William Penn Life, 1990 (25. évfolyam, 2-10. szám)
1990-10-01 / 10. szám
WILL OFFICIAL PUBLICATION JNNLIF WILLIAM PENN ASSOCIATION Volume 25 October 1990 Number 10 Hungarian Room marks 51st year with dinner-dance PITTSBURGH — The Hungarian Classroom, one of nearly two dozen nationality classrooms at the University of Pittsburgh, will mark its 51st anniversary with a dinner-dance Sunday, Oct. 14. The event, sponsored by the Hungarian Room Committee, will be held at the university’s Schenley Hall Ballroom, located on Bigelow Boulevard between Forbes and Fifth avenues in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh. The evening will begin with a social hour at5:00p.m., followed by dinner at 6:00 p.m. Afterwards, committee members and guests will be invited to dance to Hungarian music. The William Penn Association and its predecessors have played a major role in the development of the room and the committee. Members of the former Verhovay and Rákóczi associations contributed much of the money used to construct the room in the late 1930’s and to install the five stained glass windows depicting important figures and events in Hungarian history. Over the last 30 years, the William Penn has sponsored many social and cultural events to benefit the room’s scholarship fund. The fund aids University of Pittsburgh students studying in Hungary. William Penn National Director Roger G. Nagy serves as chairman of the Hungarian Room Committee, and National Secretary-Treasurer Frances A. Furedy is the committee’s treasurer. Chairman of the Board Joseph P. Arvay and William Penn member John C. Miller are the committee’s scholarship coordinators. Mr. Miller is also the committee’s historian. Other William Penn members serving as officers on the committee are: Alexander J. Goydan, first vice chairman; Albert D. Furedy, second vice chairman; and Robert A. Kapinus, secretary. Tickets for the dinner-dance are $15 per person. For reservations call Frances A. Furedy by Oct. 4 at (412) 231-2979. Meiriber meets Hungarian president During his trip to Hungary this summer, A l Bart fay (left) of Branch 129 Columbus had the chance to meet Hungarian President Árpád Göncz (right). The encounter occurred during President Göncz’s visit to an international summer language school in Debrecen which Mr. Bartfay was attending. "1 never thought I would shake the hand of the president of a free and democratic Hungary,” Mr. Bartfay said of the meeting. Two members to celebrate 100th birthday this month Inside_____ ■ Folk Theatre to host gala season premiere........Page 2. ■ Hungarian-born artist carves trail of 'giants’..........Page 3. ■ 1990 William Penn scholarship recipients............Pages 4-5. ■ The latest news and notes from our branches___Pages 6, 8. ■ In Memóriám and Recent Donations .................Page 7. Next Deadline October 19 Anna Papp and Teresza Weaver will do this month what very few people ever will: they will celebrate their 100th birthday. Mrs. Weaver, a member of Branch 44 Akron, was born in Hungary on Oct. 16, 1890, and immigrated to the U.S. at 23. She now lives with her daughter-inlaw Jeanne, who says a family party is planned for the big day. Mrs. Papp, a member of Branch 34 Pittsburgh, was born on Oct. 27, 1890. She underwent a hip operation at the end of August, and family and friends are planning a party for her after she is out of the hospital. Anyone wishing to send greetings may write to the following: Mrs. Anna Papp, Lindsley’s Personal Care Home, 621 Petty St., McKeesport, PA 15132. Mrs. Teresza Weaver, 2254 Copley Road, Akron, OH 44320. We at the William Penn wish both Anna and Teresza a Happy Birthday. Association joins effort to restore historic cemetery CONNELLSVILLE, PA — It is 11:00 a.m., Dec. 19, 1907, and the parishioners of St. Emory’s Hungarian Roman Catholic Church gather for services. As families share a celebration of thanksgiving, it is doubtful that anyone there can imagine what is to happen to their parish 50 minutes later. At 11:50 a.m. an explosion rips through the Darr Mine located in the nearby town of Van Meter. Of the estimated 300 miners killed, about 100 are members of St. Emory’s. About 60 of the dead are to be buried in a mass grave in the church’s cemetery. Only nine can be identified. Thirteen days later, on Jan. 1, 1908, the parishioners of St. Emory’s Church gather for a burial mass for those members killed in the disaster. As families share a moment of grief, it is doubtful that anyone there can imagine what is to become of this resting place of their loved ones 80 years later. It is now Autumn 1990, and a former member of old St. Emory’s Church walks cautiously through the weeds and brush and around the fallen and broken grave markers which make up this historic cemetery. Ann Toth does not like what she sees. Ever since her father, Steve, passed away in 1989, it has been her mission to fulfill his dream of restoring the Hungarian cemetery as the place of honor it was meant to be, identifying those interred there, and establishing the means for its perpetual care. St. Emory’s cemetery is actually one of five sections which form Chestnut Hill Cemetery. Only one of the five sections receives regular maintenance; the others, including St. Emory’s, either receive little care or are ignored altogether. Until 1970, such conditions were unthinkable. The people of St. Emory’s cared for the graveyard with care and reverence, for it not only held the dead from Darr Mine but also their husbands, wives and infant children. But in 1970, the church was closed by the Greensburg Catholic Diocese and the Hungarian cemetery was placed under the care of another church which maintained one of the other four sections. By that time many of the families with relatives buried in St. Emory’s cemetery had begun moving out of the area. Eventually, only a handful of former parishioners with long memories and grieving hearts would remain. Among them was Steve Toth. He was 5 years old at the time of the Darr Mine tragedy, and forever carried with him the images of a town and parish struggling to cope with death on such a large scale. He understood the importance and significance of the cemetery. He instilled that understanding in his daughter, Ann, and when he died she picked up his fight and began asking questions. Who is responsible for this? Shouldn’t See CEMETERY Page 3
