Fraternity-Testvériség, 1988 (66. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)

1988-01-01 / 1. szám

FRATERNITY

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to fill up with Hungarians of the Catholic and Reformed faith. I heard the organ and the beautiful voice of Helen Farkas, who for years was the organist and vocalist in the Hungarian Catholic Church in Beaver Falls, when one of our most faithful members, Eugene Sekeres from Ohio, had arrived. He was joined by Elizabeth Szabó, Zoltán Kovács, our American friend Richard Ankey, and Helen Farkas in singing the Christmas carols in English and Hungarian. Frank Wilson and I nervously paced back and forth, in and out of the church waiting for Father Bolvary to arrive. Rev. Novak must have sensed the bad news because he prepared himself in the last ten minutes to take Father Bolvary's place in this combined service. As Rev. Novak walked down the aisle in his Hungarian Protestant Minister's robe, I overheard a young lady say, "Oh, I have never seen such a beautiful robe." The service was memorable; the Hungarian hymn "Menyből az angyal" brought tears to many eyes.

The church service ended as we lit the candles which each person carried to the Polish Catholic Church Hall where we enjoyed the refreshments. The Master of Ceremonies, Paul Farkas, introduced some of the out- of-town guests. Representing William Penn Association were the newly elected Vice President Zoltán Emri

and many Branch 39 William Penn members; members of Branch 151 of the HRFA; former members of Saint Ladislaus Hungarian Catholic Church; members of the 3rd Avenue United Presbyterian Church; friends from Ellwood City and the surrounding area.

Thanks to Elizabeth Szabó from Youngstown, OH, for all her efforts in planning and coordinating this event. Sincere appreciation goes to the ladies who prepared and served the enjoyable luncheon: Arlene Csornán, Anna Belle, Jane Mine and Rose Cearfoss. Special thanks to Paul Farkas and Frank Belle of the 3rd Avenue United Presbyterian Church who enthusiastically embraced the idea of such a gathering and worked whole-heartedly for its success. Last but not least, thanks to Rev. Miklós Novak who traveled from Pittsburgh to deliver an inspiring message to our Hungarian brethren.

I hope that this is just the beginning of future events planned by the fraternals — the Hungarian Reformed Federation of America and William Penn Association together in order to reach out to the Hungarian community. Thus, we can continue to cherish our rich Hungarian heritage and grow in love and fellowship with one another.

Endre Csornán, Director

OUR HUNGARIAN HERITAGE

In the Fraternity, 2nd Quarter 1987, we wrote an article under the same title on Kathy Csornán, winner of the Hungarian Room Committee Scholarship. We are now happy to share with our readers Kathy's report:

"Last January, I was awarded the Hungarian Room Committee Scholarship from the Nationality Rooms Program at the University of Pittsburgh. At a ceremony in March, Mrs. Elizabeth Mazura presented me with the scholarship named in memory of her late husband, Mr. Stephen Mazura. Mrs. Mazura continues in the tradition of her husband by faithfully serving and promoting the Hungarian Culture in Pittsburgh.

I chose to use the scholarship money to study for six weeks at a summer semester at the Janus Pannonius University in Pecs. It was a program offered for the first time, focusing on History, Society, ^nd Culture in Hungary and Eastern Europe. The students were required to enroll in two or three courses from the basic program which consisted of: Culture, Literature, & Art in the 20th Century; Economy, Politics, & Society; History. We were also required to attend the Regional Studies course which was a series of lectures and field trips designed to introduce the students to aspects of Hungarian Society and Culture.

The students also had a variety of electives to choose from. I chose the Hungarian Language Course and The Application of Foreign & Private International Law Course.

I cannot praise the summer semester and its enthusiastic organizers enough. It was a wonderful and well organized program. It was a terrific approach to education in that lectures given by some of the leading men in their fields today in Hungary were complemented by exciting field trips and other activities. The field trips were the best part of the semester. They enabled me to understand topics more clearly. The two most fascinating were the excursions taken by the art students to a local artist's house for tea and the law students who visited the courthouse to view some trials. The summer semester at Pecs has been undeniably the highpoint of my studies thus far.

Pecs is a beautiful city that maintains its Old World charm while being a very sophisticated and modern city. There are many museums, art galleries, shops, restaurants, cafes, and discos that I visited with my new Hungarian friends.

The experience in Pecs has changed my life. I thank my Hungarian friends and the professors, especially