

Aundrea Cika Heschmeyer
Director, PolishYoungstow
www.polishyoungstown.com