William Penn Life, 2012 (47. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

2012-04-01 / 4. szám

For Starters

Letter from the Chair

by Barbara A. House

I want to share with you some of the wonderful things your new Board of Directors and National Officers are working on for you. We held meetings of the Executive Committee and the Fraternal Committee in February. Needless to say, they were intense and lengthy. You, our members, were thought of continuously. I hope you like what we have planned.

We worked diligently to finalize plans for our bowling tournament on May 4 and 5. We have many surprises planned.

We then discussed Join Hands Day. I'm sure you all have plans at your branch to take part in this event.

Our golf tournament will be held July 20 and 21.1 hope you plan on joining us.

The Hungarian Heritage Experience begins on Aug. 5. You will learn the Hungarian language and about Hungarian customs, music and dancing. You might even learn how to play the zither.

The WPA Picnic-A Great Fraternal Fest will be held Sept. 8. We all know what a great time that is.

Then, we all plan our various Szüreti Bals, branch elections and Christmas parties.

I hope something here has tweaked your interest.

Your branches were thoroughly discussed. Your National Officers and Directors are committed to helping you make your branches successful and lasting. Those of you who are active will receive the necessary funds to help you keep all your events going. Those of you who want to get active, please contact us. I promise you we will do everything we can to help revitalize your branch.

But, you must tell us that you want our input. We sincerely want yours. Let us know everything you are doing, Hungarian or American. We can learn from each other.

Be more group-minded than self-centered. You'll feel a lot better.

On April 21, the entire Board and the National Officers will be in New Jersey as the American Hungarian Foundation honors our National President, George S. Charles, Jr. We are so proud that he was chosen to receive the Abraham Lincoln Award. Congratulations, Pete. Thank you for all your hard work.

Remember, I am always available to speak with you.

Have a wonderful Spring. May God bless you and your loved ones.

WPA bids farewell to two Home Office employees

PITTSBURGH - The Home Office Staff and the entire Association recently bid a fond farewell to two employees upon their retirement: Gerry Davenport and Mary Rectenwald.

Gerry was a fixture at the Home Office for 43 years, serving WPA and its members with loyalty, devotion and distinction. During the course of her long career, she worked in every department at the Home Office, except Treasury. She retired on March 30 as administrative assistant to both the National Vice President-Secretary and Chair of the Board.

Many members may best know Gerry as the woman who handled all their questions regarding the William Penn Fraternal Association Scholarship Foundation and processed their applications for scholarship grants.

Hers was among the smiling faces that greeted members and guests at the registration tables of dozens of bowling and golf tournaments, General Conventions and other WPA events.

Mary Rectenwald's face may not

National President George S. Charles, Jr., and retiring Home Office employee Gerry Davenport look inside the ‘‘memory book” created for Gerry by her fellow employees.

be familiar to as many members as Gerry's, but they may well recognize her voice. As a part-time receptionist, Mary spoke with many members, answering their calls to the Home Office. When not answering the phone, Mary served as part of our Membership Services team, handling changes of beneficiaries and addresses, and helping to maintain member records.

Both of these wonderful ladies were a genuine pleasure to work with, and they will be greatly missed. We wish them both long and healthy retirements.

As we say farewell to Gerry and Mary, we extend warm fraternal greetings to two new Home Office employees: Mary Ann Kelly-Lovasz and Judit Borsay.

In Mary Ann's case, we should actually be saying "welcome back" since she worked in the New Business department for several years in the early 1980's. It was during that time that she met her husband, Publications Editor John E. Lovász. Mary Ann will be serving as administrative assistant to the National Vice President-Secretary.

Judit, whose daughter Judit also works at the Home Office, will be working at the office three days a week in the Membership Services department.

William Penn Life 0 April 2012 0 3