MPO History - 1940 Macedonian Almanac Was the Brainchild of Peter G. Atzeff
by Christo N. Nizamoff
Peter G. Atzeff is the only member of the MPO Central Committee who served in the two most important posts National Secretary and President. While he fulfilled his duties in both posts with praiseworthy dedication and distinction, I believe that his contributions as secretary by far surpass those of his presidency, simply because he took the secretarial post when the organization was still in its infancy and needed a leader who could inspire confidence and enthusiasm. He arrived in the US in December 1932 to take the post relinquished by the unforgettable Assen Avramoff who had returned to Sofia. The MACEDONIAN TRIBUNE was only five years old and the MPO was still in its formative years.
Besides the economic depression which was sweeping the country, the organization had to fight the rising opposition of the communist groups parading among our immigrants as the Macedonian People's League. Actually they were followers of the well-known charlatan Dimitar Vlahov in Vienna, a paid agent of the Third International. The same Vlahov, who at one time was a Bulgarian high official, renounced his Bulgarian national origin after World War II and became a stooge (pardon me, leader) of the Skopie Serbo-Communist gang. George Pirinski and Nikola Kovatcheff were his USA agents.
Like his highly respected predecessors Jordan Tchkatroff and Assen Avramoff, Peter Atzeff was well-prepared to take on that challenge. In Sofia he had been active in the Macedonian Youth groups and Students' Association. A fiery orator, well-experienced in public speaking, and with an excellent knowledge of the history of the Macedonian struggle for freedom and independence, he was always able to corner the opposition of our coffee house Bolsheviks. And when they became unruly, as it happened in Gary, Ind., and Toledo, Oh., Peter knew how to use his fists and he did. The naive followers of renegade Vlahov became the object of ridicule.
Little by little these annoyances disappeared from the scene and the MPO kept on growing in numbers and influence. The annual convention became the meeting place for thousands of our countrymen from all over the US and Canada. The parades were miles long. There was a strong revival of faith and enthusiasm. The driving forces which had instigated the founding fathers of the MPO at that historic meeting in October of 1922 in Ft. Wayne, Ind., continued to inspire our people. New MPO branches formed in Lackawanna and Rochester, NY; Kitchener and Windsor, Ontario; Jackson and Lansing, Mich.; Lima, Oh.; Hammond, Ind.; Portland, Ore; Los Angeles and San Francisco, Calif. The Central Committee office in Indianapolis was buzzing with activities. Dozens of letters came in daily and were promptly answered.
Frequently reports from the local organizations filled the third and fourth pages of the paper which were specially designated for that purpose, and we were sometimes forced to use a part of page two when extra space was needed. These articles included reports of past meetings and announcements for dances or vecherinkas where a small program preceded the dancing.
By an old tradition everything served at the bar was donated. Local businessmen donated soft drinks or liquor, the women made banitsa or other goodies. The cost of the event was only the rent of the hall (some groups had their own halls) and the orchestra. The proceeds were divided between the local branch and the Central Committee, or the MACEDONIAN TRIBUNE. In these projects the members of the Ladies' Sections provided invaluable service.
During the campaign months of February and May and during the commemoration of the Ilinden Insurrection in August, there were weekends when the three of us (Peter, Luben [Dimitroff] and I) were out of town as guest speakers at these events. We traveled nights to get there; we traveled nights to get back. We felt invigorated by the reception and friendships of our members. These were really exciting times and the unity in the Central Office was excellent. We punched no cards, but we never looked at the clock. We were young and single and there were many days when we turned off the lights at 8 or 9 p.m. Then off we went to the old Thompson Restaurant where the blue plate was 30 cents, including coffee. Our contact with the Macedonian National Committee in Sofia was steady and left nothing to be desired.
Then in May 1934, a group of disgruntled politicians and ambitious officers dumped the legally elected government [of Bulgaria] and declared a dictatorship. Later it became known that some of the perpetrators of this upheaval were in close contact with the Serbian government and more or less were doing their bidding. Their first act was to suppress the Macedonian Brotherhoods and all Macedonian Organizations in Bulgaria and intern some of their leaders. From that fateful day on to the present, the burden to carry on the Macedonian struggle for a free and independent Macedonia fell on the shoulders of the MPO. That is why it is so important that we stick together and help the MPO and its Central Committee carry on the fight started by our fathers and grandfathers.
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