Verhovayak Lapja, 1947 (30. évfolyam, 1-24. szám)

1947 / Verhovay Journal

PAGE 8

Verhouay Journal

Proceedings of the District Meetings

(Continued from page -7.)

29th, beginning at 7:30 P.M.( in Fairport Harbor, O.

The following recommendations were adopted by the meeting:

1. ) The office of the chairman of the Board of Directors shall be separated from that of the Supreme President who, being responsible for the actions of the Supreme Officers, cannot be unprejudiced at the Board of Directors’ meetings. It is held improper, also that the business matters be presented to the Board and the proceedings recorded by the Supreme Secretary who, thereby, may unduly influence the deliberations of the directors in favor of the Home Office.

2. ) The jurisdiction of the Supreme Officers and the Board of Directors must not include the right to increase their own salaries. If unusual conditions arise, the Board shall order a poll of the convention delegates who alone have the right to exercise

the prerogatives of the National Convention.

3. ) It appears from the Minutes of the Board of Directors’ meetings that due to the insufficiency of the Expense Fund its increasing is desired by the Board. The District objects to the unnecessary travels of the Supreme Officers and directors and the increasing of their own salaries. Funds for the publishing of the Verhovay Journal may be raised by launching a national advertising campaign, for the Verhovay Journals, read by 50,000 members, are excellent advertising media in the Hungarian language field.

4. ) 3% of the reserves shall be issued annually in dividends, provided the solvency ratio of the Association exceeds 110%.

5. ) The District objects to the recommendation of the Board that representation at the National Convention be limited to 1 delegate for every 500 members and that each delegate shall be

entitled only to a fee of $100 regardless of the duration of the Convention. Since Conventions are held every fourth year only, thorough examinations are required which cannot be completed within a few days.

6. ) The proposals of the Board of Directors that representation of the branches at the district meetings be limited to 1 delegate for every branch, each of whom shall have an additional vote for every 100 members of the branch represented by him, is objected to by the District on the ground that the im practicality of such rule has been proven in the past when easily swayed delegates, having several votes, accomplished very little for the benefit of the membership.

7. ) Branch 20 recommends that democratic principles be made to prevail in the setup of the American Hungarian Federation at its next convention and that Americans of Hungarian descent be more extensively represented in its activities to be conducted for the benefit of all Hungarians.

8. ) Members attaining the age of 65 who have paid their dues for thirty - years, shall be issued Paid-Up certificates .

9. ) Every member of the Association, including those who have no sick benefit certificates, shall be eligible to hold offices in the Association.

The expenses of the meeting totalled $12.50. Stephen Sziics, Jr., was elected delegate to the National Convention and John Fedak was elected alternate delegate. Signed by STEPHEN ázüCH, JR., Recording Secrretary.

DISTRICT 5/B.

SCRANTON, PA.

The first district meeting of Branch 174 was held at the St. Stephen's Roman Catholic meeting hall in Scranton, Pa., on June 29th, 1947. In accordance with

the provisions of the By-laws, branch-Presidcnt Louis Kovach assumed the office of District President and Branch-Manager Joseph Cibolya that of District Recorder. John I. Nemeth was elected delegate to the National Convention and Frank Sipos alternate delegate. The expenses of the meeting were set at $8.00.

The following actions were taken in reference to the proposed amendments of the By-laws:

§8: Branches having at least 25 (instead of 15) members shall be entitled to representation at the district meetings. Branches having less members may submit their recommendations in writing to the district sessions. The proposed extension of travelling time entitling to per diem fee from 6 to 8 hours is approved.

§3: Representation to the National Convention shall be limited to one delegate for every 500 members.

§9, section 15, shall not be changed. The American practice of the president of an organization being also the chariman of its Board of Directors has proved satisfactory. Then, too, it is a matter of experience that the creation of any office involves additional expenditures.

Likewise, it is only proper that the business of the meetings be presented and the proceedings be recorded by the Supreme Secretary as the officer who has firsthand information on all agenda.

The presenting of these matters by a member of the Board of Directors would only prolong the meetings, because the Supreme Secretary would have to be called upon in any event for detailed information, and. obviously, protracted meetings would mean higher expenses.

