Information about the object:
The Evangelical cemetery in the former colony of Karviná Mexico in the Czech Republic was established in 1903. It is one of the few physically preserved traces of Polish history in the area of the so-called "Zaolzie Atlantis". Before the outbreak of the Second World War, the area was inhabited by native Poles and immigrants from Galicia, who arrived here in the 19th century in search of work. In the 20th century, this group was actively involved in the independence movement. After World War I, the area fell to Czechoslovakia, but the activities of Polish organisations did not cease. After the Second World War, Stará Karviná disappeared from the face of the earth as a result of the predatory mining of the so-called mining damage, and the inhabitants were displaced. Only the Old Parish Church, the so-called "Crooked Church", and two old cemeteries remained. As a result of the process of 'Bohemianisation', some of the Poles of Karviná lost their identity and the memory of their Polish heritage was deliberately erased.

In the course of the documentation work, it was possible to find more than 500 burial sites, of which just over one-fifth have preserved inscriptions. Most of them are in Polish and Czech, with a few in German. Monuments to miners who died in mining accidents in 1917 have been preserved in the cemetery.

Completed works:

2022
As part of the task, a brigade of volunteers (15 people) was organised to carry out clean-up work over a period of five months (10 trips) at the forgotten and now heavily damaged Evangelical cemetery in the former colony of Karviná Mexico (Czech Republic).

The work consisted of cleaning up the cemetery grounds, felling trees, bushes, weeding, mowing grass, cleaning tombstones and carrying out utility work. An additional important task was the logistical preparation of the site for the future renovation of the cemetery chapel.

2023
The task was to renovate the forgotten and dilapidated Evangelical cemetery in Karvina-Mexico. Brigades of volunteers took care of clearing overgrowth, cleaning graves, restoring monuments, technical documentation, as well as repairing and reconstructing the cemetery chapel, including the tower, roof and cross. Working with specialists in the field of historic preservation, they ensured the memory of the past and the preservation of this important site for the local community.

Funding: Polonica Institute programme "Polish cultural heritage abroad - volunteering".

More about the project: https://polonika.pl

https://polonika.pl

• Fundacja Volens, realizacja w roku 2022 i 2023