Bishop Emeritus John W. Yanta, Board Chairman and President of the Polish Heritage Center at Panna Maria Foundation, was born on a farm in Runge, TX, in 1931, the fifth of eight children of John Andrew Yanta and Mary Magdalen Pollok, natives of Panna Maria, the oldest Polish parish in the United States. After public school, Yanta moved to San Antonio to attend high school before entering St. John’s Seminary. After three years, he returned home to assist his ailing father on the farm, but then was able to return to St. John’s, and on to Assumption Seminary. He was ordained a priest in 1956.
While serving at several parishes in San Antonio, Father Yanta was recognized for his leadership skills. He was director of the archdiocesan Catholic Youth Organization, headed up the Archdiocesan Office of the Laity, founded the San Antonio Neighborhood Youth Organization, was editor of Today’s Catholic newspaper and co-founder and first executive director of Catholic Television of San Antonio (CTSA).
Bishop Yanta was consecrated an Auxiliary Bishop of the San Antonio Archdiocese on December 30, 1994, in Panna Maria, Texas. He was installed as the Bishop of Amarillo, TX, in 1997 and was noted for rebuilding the Diocese and his effective pro-life advocacy. He was active in the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, serving on committees dealing with migration, farm workers and family life. Completing his service in 2008, he returned to San Antonio where he focused on envisioning and successfully leading the design, development, and construction of the Polish Heritage Center at Panna Maria.
John W. Yanta is the first Texan of Polish descent to become a Bishop. A lifelong passion for his Polish heritage led him to be a charter member of the Polish American Priests Association (PAPA) of Texas in 1970. He founded the Polish American Congress of Texas in 1971, serving as President for five terms. He attended Kościuszko Foundation sessions at Jagellonian University, Kraków, and programs at Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan; led the first-ever tour of Silesian Polish Texans back to Upper Silesia in Poland in 1973, coordinated Pope John Paul II’s visit with Texas Polonia in 1987, was elected first National President of PAPA in 1991, and was general chair of the Father Leopold Moczygemba Centennial in 1991.
On June 13, 2019, Bishop Yanta was awarded the Commander’s Cross of the Order of Merit by Polish President Andrzej Duda for his life-long work on behalf of American Polonia.
In 2021, Bishop Yanta addressed the Grand Opening of the Polish Heritage Center. The following are excerpts from his dedication speech.
“… Our immigrant ancestors gave us a distinctive beginning and I, as one of the descendants, realize the debt I owe to them. We must pass on their history of faith, of taming their new land and overcoming hardships for future generations. This Heritage Center has been, and is, a tremendous blessing. To the Polonia in America and around the world, we want to share our part of the national story that began with our ancestors. We want you to see the beauty of our story as we see it. God’s working through Divine Providence over these many years brought us this story to share with you.
I thank God for being with us, step by step, along the way. For me, it’s my call to stewardship. I knew God wanted me to do something: to memorialize our Polish ancestors and preserve the past for the future generations.”
