Hungarian American Coalition News, 2001 (10. évfolyam, 1. szám)
2001 / 1. szám
NEWS FROM OUR MEMBERS Kossuth Club Continues Its Outstanding Cultural Programs The Kossuth Club of Sarasota, Florida, participated in the area's Art Fair on January 21st. Members took turns providing material and publicity about upcoming Hungarian cultural programs in the city. On February 25th the Club presented a concert of religious music with organ accompaniment. On February 27th they sponsored an opera concert. Proceeds of both events benefited the Kossuth Club Education Fund, that annually awards scholarships to Hungarian minority students. Éva Kisvarsányi, who does such an excellent job with her colleagues of organizing Kossuth Club events, has written a vividly descriptive journal (in Hungarian) of the trip she took last summer to Carpatho-Ukraine. (Karpatlja) This is inspiring reading for anyone who wants to become familiar with the conditions faced by the Hungarian community there. (Copies are available from the Coalition office). Hungarian Communion of Friends (MBK) Holds Spring Board Meeting MBK Board members are meeting in Chicago on the weekend of March 3-4 to discuss plans for this year's Itt Ott conference, to be held on August 12-19, 2001, at Lake Hope, Ohio. MBK Board members and Chicago-area residents, Erika Bokor and József Megyeri will serve as hosts for the meeting. This summer will mark the 29th occasion when MBK members and guests gather in Ohio to hear lectures from distinguished visitors from Hungary and the surrounding countries. The theme of this year's conference will be "Nation without Borders," or "Határtalan haza." Ten Years of Effort Yield Outstanding Result for Calvin Synod's Transylvanian Scholarship Program Few projects undertaken by Hungarian Americans can show the truly impressive results that Ms. Gabriella (Kuni) Nádas has achieved in cooperation with the Calvin Synod in the past ten years. In response to the 1991 U.S. visit of Transylvanian Reformed Bishop Kálmán Csiha, Ms. Nádas began a fundraising program matching Hungarian students of the Kolozsvár Reformed High School with Hungarian-American "godparent" families, who underwrote the education, room and board of students at the Reformed High School with annual donations of $240 (now $300 per student). The numbers are truly impressive: Student sponsorships in 1991 started at $3,180, but grew to $27,980 by year 2000! Between 1991 and 2000, Ms. Nadas collected a total of $177,383 for student sponsorships. In addition, Ms. Nádas was remarkably successful in seeking contributions for the construction of two educational buildings. She raised $238,713 for the Bethlen Kata School of Nursing In Kolozsvár (Cluj), and $51,442 for the justcompleted School of Nursing in Marosvásárhely. (Tirgu Mures). The total amount collected adds up to $467,895. If you're interested in becoming a "godparent," please contact Ms. Nádas at (330) 499-1852. Seattle (Kirkland) Police Donates Bulletproof Vests to Kaposvár Ms. Helen Szablya, Kirkland resident and President of Seattle-Pécs Sister Cities, was instrumental in the donation of bullet-proof vests by the Kirkland Police Department to colleagues of the Hungarian Police Force in Kaposvár. In January two Kirkland officers traveled to Kaposvár to deliver the vests to the police department that could not afford to purchase this type of protective gear. Therefore, they were grateful for the donated vests with the expectation they will provide necessary protection while they are performing their sometimes dangerous duties. 4 • Hungarian American Coalition • February 2001
