Fraternity-Testvériség, 1999 (77. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)
1999-12-01 / 4. szám
FRATERNITY Page 17 It was their team effort that made this event a great fundraising event, and we will again have the means to support a worthy cause in the near future. The Deki Lakatos Orchestra in Indiana The Kossuth Club invited the Deki Lakatos Sándor orchestra to entertain our friends and members. The orchestra comprised of the world renown Lakatos dynasty from Budapest, Hungary, accompanied by other famous musicians, and a female vocalist by the name of Enikő Fabian. They were on their tour of the USA with their organizer András Pongracz. We were fortunate to host these very talented entertainers at Our Lady of Consolation Church in Merrillville, Indiana. Their repertoire consisted of works by Liszt, Brahms, Rossini, Kalman, Lehar, Offenbach, Khachaturian, Dinicu, and other composers, as well as many popular Hungarian songs conveyed to us by a traditional gypsy orchestra. The orchestra consisting of three violins, a cimbalom, a clarinet and a base was the best of its kind. The grateful audience expressed its appreciation for a magnificent evening of entertainment. Some guests came from as far as Tennessee, Wisconsin and Michigan. After the show, the large audience was invited by the Kossuth Club for hors d’oeuvres and could thus mingle and talk with the entertainers. The success of the show, besides the great talent of the entertainers, also hinged on the preparations made by our club. Our members did all they could to make this a memorable evening. Kati Mischak, Manager, Branch 176 (219) 947-1825 INDIANA FRATERNAL CONGRESS ANNUAL MEETING SEPTEMBER 25-16,1999 Joseph Kovács and his wife Maria represented the HRFA as delegates to the Indiana Fraternal Congress. Among the motivational speakers was Ken Johnson. Several business meetings and social events followed. Last on the agenda was the election of officers. Our Joseph Kovács was elected Vice President. \_______________________________________________/ Obituaries Rev. Eugene Szabó The Rev. Eugene Z. Szabó, 72, a former Air Force chaplain who was pastor of the West Park United Church of Christ in Cleveland for 13 years, died on November 13, 1999 at his home in Fredericksburg, Virginia. He led the Hungarian Reformed Church in Lorain for a short time before becoming pastor of the West Park Congregational Church in 1965. The church became the West Park United Church of Christ during Rev. Szabo’s tenure. After leaving the Cleveland area in 1978, Rev. Szabó took smaller pastorates in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, and South Norwalk, Connecticut. He retired to Virginia in 1988. Reverend Szabó was bom in Czechoslovakia to Hungarian parents, who brought him to the United States when he was a baby. He grew up in Passaic, New Jersey. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Elmhurst (III.) College in 1950. In 1953, he received a divinity degree from Eden Seminary in Webster Groves, Mo., and was ordained as a minister. While handling his first assignment at the Hungarian Reformed Church of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, he became an American citizen. For more than 20 years, Reverend Szabó was a military chaplain. He served in the Air Force from 1956 to 1962 and in the Air Force Reserves from 1964 to 1980. He was awarded an Air Force Commendation Medal for his work as a chaplain with the Strategic Air Command at Goose Bay, Labrador, in Canada. The only Hungarian-speaking officer at the Air Force Base, Reverend Szabó earned the honor of aiding refugees of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, who were immigrating to North America. In 1958, he was named Air Force’s Outstanding Chaplain of the Year. He also received the B’nai B’rith Four Chaplains Award. While serving in the Philippines in 1959, Reverend Szabó was recognized by the Philippine government and the Philippine Methodist Church for raising money to provide humanitarian aid to flood victims. “He was extremely outgoing and was always trying to help people,” said his son, Robert A. of Lakewood. After leaving full-time duty with the Air Force in 1962, Reverend Szabó was an interim pastor for Reform congregations in Ashtabula and Conneaut. Besides his son Robert, Reverend Szabó is survived by his wife of 47 years, Dolores J.; daughters, Kathleen O’Neal of Fredericksburg, Virginia, and Patricia Ann Engstad of Tromsdalen, Norway; another son, Steven J. of Westlake; eight grandchildren; and his sister Irene Szabó. Reverend Szabó was a member of HRFA-Branch 300 of Washington, D.C. The HRFA extends its deepest sympathy to the bereaved family.
