Niles Family Loses Daughter, Niece, in Twin Towers

Andrew Przybylo's niece was at that "hello, world, here I am!" moment, filled with energy for the future. Vanessa Przybylo Kolpak was 21 years old, had just graduated magna cum laude from Georgetown University with a degree in philosophy and gotten a job in New York to be near her older sister. Only four weeks into her new position, located in the second tower at the World Trade Center, she died in the attacks. 

The extended Przybylo family, whose White Eagle banquet hall in Niles, Ill. is a gathering place and point of pride for the Polish-American community in greater Chicago, was devastated. 

Nearly 10 years later, Andrew, a village trustee, reflected that his shared sorrow with his family, especially his sister Vivian, Vanessa's mother, has been mostly in the heart, and it's not so easy to find words to talk about the depth of the tragedy. The two of them operate White Eagle along with their four other siblings.

"It's hard," he acknowledged. "What can you say, really?"