A provision shall be inserted in section q/ of §10, to the effect that the Convention Delegates be polled on matters the postponement of which would be detrimental to the Association, if the directors are unable to reach unanimous agreement.

§13: the proposed increasing of $100 to $200 in section f./ is adopted.

§17-18: The text of the new paragraph pertaining to the district managers is adopted by the meeting, because, thereby, the official status of the district managers will be confirmed. Such recognition they have earned by their contributions, during the last ten years, to the progress of the Association.

§20: New branches may be organized upon request by 25 (instead of 15) members. The consent of branches already operating in such communities shall be required.

§23: the rule pertaining the officers to be elected by the branches shall be strictly enforced.

The delegates to the National Convention shall be entitled to $100 (instead of per diem fees) regardless of the duration of the Convention. District 5/B of Scranton, Pa., requests that economy be made the keynote of the National Convention and that the delegates to the Convention be instructed by the districts to vote in favor of economizing.

District 5/B submits that the By-laws of the Association having been adapted, by now, to the state insurance laws and statutes, it is entirely unnecessary for the COMMITTEE OF AMENDMENTS to spend at each Convention a full week with deliberations since no essential changes can be effected, anyhow. The entire matter may be taken care of in two days and half of the time and money spent by the Convention could be saved.

The same is true as far as the FINANCIAL COMMITTEE is concerned. Modern business methods prevail today in the management of the Association whose financial statements are prepared by a Certified Public Accountant and submitted for approval to the State Insurance Commissioner, in accordance with the provisions of the insurance statutes. At every Convention in the past, these detailed statements had been presented in bookform to the financial committee which, in each instance, devoted a full week to its examination only to approve it in the end without any changes or reservations whatsoever. What purpose is served, then, by the lengthy deliberations of the financial Committee? This, too, could be attended to in two days and half of the time and money spent by the Convention could be saved.

The task of the ORGANIZING COMMITTEE is of greatest importance because the plans for expanding the Association by securing new members and retaining the membership, are developed by this body. This being the only field in which there are unlimited possibilities for innovations, the meeting of District 5/B recommends the following:

a.) Since the greater part of- BIRTHDAYS —

with a one line biography of oeople from all over the world for each day of the year. See who was born on your birthday. This list meant a lot of research and very man i hours of work ... it is believed to be accurate, however, if you have

proof otherwise, — kindly send me the proof! BIRTHDAYS for AUGUST

1. Esther Williams. Motion Picture Actress ........................... 1921

2. Myrna Loy. Movie Star .......................................................... 1905

3. MISS JOAN HELEN OROSZ, GRADUATE OF

DUQUESNE HIGH SCHOOL, CLASS 1947.

MEMBER AT BRANCH 71, DUQUESNE, PA.

(Happy birthday!) ........................... 1929

4. Edward Irving. A Scotch Divine ........... 1792

5. Guy de Maupassant. French Novellist ...............................' 1850

6. Lucille Ball. Movie Star ....................................................... 1911

7. Konrad Heiden. German author, journalist 1901

■8. Pietro Alessandro Yon. Amer.-Ital. Organist,

musical director ...............................-................................... 1886

9. Robert Fulton. American Inventor of steamboat ................... 1765

10. Jacques Reich. American etcher, (born in Hungary) ....... 1852

11. Hobart VanZandt Bosworth. Stage and screen actor ........... 1904

12. Cecil B. DeMille. Motion Picture Producer, Director ....... 1881

Í3. Gene Raymond. Motion Picture actor ............................... 1908

(4. Cobina Wright: Movie actress .............................................. 1922

15. Albert Spaulding. American Violinist, author ................... 1888

16. Ann Blythe. Motion Picture Actress ................................... 1928

17. Monty Wooley. Movie Star ....................................................... 1888

18. Charles Francis Adams. American statesman ....................... 1807

19. Bernard Baruch. Aanerican Financier ............................... 1870

2Ö. Joan Blondell. Motion Picture actress .............................. 1909

21. Basie William. (Count Basie.) Colored Orchestra

Leader ......•........................................................................... 1906

