[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 741 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 741
Expressing support for the designation of the month of September 2022
as ``Macedonian American Heritage Month'' and celebrating the
Macedonian language, history, and culture of Macedonian Americans and
their incredible contributions to the United States.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 22, 2021
Mr. Brendan F. Boyle of Pennsylvania (for himself, Mrs. Dingell, Mrs.
McClain, and Ms. Tenney) submitted the following resolution; which was
referred to the Committee on Oversight and Reform
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Expressing support for the designation of the month of September 2022
as ``Macedonian American Heritage Month'' and celebrating the
Macedonian language, history, and culture of Macedonian Americans and
their incredible contributions to the United States.
Whereas there is evidence that the earliest Macedonian presence in the
continental United States arrived on or around the year 1492;
Whereas since the 1880s, tens of thousands of Macedonians fled to America
seeking civil liberties, human rights, religious freedom, and economic
opportunities, and in response to the 1903 Ilinden Uprising against the
Ottoman Empire, the 1912-1913 Balkan Wars, the two World Wars, the Greek
Civil War, and the policies of Communist Yugoslavia;
Whereas currently the Macedonian community in the United States is a vibrant one
that is embedded within the American mosaic, partaking in all walks of
life, business, medicine, law, technology, civic engagement, government,
the military, education, the arts, culinary world, athletics, and more;
Whereas the United Macedonian Diaspora estimates there are half a million
Americans of Macedonian heritage living in the United States, with
sizeable communities in Michigan, New York, Ohio, New Jersey, Indiana,
Illinois, Pennsylvania, Florida, California, Arizona, Texas, and
Virginia;
Whereas Macedonian-American immigrants contributed to building monumental
American transportation routes such as the Great Northern Railroad;
Whereas in 1922, Macedonian-American immigrants Tom and John Kiradjieff, using
old Macedonian recipes passed down by their parents and grandparents,
created Cincinnati chili, a beloved American dish, which, in 2013, was
named one of the ``20 Most Iconic Foods in America'' by the Smithsonian;
Whereas Macedonian immigrants established their own version of the famous Coney
Island hot dog in the early 20th century, which remains a staple dish at
Coney Island-style restaurants throughout the Midwest;
Whereas Macedonian-American Stoyan Christowe, who immigrated to the United
States in 1911, was an American author, journalist, World War II
intelligence officer, and Vermont State Representative (1961-1962) and
Senator (1963-1972) and wrote the book ``This is My Country'', which was
a favorite of President Franklin D. Roosevelt;
Whereas Macedonian-American Michael Alexander (Lazaroff) of Pittsburgh and New
York City was a renowned international attorney serving as a legal
adviser to many British and Irish government organizations and
corporations for which he was honored by Her Royal Majesty Queen
Elizabeth II as a Commander of the British Empire, and as a
nonalcoholic, played a leading role in Alcoholics Anonymous from the
mid-1950s through 1993 as legal adviser, chairman of general services
board, trustee, and trustee chairman;
Whereas Macedonian-American Jimmy N. Dimos served as Louisiana 4th Judicial
District Court judge (1999-2006) and member of the Louisiana House of
Representatives (1976-1999), of which he served as Speaker of the House
(1988-1992);
Whereas in 2018, Macedonian-American Judge Phil Naumoff of Mansfield, Ohio, was
elected as Richland County Common Pleas Court Judge;
Whereas in 1995, Macedonian-American Ljubica Z. Acevska of Mansfield, Ohio, and
Washington, DC, became the first Macedonian Ambassador to the United
States;
Whereas Macedonian Americans have contributed greatly to the United States
economy, creating countless jobs for the American people in their
communities;
Whereas Macedonian-Americans Mike Ilitch, recipient of the Ellis Island Medal of
Honor, and Marian Bayoff Ilitch, who played a significant role in the
civil rights movement and paid for activist Rosa Park's rent in Detroit
