William Penn Life, 2010 (45. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

2010-08-01 / 8. szám

as a member of WPA's National Advisory Committee and as a delegate to several General Conventions.

For 43 years, his wife Priscilla joined him on his interesting journey. Her outstanding teaching career was recognized and honored by the governor of New Jersey. She died in 1995, and it is evident that this is still a great loss for Prof. Molnár. "She was more than an equal partner," he says softly describing his wife. "She was loved by everybody and greatly missed. Without her I wouldn't have been able to do this," he says with a sweeping gesture of his hand. Priscilla understood the necessity of him devoting a great deal of time to his work. And, through the years with Priscilla, Prof. Molnár feels, they actually gained more—not monetarily, but with friendships that enriched them. They found this to be both helpful and valuable. Because of her dedication to her profession, there is a scholarship at Elmhurst College in Priscilla's memory for teaching the developmentally impaired.

For all of the satisfaction he's gained from devotion to his life's work, Prof. Molnár does feel a sense of accomplishment. He believes that the groundwork laid by the Foundation is imperative to future generations. "Hungarians have been in America from the American Revolution. You need to collect that history and what they contributed to American life....You enjoy the difference you have in your heritage. To share and enjoy. We share our talents."

The connections to Hungary are equally important. When asked if he felt that having something as the Foundation is helpful to U.S./ Hungary relations, he replied, "Definitely, in unknown ways." Called upon to counsel and advise, he's described the AHF as "very important extension of America (to Hungary) at the highest levels."

Still, with all he's accomplished there are items on his "to do" list. "There's so much in a sense that we need to do more!" I've never felt that we've arrived....But, we've been able to accomplish and fulfill some of the dreams others have had. We've been able to pull together and bind."

While it has taken the vision and efforts of many to achieve what the Foundation has, there remains a widespread conception that the Foundation is August Molnár and vice versa, a notion Prof. Molnár respectfully disputes. "An institution cannot be one person. It's never been one person," he explains. "The institution stays; the individual goes....I don't feel that things will collapse with Molnár gone. It's much bigger than that."

After leading the AHF for 55 years, Prof. Molnár envisions the time when he is no longer its president. That time will most likely come soon. "I would have liked to have gone 10 years ago, and I even asked our Board to think about it," he says. "I even gave them a date, last December-and I'm still here." But, recently, the AHF's Executive Committee and its Committee on Succession recommended to the AHF Board of Directors that Prof. Molnár be appointed to the newly-created position of chancellor and a new president elected. It would be another turn, albeit a slight one, on his life's path, one in which he would remain the public face of the AHF but not be responsible for its day-to-day operations.

He looks forward to his new role. "If I didn't have to sit in an office here and be here all the time, then I could get out on the road...and talk to people" about the Foundation and gain their support. "I would not be a 'president emeritus.' That means you're retired."

Having overseen the AHF from its beginning stages to the respected institution that it has become, he emphasizes again that he has not done this alone. Besides his family and the AHF Board, the number of individuals and organizations who have donated their time, money and artifacts, he is above all grateful to his staff. Each person, he states has had a dedication to "the cause". And they in turn have expressed their respect and fondness for him.

Speaking with August Molnár, it is clear that he found his destiny. His life has taken a path of purpose. Thinking of the 'what ifs' in his life: if his father had not left Hungary—if he had not attended Elmhurst College; if he had not decided to return there to teach—it becomes very clear Gus Molnár followed a higher plan, if you will, and found his destiny. □

The place where August Molnar's path led him: the American Hungarian Foundation and its museum in the AHF's Hungarian Heritage Center in New Brunswick, N.J.

William Penn Life ° August 2010 0 21