Magyar News, 1998. szeptember-1999. augusztus (9. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
1998-12-01 / 4. szám
1 ftaugatuck cinci Edelény friend/hip holding (19hl L Judit Vasniatics Paolini Edelény, Hungary, that was our destination. My cousin Antal was driving, and I was seated next to him on the passenger's side. It was one of the hottest days in Hungary this summer. We were quite uncomfortable for we had been driving for three and a half hours from Budapest in a car which was not air conditioned making the heat unbearable! Furthermore, the three people seated in the back were even more uncomfortable than I, for they were cramped in a fairly small area! Despite the cramped quarters and the intolerable heat we were elated knowing that we would soon reach our destination and arrive at the Institution of Edelény where we would be warmly welcomed by our dear friends - members of the Hungarian Special Olympics who we befriended during the 1995 Summer World Games when Naugatuck hosted the Hungarian Delegation. Upon our arrival we were first greeted by László, one of the athletes, who was waiving his hands and had a smile beaming from ear to ear upon spotting us. Soon we were greeted by Ferenc Varga the technical director of the HSO. I first had the pleasure of meeting him during the Summer Games in New Haven. He too was smiling and was delighted that we had accepted his invitation to the Institution of Edelény of which he is the director. We were surprised to discover that Lajos Lengyel the finance director of the HSO had come from Budapest to spend the day with us! His good humor, friendly smile, and the mischievous twinkle in his eyes added to our merriment! Once again we — people of Naugatuck and Hungary - were exchanging hugs and kisses with our dear friends. In fact, the heat of the day turned out to be nothing compared to the warm smiles, bear hugs, and kisses we received upon our wonderful reunion! We simply came as friends expecting no fanfare. We were but ordinary people; our small party of five consisted of my husband George and me from Naugatuck. Traveling with us from Connecticut were my nephew Jeffrey Vasniatics whose dad was an interpreter for the Hungarian Delegation in '95 and our friend Richard Dwyer of Branford who had been a Delegation Host for the team from Ireland. Also traveling with us was my cousin from Budapest who had kindly offered to drive us to Edelény. Ferenc Varga and his staff were most gracious and generous in their hospitality! In addition, to our complete surprise.we were greeted and warmly welcomed by the Mayor of Edelény who presented us with a crest of the city made of pottery. Judging by the reception we received, one would have thought that we were dignitaries; we truly marveled at the special reception! We came bearing gifts; and I was so looking forward to giving my gifts to the three athletes I had befriended in '95. One in particular had truly touched my heart when he gave me his team T-shirt! At first I wasn't sure if I was allowed to accept such a gift, but I had been assured that I may certainly keep it; so I gladly accepted it. Now it was my mm to return the favor. It gave me such great joy to do so. In addition, we had token gifts for all of the 230 residents housed at the Institution of Edelény. The Naugatuck Valley Savings and Loan Association had given us jar openers upon our request; and Bank Boston had donated pens. We were thankful for the donations we had received from these banks in town and were delighted that we had gifts for everyone! As we toured the facilities we observed them to be clean and bright. The athletes were very exhilarated about our visit and took great pleasure in showing us their living quarters: they eagerly wanted to show us everything! László was particularly beaming with pride as he introduced his girlfriend, showed us his new bicycle, etc.; he was so thrilled that we had a chance to visit with him. We took several pictures and assured him that we would send him copies. Laci, the athlete who had given me his team T-shirt was so proud of his medals and certificates...Smiling, he said "See this! See this! MINE. MINE.” He to was thrilled that we had come from NAUGATUCK to see HIM! I was very pleased to discover that our athletes were not only okay but happy. During the tour of the facilities we lingered in some rooms longer than others. We certainly spent some time in a room filled with photos, memorabilia, ribbons, medals, etc. displayed on a wall from the 1995 Summer Games held in New Haven: we had such fun reminiscing about the time we spent togetherin Naugatuck... NewHaven... AMERICA! As we turned we spied another wall covered with the Canadian flag, pictures, posters, etc. from the 1997 Winter Games in Toronto! Ferenc still marvels at the thought that some of us from the host town committee drove ten hours in February in the middle of winter to root for team Hungary in Toronto! Finally, we spotted a poster advertising the 1999 Summer Games to be held in Raleigh, North Carolina. I knew that some of us from Naugatuck had hopes of attending! As we toured the facility Ferenc Varga and his staff provided us with quite a bit of information regarding the facility, its residents. objectives, etc. This particular institution houses people with mental retarda-Zoltan Varga, Ferenc Varga, Judit, Dr Anna Varga, Page 4
