Bethlen Almanac 2000 (Ligonier)
New York-i Egyházmegye
members of our fellowship hall. We had a structural engineer come in and evaluate the damage, and he determined that it was unsafe to use our hall until repairs were made. This was of great concern to our congregation since the hall is the center of our bazaars, dinners and parties which are so important to the life of the church and for fundraising activities. Total costs related to this structural emergency reached approximately $80,000. We are a small church and did not have $80,000. We were in shock. In prayer, we asked our Heavenly Father to show us the way. We prayed that He would allow us to continue to serve as an active Hungarian Reformed Church. By the grace of God and with donations from our friends in the amount of $15,000, and two grants equaling $25,000, we were able to begin the repair work quickly. Our church cashed its savings CD in the amount of $15,000 and obtained a low-interest mortgage at 3 percent for the remaining $25,000. It is a struggle for us, but we have now completed the work and paid the contractor. We are still appealing to our friends to help us pay the mortgage balance of $25,000. Any help at all would be greatly appreciated. God has truly blessed us and we pray that God will continue to Bless the Bethlen Home and all of the readers of this Almanac! Rev. Leslie E. Martin, Supply Pastor Lili DePetrillo, HRFA Student Aid recipient/Boston College, visits the church where her grandfather, the Rev. Imre Bertalan, first preached in the USA. 115
