OBITUARY FOR LEONARD J. KNIFFEL-WRITER, EDITOR PUBLISHER AND LIBRARIAN (AUGUST 25, 1947-MARCH 19, 2021)
Leonard Kniffel, former publishing executive for the American Library Association in Chicago, died March 19, 2021 of Pancreatic Cancer. Born in Mt. Clemens, Michigan on August 25, 1947, Kniffel was a librarian, journalist, and the author of A Polish Son in the Motherland: An American’s Journey Home, a travel memoir published in 2005 by Texas […]
- 03.22.2021
- Current Issues,Libraries & Archives
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A Wish on Election Eve 2020
FAMILY BEFORE POLITICS, EVEN DURING THE VIETNAM WAR Writing on the morning of November 3, I can say that I will be neither ecstatic nor enraged over the results of the 2020 Trump/Biden presidential race. If there is one thing I learned from an era 50 years ago when America was more dangerously divided than […]
- 11.04.2020
- Current Issues,Family
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Polish American Journal Review of 2nd Busia Story
reviewed by Mary Lanham September 2020 Busia: School Days on the Farm with my Polish Grandmother By Leonard Kniffel PolishSon.com, 2019, 49 pgs. A few years ago, I had the pleasure of reading and reviewing Busia: Seasons on the Farm with my Polish Grandmother by Leonard Kniffel. In the slim memoir Kniffel recounts a life growing up […]
- 09.20.2020
- Current Issues,Family,Libraries & Archives
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Remembering Michigan Governor William Milliken

On August 26, 1966, the day after my 19th birthday, I attended in Lansing the Fall State Convention of the Republican Party of Michigan. I can barely remember the details, but I saved a copy of the agenda. The keynote speaker was Senator Robert P. Griffin. Governor George Romney (Mitt’s father) also addressed the delegates. […]
Busia Second Volume Sales to Benefit Museums, Church Restoration, Journalism Foundation

Book Launch & Signing Confirmed for December 21 & 22 The Hamtramck (Michigan) Historical Museum at 9525 Joseph Campau will host a book launch for Busia: School Days on the Farm with My Polish Grandmother by Leonard Kniffel on December 21, followed on December 22 by a book signing at the Polish Art Center next […]
- 12.15.2019
- Current Issues,Family,Libraries & Archives,Memoirs
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Previous Posts
- Polish American Journal Review of 2nd Busia Story
- 09.20.2020
- Remembering Michigan Governor William Milliken
- 09.18.2020
- Recommended: The Volunteer by Jack Fairweather
- 02.02.2020
- Recommended Film: None Shall Escape
- 12.31.2019