for over a decade, opened their first mom-and-pop Little Caesars pizza
shop in 1959, which grew into the third-largest pizza chain in the
world, are owners of the Detroit Red Wings--coining Detroit as
``Hockeytown''--and the Detroit Tigers, and in 2015 made history by
giving Detroit's Wayne State University $50 million, the school's
largest donation ever, highlighting their lifelong dedication to
promoting entrepreneurship, education, and the revitalization of
Detroit;
Whereas Macedonian-American Christopher Ilitch, president and CEO of Ilitch
Holdings, Inc., and chairman of Ilitch Charities, which has given over
$220 million from youth development to community revitalization
philanthropic grants since 2000, has continued the tradition and vision
of his parents Mike and Marian Ilitch to further the global standing of
Detroit with the development of The District Detroit, which has grown
into a dynamic sports and entertainment district featuring award-winning
theaters, four professional sports teams, and three multi-use sports
venues, including the state-of-the-art Little Caesars Arena, home of the
Detroit Red Wings, the Detroit Pistons, and world-class entertainment
and community events;
Whereas four of the eight women's names ever engraved on the Stanley Cup are
Macedonian-Americans Marian Ilitch (1997, 1998), Denise Ilitch (1997,
1998), Lisa Ilitch (1997, 1998), and Carole Ilitch Trepeck (1997, 1998)
all with the Detroit Red Wings;
Whereas Macedonian-American Andrew Peykoff, Sr., of California founded Niagara
Bottling, LLC in 1963, one of the largest private water bottling
companies in the United States, and the Andrew D. Peykoff, Sr.,
Scholarship Program has awarded over $1.5 million to American college
students, and through Niagara Cares, delivered millions of bottles of
clean water for disaster relief efforts in Texas, Florida, Puerto Rico,
the United States Virgin Islands, and Mexico City, as well as providing
a $10 million grant for the Jaime Peykoff Follicular Lymphoma Initiative
to fund follicular lymphoma research grants, international scientific
workshops, and clinical awards;
Whereas Macedonian-American George Atanasoski of Ormond Beach, Florida, who
immigrated to the United States in 1970 and was a recipient of the Ellis
Island Medal of Honor, founded Microflex Inc., a manufacturer that
supplies a wide range of flexible metal products to large clients such
as General Electric, Ford, Siemens, General Motors, Rolls Royce, and
NASA;
Whereas Macedonian-American Katrina Markoff, originally of Fort Wayne, Indiana,
Champion of Change in Small Business, founded Vosges Haut-Chocolat which
was named one of the 10 Best Chocolatiers in the World by the National
Geographic;
Whereas Macedonian-American Mike Zafirovski of Forest Hills, Illinois, recipient
of the Ellis Island Medal of Honor and former Presidential appointee to
the National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee, served on
the board of Boeing, was President and CEO of Nortel, a global
communications technology company and president and COO of Motorola, and
during a 25-year career at GE, served as president and CEO of five GE
businesses in the consumer, industrial, and financial services arenas;
Whereas Macedonian-American Dr. Leon Speroff of Portland, Oregon, recognized as
a giant in obstetrics and gynecology, made significant achievements in
reproductive endocrinology, changing how medicine is practiced;
Whereas Macedonian-American Dr. George Daicoff of St. Petersburg, Florida,
renowned cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon, was a maverick in his
field of pediatric heart surgery (``blue babies'') which was just an
emerging, unknown field in the 1970s, installed a pacemaker in the
smallest premature infant in 1984, and conceived and performed important
research that advanced the field;
Whereas Macedonian-American Dr. Peter T. George won three Olympic Medals for the
United States in weightlifting, five world championships, and was the
middleweight champion at the Pan-American Games, and later went on to
become a doctor in oral medicine and pioneered treatments for
obstructive sleep apnea;
Whereas Macedonian-American Dr. Jovan Laskovski, of Akron, Ohio, was inducted
into the International Society for Hip Arthroscopy (ISHA) in 2013 and
became one of 26 surgeons in the United States inducted into ISHA;
