The Warsaw Voice
December 19, 1999
Sensitive and Generous
United Way Poland certainly enjoys great popularity as evidenced by an official dinner party sponsored by the organization Dec. 7. The dinner was held in the beautiful lecture hall of Warsaw University of Technology and hosted 260 politicians, as well as domestic and international businesspeople. Guests included presidents of banks, large consulting agencies, major companies and many other people who regularly donate large sums to charity. The honorary guest was president of the National Bank of Poland (NBP) Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz, who said all donors should appreciate the groups they contribute money to, because they inspire compassion for other human beings. The meeting was organized under the patronage of Warsaw Mayor Paweł Piskorski, who expressed strong support for charity actions. Both Gronkiewicz-Waltz and Piskorski praised the activities of United Way. The highlight of the dinner was a charity auction of works by numerous Polish artists. Items that went under the hammer included a beautiful pen belonging to Jerzy Buzek, who donated it together with a warm letter, as well as a scarf with the signatures of Gronkiewicz-Waltz, Piskorski, Sejm Speaker Maciej Płażyński and Professor Jerzy Wojnicki, rector of Warsaw University of Technology, all of whom were present at the dinner. Warsaw University of Technology provided the venue free of charge. Editor Jerzy Diatłowiecki conducted the auction enthusiastically and with a great sense of humor. It fetched a sum much larger than organizers had anticipated. In all, more than zl.160,000 was collected, with the highest offered price being zl.33,000. Thanking everyone for attending the dinner, especially those who participated in the auction, Andrzej Borowski, president of United Way Poland, said all proceeds would be spent on helping the disabled. The meeting featured a brilliant performance by American singer Amy Elizabeth Wheeler and pianist Waldemar Malicki.
United Way would like to thank all guests who took part in the annual Charity Dinner Dec. 7.
We have the pleasure of presenting the list of persons and companies that purchased works by handicapped artists at the auction: Bank Pekao SA, Arthur Andersen Sp. z o.o., ZWUT SA-a Siemens Company, Telekomunikacja Polska SA, Maciej Raczkiewicz, Nicom Consulting Ltd., Lucent Technologies Poland SA, Alcatel Polska SA, France Telecom, International Paper - Kwidzyn SA, Johnson & Johnson Poland Sp. z o.o., BRE Bank SA, Citibank (Poland) SA and Ronald Nawrocki.
The money raised, zl.165,300, is earmarked to assist handicapped people. Media patrons included Życie, The Warsaw Voice and Polish Radio 3.
