William Penn Life, 2010 (45. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2010-07-01 / 7. szám
In Brief ffigl Magyar Matters_________________ Thousands evacuated as floods devastate northern Hungary from MTI BUDAPEST — An emergency declared by the government in late May due to unprecedented flooding remained in place in early June in eight northern and central Hungarian counties. Altogether 3,700 residents had been evacuated across the country by June 4, authorities told MTI. Most left their homes in the northeastern Borsod-Abauj-Zemplen county, where a total of 1,300 residents were transferred from the village of Felsőzsolca to county seat Miskolc, a local disaster management official said. The Sajó river that flooded the village had started to slowly recede, Csaba Csont, a regional water management official told MTI. The situation remained critical in the town of Edelény, a town with 10,000 residents, from where the flooding Bodva river has forced 550 locals from their homes. As of June 7, 12 houses had collapsed there. Local authorities had to supply drinking INKUBÁTOR, a documentary film probing the ethnic identity of the Hungarian American community, finished a successful two-week screening tour across the U.S. this May and recently had its premier in Hungarian theaters. The 84-minute film was directed by Réka Pigniczky, who was born and raised in the U.S. by Hungarian parents who fled Hungary during the 1956 Revolution. Her film tells the story of an unlikely and dramatic reunion, involving a Hungarian rock opera performed in California's Sierra Nevada mountains by a cast of 40-something Hungarian Americans. The cast meets in the same place they performed "Stephen the King" 25 years earlier, during a summer camp in 1984. Most of the cast members had water to locals in plastic bags earlier. In nearby Szendrő a dozen homes also collapsed and around 150 residents had to be evacuated. The situation in the entire county had improved by June 4, when only four towns and villages were still blocked by the flooding Sajó, Hernád and Bodva rivers and streams, compared with 12 in the morning. In Budapest, the highest alert had been in place for several days due to the flooding Danube. The municipal water management authority ordered the deployment of 46 flood protection gates and over 30 canals to protect the capital. Donations continued to flow in to help flood victims, the largest amount raised so far totals 120 million forints ($529,000) through calls placed at a toll-free number opened by a national relief foundation. The U.S. Embassy also donated $50,000 to the Hungarian Red Cross for the purchase of blankets, food, cots and other needed supplies. □ never been to Hungary, where their parents were born. The cast members now live all over the world, including Budapest. Their reunion offers a portrait of one of the many "incubators" operating in the U.S. They meet not only to reminisce but also to figure out who they've become, 20 years after the liberation of Hungary. The film's two-week screening tour was sponsored by the Hungarian American Coalition. The film will be presented in select U.S. cities later this year, including screenings at the Itt-Ott conference in August and the Hungarian Filmweek in Los Angeles in November. The film's Hungarian premier was held June 3 in Budapest as part of the National Filmweek. For more information online, visit www.56films.com. □ □ The First Hungarian Reformed Church of McKeesport, Pa., will once again be sponsoring a Hungarian booth during the 51 st Annual International Village, Aug. 17-19, at Renzie Park in McKeesport. The menu will include kolbász sandwiches, stuffed cabbage, chicken paprikás and dumplings, cabbage and noodles, szalonna sütés, palacsinta and various Magyar pastries. The Village will feature the food, music and dancing of nearly 20 ethnic groups from 3:00 to I 1:00 p.m. each day. Among those scheduled to perform are the William Penn Association Magyar Folk Dancers. For more information about the International Village, call Annette James at 412-675-5020, ext. 605. □ The Hungarian Cultural Association in Columbus, Ohio, continues to offer its Sunday Lunch Program, providing soup and discussions on topics relating to Hungarian culture, traditions and history. Programs are held at the Hungarian Reformed Church of Columbus, beginning at 11:00 a.m. with an English service. Two soups are available for lunch at 12:15 p.m., followed by a 60-minute program at 12:45 p.m. Upcoming topics include Sharing American Resources Abroad (SARA) on July 11, Genealogy- Finding Your Hungarian Ancestors on Aug. 8 and Travel in Transylvania on Sept. 12. For a complete list of upcoming topics and more information, call Arthur Bartfay at 614-442-6593. □ Hungarian newspapers recently reported the Budapest Local Council is discussing a $ 15 billion development plan for Hungry to bid on the 2020 Summer Olympic Games. Népszabadság reported Hungary would need about $10 billion for transportation development and over $2.6 billion for athletic and media facilities, including the construction of the Olympic village. Napi Gazdaság wrote that Hungarian taxpayers would finance 90 per cent of development costs because Hungary cannot count on EU funding for the bid. It's expected that about $ 1.7 billion would be financed by private investors. The International Olympic Committee is selecting the host city for the 2020 Summer Games in 2013. Film about FJungarians in America finishes successful screening tour William Penn Life ° July 2010 0 7