Whereas Macedonian Americans have tremendously contributed to American athletics
and professional sports, including Vlatko Andonovski, the Head Coach of
the United States Women's National Soccer Team; Sasho Cirovski, the Head
Coach of the University of Maryland Men's Soccer Team; Dino Delevski, a
former soccer player for the Milwaukee Wave and current Coach for the
Chicago Inferno of the MASL; Stefan Kozlov, a professional tennis
player; Kevin Kouzmanoff, a former professional baseball player and
current Coach in the Oakland Athletics organization; Cedi Osman, NBA
player for Cleveland Cavaliers; Jovan Kirovski, a former soccer player
and current Technical Director for the Los Angeles Galaxy; brothers
George and Louis Nanchoff, former soccer players in the NASL and MISL;
Sandre Naumovski, a MISL soccer player for the Philadelphia KiXX; Pete
Stoyanovich, a former professional football player for the St. Louis
Rams; Paul Naumoff, a former All-Pro Linebacker in the NFL for Tennessee
and for the Detroit Lions; and Mike Vrabel, a former All-Pro and three-
time Super Bowl Champion and NFL football player for the New England
Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs and current Coach for the Tennessee
Titans;
Whereas the Captain of the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League and
the 2021 Stanley Cup Winners, Steven Stamkos, is an immigrant from
Canada of Macedonian heritage;
Whereas Macedonian-American Pandel Savic served with the First Marine Division
in the South Pacific theater during World War II, fighting in the
Battles of Peleliu and Okinawa, was quarterback for The Ohio State
University taking them to victory in the 1950 Rose Bowl, and went on to
play an important role in the golf community and served as the longtime
chairman of the PGA's Memorial Tournament, which he founded with his
friend Jack Nicklaus;
Whereas Macedonian-American Nick Vanoff directed and produced famous American
musicals, movies, and television shows including ``Kiss Me Kate'', ``The
Tonight Show'', ``City of Angels'', ``The Sound of Christmas'', and
``The Julie Andrews Hours'', and created and produced the annual
``Kennedy Center Honors'';
Whereas Macedonian-American Dimitri Dimitrov, formerly with Los Angeles Sunset
Tower Hotel, presently with San Vicente Bungalows, is Hollywood's most
famous maitre d' according to Bon Appetit and the Hollywood Reporter;
Whereas Macedonian-Americans Klime and Anita Kovaceski are Miami, Florida's
culinary power couple, and their restaurant CRUST has earned notable
recognition, including Open Table's coveted ``100 Best Restaurants in
America'' for 2017 and 2019 and OpenTable/KAYAK's ``Top 25 restaurants
around the world'' for 2019, has been voted Miami's #1 Italian
restaurant on TripAdvisor from 2015 to 2020, and in 2020 was named one
of the ``101 Best Pizzas in America'' by The Daily Meal;
Whereas Macedonian Americans contributed to the construction of several dozen
Macedonian Orthodox Churches throughout the United States as part of the
American-Canadian Macedonian Orthodox Diocese, under current auspices of
His Grace Metropolitan Metodi, and have played a major role in other
Orthodox Church communities throughout the United States for over a
century;
Whereas this year marks the 10th anniversary of the Congressional Macedonian
Caucus, founded by former Member of Congress Candice S. Miller,
currently co-chaired by Representatives Brendan F. Boyle, Claudia
Tenney, Debbie Dingell, and Lisa McClain;
Whereas this year is significant for Macedonian Americans because September 8,
2021, marks the 30th anniversary of the independence of a Macedonian
state; and
Whereas the incredible contributions and heritage of Macedonian Americans have
helped us build a better Nation: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) supports the designation of ``Macedonian American
Heritage Month'';
(2) expresses warm congratulations and best wishes to all
Macedonian people around the world as they mark Macedonian
Independence Day;
(3) esteems the integral role of Macedonian Americans in
the economy, culture, and identity of the United States; and
(4) urges the people of the United States to observe
Macedonian American Heritage Month with appropriate programs
and activities that celebrate the contributions of Macedonian
Americans to the United States.
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