22. Ingrid Bergman. Movie star ............................................... 1917

23. Rodolphus Agricola. Dutch humanist ............................... 1443

24. Phil Baker. Motion Picture and Radio Star ....................... 1898

25. Leonard Bernstein. •American Conductor, composer,

pianist ....................................................................................... 1918

20. Michael Zacharewitsch. Russian violinist, composer ........... 1878

27. Johannes Voigt. German Historian .................................... 1786

28. Charles Boyer. Movie Star ....................................................... 1899

29. Oliver Wendell Holmes. American author ....................... 1809

30. Huey Pierce Long. American statesman ........................... 1893

81. Yoshihito. 123rd Emperor of Japan .................................. 1879

The editor of the BIRTHDAYS column wishes to invite the readers to please send in their own or relatives’ Birthdays with a brief note about them and starting with August’s column I hope to make this column a closer and friendlier one with you and you and your friends included herein ... Of course I have a way to find things out, but I wish to ask each and every one of you to please cooperate with me. This is your chance to see your name and birthday printed and read by thousands all over the country.

You must tell me your name, exact birthday (Year, month and day,) also a brief sketch of “who you are”. You should also include to what branch you belong to. I’m making up these lists 3 months in advance, so please rush the coming months to me as fast as you can. Avoid dissappointment . . .

So once again, this is open to everybody; rush, because I only print one for each day and the first one received will be printed; duplicate birthdays will have to wait until the next year’s column. Rush all Birthdays to the editor. ALBERT STEINMETZ. 4535 BOWMAN BLVD., LOS ANGELES 32, CALIF.

July 30, 1947

the membership today consists t non-Hungarians who expect rej ular home-service from the repr« sentatives of the Association, it i imperative that ways and mean be found by the organizing an finance committees to adequatel compensate the field workers e the Association, the branch-man agers, for the difficult work o retaining and increasing the mem bership, —

b.) In view of the decreasin: interest in membership contests smaller branches, wherever pos sible, shall be grouped under th management of full-time local or ganizers whose duties would con sist of collecting the dues, re taming the membership and se curing new members. The neces sity for this step cannot be de nied in view of the undue indif ference toward the promotions program of the Association oi the part of the nearly 200 smal branches of which only 25 havi taken active part in the member ship drives. District 5/B submit: that if the monies spent in con tests were to be used for thi employment of full-time local or ganizers, new members could bi secured even where no new mem bers had been solicited through out the last 5-10 years.

The presently applied, once ef fective but now outmoded, pro motional system is to be discard ed because the decline of the im migrant Hungarian membership due to the cessation of immigra tion, makes it imperative that oui fraternal system be adapted to tht fraternal concepts and ideas o) the second generation. The As sociation cannot advance amonj: other than Hungarian nationalities, unless methods are appliec the effectiveness of which has been proven by the great insurance companies. If the Associatior is to be able to meet competition the members of the above mentioned 200 branches are to b< rendered expert service by experienced fraternal insurance representatives. To find the solution of this problem is the task of the Organizing Committee at the coming National Convention. The future of the Association depends on the Organizing Committee. Signed by LOUIS KOCSIS, President. JOSEPH CIBOLYA, Recorder.

Fraternalism is beyond price. It is not a commodity. It is inconceivable to classify it with anything that has a dollar-andcents value. It is the better part of human nature; it is a cause that produces good effects; it is a benevolent habit; a source from which blessings flow; a fundamental truth; a charitable energy; a law of conduct; a great truth.

A man who wants his children to have the benefit of an education, whether he lives to give it to them or not, needs life insurance.

TO THE CONTRIBUTORS

The next issue of the Journal will be published on Wednesday, August 13th. Contributions for that issue should be in not later than August 6th, Wednesday.

Contributions should be typewritten, on one side of the paper only, double-spaced, and not exceed 1,200 words, or 6.000 letters. Address contributions to VERHOVAY JOURNAL, ENGLISH SECTION, 436 Fourth Ave.. Pittsburgh 19, Pa.