Hokeista Jerry

Story

Hokeista Jerry is a dwarf who came from a friendship. In the photo he stands in front of a plain white wall with a hockey stick held across his shoulders behind his neck, wearing a round cap and a knitted-looking sweater, his eyes half closed and a contented look on his face. He stands at the primary school at Krakowska 2 (SP 96), about 2.4 km south-east of the Market Square, and he was unveiled to remember a teacher who got a whole group of friends playing hockey indoors for decades.

History & Significance

Wrocław's bronze dwarfs grew out of the Orange Alternative, a playful, non-violent protest movement of the 1980s whose members painted dwarfs on city walls. Since 2005 the city has filled its streets with bronze dwarfs, and there are now hundreds of them. Hokeista Jerry was unveiled on Saturday 5 November 2022 at Primary School No. 96, Krakowska 2, in memory of Jerzy Dyrkacz, a teacher and handball coach who died in May 2021. Gazeta Wrocławska reports that the idea came from his friends, among them Jan Radoliński, who played indoor hockey with him for more than 40 years. The group, which calls itself the Towarzystwo Miłośników Kija Hokejowego (Society of Hockey Stick Lovers), began in autumn 1976, when the actor Jerzy Zygmunt Nowak found hockey sticks in the gym store and suggested they play. The sculptor is Tomasz Moczek, who turned out to be a former pupil of SP 96. The dwarf's name comes from what Dyrkacz was called at home, Jerry.

Inspiration

Jerzy Dyrkacz was a handball coach, so the dwarf could have been a handball player, but Gazeta Wrocławska notes that it became a hockey player because of the group of friends who played what they called our hockey with him for decades. Friends, pupils and fellow players of Dyrkacz paid for the dwarf, and it is a tribute to his memory. His nickname Jerry is what his wife and children called him at home.

Fun Facts

• He was unveiled on Saturday 5 November 2022, as both wromap.pl and Gazeta Wrocławska report.
• The sculptor Tomasz Moczek turned out to be a former pupil of SP 96, to the surprise of those who commissioned the dwarf.
• Jerzy Dyrkacz was a handball coach, yet his dwarf is a hockey player.
• The group of friends has played indoor hockey since 1976 and spent its first 30 years in the gym of SP 1 on Nowowiejska.
• Jerry was Dyrkacz's nickname at home, used by his wife and children.

How to Find This Dwarf

Hokeista Jerry is on the grounds of Primary School No. 96 at Krakowska 2, about 2.4 km south-east of the Market Square. wromap.pl warns that access may be limited by a barrier, fence or gate, so look from the public side and respect the school. Nearby dwarfs: 100matolog 150 m south-east, Kreacjusz 374 m south-east and Edukacjusz 388 m south-east.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Accessibility

Ground LevelOutdoor

Photo shows him at ground level on pale paving by a white wall on the school grounds. wromap.pl warns that access may be limited by a barrier, fence or gate. Step-free access was not verified.