He found Polish people living in Polish communities. Italians settled in homes next to other Italians. German immigrants lived among other Germans.

The various ethnic communities didn't mix much, and parents used to tell their children not to play with kids from other ethnic backgrounds.

Atteck met up with Bill Burgoyne, former publisher of the St. Catharines Standard, and pitched the idea of the city twinning up with Port of Spain, in Trinidad and Tobago, in a social and cultural exchange -- a partnership now 40 years old.

It was a partnership that opened up the eyes of local people to the world beyond Niagara and Canada, and what would become the Niagara Folk Arts Festival was born. That festival is now 40 years old.

"That (twinning) was the catalyst," said Atteck, who served as the festival's president from 1976 to 1977.

What started out as a one-day demonstration of performances by Italian, Polish and German performers in the auditorium of Sir Winston Churchill Secondary School in St. Catharines gradually developed into something much bigger.

Along the way, it broke down barriers separating the various ethnic communities making up St. Catharines and Niagara.

"We brought more and more (ethnic communities) into the fold," said Atteck, glancing over old photos at his north St. Catharines home.

People who might once have been embarrassed about their cultural and ethnic heritage for fear of prejudice began to embrace it. Over a period of about five to eight years, more than 30 different ethnic communities joined in.

Open houses featuring the unique food, music and culture of the many ethnic communities became a hallmark of the festival and helped people to appreciate the diversity that is Niagara, Atteck said.

"Once people were able to taste the food and enjoy the dancing, they said, hey, we're missing a lot," he said. "It really was an amazing phenomenon: we brought them all together.

"We broke down the barriers," he said. "Eventually, everyone was smiling at each other."

That idea of different cultures mingling together and being appreciated spread across Canada, to places as far as Halifax and Winnipeg, which launched their own cultural festivals based on the Niagara concept.

The open houses in Niagara are held over two weeks each May, giving people a chance to chow down on Sardegna roast piglet, Polish perogies, exotic Indian cuisine and Scottish meat pies, while taking in traditional ethnic music and dance.

"People attended all these functions with pride, with a sense of belonging," Atteck said. "There are the things I'm most proud of."

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The Niagara Folk Arts Festival is hosting a dinner on Saturday, Nov. 15 to celebrate its 40th anniversary. The dinner takes place at the Canadian Polish Society hall at 43 Facer St. in St. Catharines. Tickets are $40 and include dinner and entertainment, and are available by calling 905-685-6589 ext. 238. Cocktails are at 5:30 p.m. and dinner at 6:30 p.m.