A foreign exchange student in Escanaba is saying Merry Christmas to the community in his own language.
Helping to change the entrance signs at three locations in Escanaba, Andrej Jankura added Merry Christmas in Slovakian to the sign near Bay College.
Under the English greeting he added Vesele Vianoce.
“I was so happy, I was so proud of using the Slovak words in America and I hope that somebody will recognize them,” he said.
Jankura is staying with Craig and Patty Woerpel and attending the Escanaba High School this school year. He went with Craig, who is director of the Escanaba Downtown Development Authority, to change the signs.
While changing the words to say Merry Christmas, they talked about adding different languages including Slovakian.
“We thought it would be a fun way to greet people so we started thinking of other languages we could use that might relate to the history of the area,” Woerpel said.
The entrance sign by the Delta County Airport says Merry Christmas in Finnish, Hyvää Joulua, while the entrance sign near OSF St. Francis Hospital gives the greeting in Croatian, Sretan Bozic. Other possibilities included Swedish or Potawatomi.
“We could use the other greetings next year,” said Woerpel.
Although the words might be different, Jankura says Christmas in America is not much different from Eastern Europe.
“I think they are mostly the same. I think Americans have more decorated houses and lights everywhere but I think it is mostly the same,” said Jankura. “Probably, we give less presents than Americans but not many differences.
Jankura said he is looking forward to celebrating Christmas in Escanaba. He helped to cut down his first Christmas tree from the woods and hang lights on the outside of their home.
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