William Penn Life, 2011 (46. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2011-04-01 / 4. szám
In Brief ■lli| Magyar Matters_________________ Scholarship fund helps Hungarian students attain their dreams by Anne Marie Schmidt The Hungarian Scholarship Fund is a non-profit organization committed to providing scholarships and financial aid to students of Hungarian origin living in Hungary or the countries which were once a part of Greater Hungary (Transylvania, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and the Ukraine). The HSF was founded 11 years ago by its president, Dr. Bela J. Bognár, professor emeritus at Wright State University. It continues under his direction and with the help of his wife and HFS Secretary-Treasurer, April Minor-Bognar, and Board members Andy Dobo, Stephen Kalmar, Suzy Kalmar and Anne Marie Schmidt. The HSF supports students to obtain degrees in medicine, health, law, theology, business, natural science, education, the humanities and the arts. More than 50 students receive scholarships each year. The level of support is based on the student's family's financial status and ability to contribute to and support the student's education. Currently, three medical students in Hungary and two in Transylvania are being helped. The organization's most recent graduate, from Semmelweis Medical School, is Virág Siklahy (pictured). Virág was adopted from a dreadful orphanage in Romania at age five. PHILADELPHIA - A recent National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) report said that the first mate of the tugboat involved in the duck boat accident in Philadelphia last summer which killed two Hungarian students, had been on his cell phone during the D-k hours leading up to the crash. According to the report, the first mate received 21 calls on his cell phone from family members about his son's life-threatening emergency. One of the calls started five minutes before the tug had dragged a barge into the duck boat and carried on She remembers the sick children and suffering in the orphanage and was determined to become a pediatrician. Ten years ago, her adoptive father died, and a friend referred her to HSF. Along with some assistance from the state of Hungary, the HSF financed her medical education. Last July, she received her diploma and began her internship in a German hospital. She is fluent in German, English and her native Hungarian. After residency, Virág will return to Hungary to practice Pediatrics. Since its founding, the HSF has supported more than 110 students, and transferred more than $350,000 to five countries. Fundraising is an ongoing process, achieved mostly through mailings and by attending regional and national Hungarian gatherings. William Penn Association has been a past supporter of the HSF. For additional information or to make a tax deductible contribution please contact Dr. Bela Bognár at: Hungarian Scholarship Fund, 7919 E. State Route 55, Casstown, Ohio 45312. □ until one minute after the collision. Killed in the July 7 accident were Hungarian tourists Dora Schwendtner, 16, and Szabolcs Prem, 20. The report also said a deckhand on the duck boat texted his girlfriend a few moments before the crash. Hungarian passengers said the duck boat's captain should have physically demonstrated and not just verbally explained how to wear the life jackets, since they were not native English speakers. A final report is expected to be completed this summer. □ □ As part of its draft for a new Hungarian Constitution, the ruling Fidesz party has proposed the country’s official name be changed to Magyarország (Hungary) from the current Magyar Köztársaság (Hungarian Republic). Prime ministerial spokesman Péter Szijjártó said Hungary has always had that name, and the new Constitution will include a provision to that effect. He also said the change will be cost-free. However, the name change would require, among other things, a complete exchange of currency, which alone could cost upwards of 30 million forints. Personal ID cards, passports, address cards and driver’s licenses would all have to be changed as well, which led some media sources to say the name change was not financially viable. □ While on the subject of changing names, Budapest Ferihegy International Airport will henceforth be officially called Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport. Parliament passed the name change March 16 as an amendment to the acts on energy, which was approved by a vote of 231 -71. Development Ministry state secretaries János Fónagy and Pál Völner had initiated the name change to mark the 200th anniversary of the composer’s birth. The airport opened for military use in 1943, but, due to World War II and damages to the airport caused by the war, civilian air operations did not begin at the airport until 1950. □ Who was the tallest player in this year’s NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament? Greg Somogyi, the 7-foot-3 backup center for the University of California at Santa Barbara Gauchos. Somogyi, a native of Budapest, is in his junior year at UCSB, majoring in business economics. He came to the United States as an exchange student and attended Woodside Priory School in Portola Valley, Calif., for his final two years of high school. The Priory was founded in 1957 by a group of seven Hungarian Benedictine monks from St. Martin’s Archabbey in Pannonhalma, Hungary. The school has welcomed many Hungarian students over the years, including Greg's brother George. NTSB report says tugboat’s mate was on phone at time of deadly duck boat accident William Penn Life 0 April 2011 0 17
