Bethlen Almanac 1998 (Ligonier)
Halottaink - In memoriam
Rev. Bela Paul Bacsó (1907-1998) The life of Rev. Bela Paul Bacsó is a testimonial to the American dream, where a 13-year-old orphan boy journeyed from his native land of Hungary through Ellis Island to fulfill his destiny as a servant of the Lord in this land of promise. He was born the 4th child to John and Julianna Lacza Dienes on July 15, 1907, in the small town of Szeszta, Hungary. Young Bela’s childhood was filled with traumatic experiences. When he was only 7 years old, Czech soldiers invaded his family home and engaged in two days of warfare with the Magyar army. The following year, his mother passed away at age 38. Four years later, he witnessed a fatal farming accident in which his 50-year-old father fell from a hay wagon, leaving Bela an orphan at age 12. In December of 1920, Bela, his sister Julia, and Brother John immigrated to America on an old ship, the Mongolia, with only the clothes on their backs. After a harrowing 52-day journey, they arrived at the home of their sponsors, their aunt and uncle, Paul and Katalin Majer, of Toledo, Ohio. In August of 1923, Irma and Paul Bacsó, the Chief Elder of the Toledo Magyar Reformed Church lovingly adopted Bela for 21 years. For his 16th birthday, they bought him a piano, which began his life-long love for music. Bela’s education was unique. Since he did not speak English when he arrived in Toledo at age 13, he was placed in the 1st grade at Birmingham Elementary School. He completed the lst-8lh grades in 3 Vi years. At age 17, he began his 4-year career at Waite High School and graduated 8th in a class of 410 students. What an accomplishment for a boy who had to first master the English language! Bela began his college studies at the University of Toledo in pre-med. Realizing his parents could not afford the cost of tuition, he decided to become a minister and enrolled at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where he earned his B.A. degree in June of 1932. He graduated from Lancaster Theological Seminary in May of 1935 and was ordained into the Christian ministry a month later at the now Calvin United Church of Christ in Toledo, Ohio. In July of 1935, Rev. Bacsó proposed to a family friend, Ida Tarczali, on their very first date. She accepted and they were married on October 26, 1935. (They celebrated their 63rd anniversary two weeks before his 212
