Calvin Synod Herald, 2017 (118. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2017-11-01 / 11-12. szám
8 CALVIN SYNOD HERALD EMAIL NEWSLETTERS Sign up for one of our email newsletters. Obituary of Rev. Imre A. Bertalan The Rev. Imre A. Bertalan of Ligonier, the son of a Hungarian immigrant, the husband of a Hungarian immigrant and a minister of the Hungarian Reformed Church of America, was proud of his heritage and his leadership at the Bethlen Communities in Ligonier Township. “His Hungarian heritage was really important to him, and passing it on was important,” said his daughter, Julia Bertalan of Toledo, Ohio. “It's definitely instilled in all of us. A little bit of him will live in all of us.” Rev. Bertalan, 67, died Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2017, in Excela Health Latrobe as a result of complications from cancer. He was bom Oct. 4, 1949, in New Brunswick, N.J., son of the late Imre G. and Margaret Kosa Bertalan. He graduated from Rutgers University in New Brunswick and from the Princeton Seminary in New Jersey. He was an ordained clergyman for both the Hungarian Reformed Church of America and the Calvin Synod of the United Church of Christ. Rev. Bertalan did not set out to be a minister when he graduated from seminary in 1977. Instead, he initially became a community organizer in Toledo working for a neighborhood group in the late 1970s, Julia Bertalan said. “He was very involved in the Hungarian community in Toledo, New York and New Jersey,” she said. He was called to be a minister in a Toledo church and later served a church in Allen Park, Mich. Rev. Bertalan came to the Ligonier area in 1999 to serve as the executive director of Bethlen Communities, which was founded by the Hungarian Reformed Federation. “He saw his work at the Bethlen Communities as going way beyond the home. He saw it as a cultural center and wanted it to be a meaningful gathering place for Hungarian- Americans ... that continues and passes on the tradition,” Julia Bertalan said. Rev. Bertalan was active in the Ligonier Valley, formerly serving as president of the Rotary Club of Ligonier. He was a member of the Ligonier Valley Association of Churches and the Ligonier Valley Ministerial Association. He was an advocate for Ligonier High School sports teams, where his son, Imre Bertalan, was a starting center on the 2006 Ligonier Valley football team. He and his wife, Magdalene Ujvagi, had dinners for the team. She immigrated to the United States in December 1956, a month after the end of the Hungarian Uprising against the Soviet Union. Rev. Bertalan was planning to retire in three years and return to Toledo, where he intended to be a community organizer, Julia Bertalan said. “His work was his passion, and he loved his Busch beer and watching sports,” she said. In addition to his wife of 37 years and his daughter, Julia, he is survived by daughters Sara Davis of Toledo, Ohio, Magda Bertalan of Madison, WI and Margit Bertalan of Fayetteville, NC; son, Imre E. Bertalan of Toledo; and five grandchildren. A celebration of life service was held in Ligonier during the Fall Board of Director’s meeting on October 23rd. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorials in Rev. Bertalan's memory be made to the Bethlen Communities, 125 Kalassay Drive, Ligonier, PA 15658. European Partners Visit Continued from page 3 After the presentations, the delegation visited a Roma Mission Project at the Budapest 8th district called “Te meg én” (You plus/and I). This is an after-school center for Roma youth. Rev. István Lakó, assistant pastor of the Budapest Józsefváros Reformed Church and leader of the mission, gave a presentation of this very blessed and in the same time challenging project. Later on Rev. Bálint Bácskái, lead pastor of the church, joined us and greeted the members of the delegation. They started the “Te meg én” ministry five years ago. At the beginning it was an outreach program mostly to Roma people. First they started a Religious Class at the local public school for Roma kids. The leaders of the mission noticed that more and more students showed up each time in the Religious Class. Therefore they decided to open an office for the work of the After School Program. Currently the ministry has 30 children and 30 volunteers. Each child needs an adult assistant in order to work with them effectively. Toward the end of the last day spent in Budapest, the UCC leadership met with Rt. Rev. Dr. István Szabó, Bishop of the Dunamellék Church District of the RCH. We heard a presentation about the work and ministries of the Reformed Church in Hungary and also the challenges that the Church faces day by day. This short three-day visit in Budapest gave a wonderful insight for the members of the UCC delegation into the community life, ministries and works of the Reformed Church in Hungary. It was a thought provoking experience and blessed trip. We are especially thankful to Rev. Balázs Odor Ecumenical Officer of the Synod Office and his assistant, who were our guide during this visit, for their professional job. Rt. Rev. Dr. Csaba Krasznai
