The Eighth Hungarian Tribe, 1982 (9. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

1982-03-01 / 3. szám

Page 8

THE EIGHTH TRIBE

March, 1982

HOME FRONT HERO

Torch singer, playwright, Gold Cross ensign and War Bond salesman: that is JULIA OROSZ.

Julia a pretty, dark-haired woman of 29, looks too small to handle all these jobs. But after December 7, 1941, she enlisted on the home front. Without fantare, she began to speak to foreign-born Americans. She sold so many bonds — 10 thousand dollars’ worth — that officers of the Memorial Gold Cross made her an ensign.

Then julia took first aid and auto mechanics courses, and joined the Ambulance Corps.. She decided t<> get a job in the B&O Railroad repair shops. Where Julia stands before a glaring furnace eight hoars a day, six days a week. After heating rivets to a cherry red, she grabs one with a pair of a long tongs and sends it sailing through space to land squarely into the metal container held by a husky boilermaker.

At thiee p.m. she leaves the plant — and starts another day. Sometimes she travels to Pittsburgh or to small Ohio towns, urging Hungarian folk to invest in bonds. She sings Hungarian songs over radio station WKST to spur War Bond sales.

And sometimes she bangs away on her typewriter, writing plays which she translates into Hungarian. She plays the lead herself; her brother, Michael, who served in the Army until he was injured in action, plays opposite her. These dramas are siinpie, but they often move the audience to tears —- and they do sell more bonds.

SCoronet, October, 1943