William Penn Life, 1999 (34. évfolyam, 2-12. szám)
1999-05-01 / 5. szám
ship and was a semifinalist in the District Open Doubles competition. Judy is the daughter of Branch 98 members James and Mary Borso. She is the granddaughter of the late Stephen Lang Sr., a former WPA National Director, and Branch 98 member Julia Lang (who will be 98 years old in June). Her uncle is former WPA Vice President Stephen Lang Jr. Judy currently resides in Rochester with her husband, Dr. Brian Thorn, and son, Michael Paul. f Branch 800 Á Altoona, PA J by Vincent Frank Happy Mother's Day! Mother's Day will be celebrated this year on Sunday, May 9. It's a very special day for all mothers. Now, what makes our mothers so wonderful? Well, there are many things. Mothers bring happiness, kindness, patience and constant understanding. But, most of all, they have warm and loving hearts. God bless all mothers. The WPA's 34th General Convention will take place on Sept. 6 to 8 at the Pittsburgh Hilton and Towers. Branch 800, as well as all other branches throughout the country, will be electing delegates in May. Try to attend your Delegate District's election meeting and help elect the person or persons who will represent your branch at the convention. Happy wishes go out to all those celebrating a birthday or anniversary during May or the summer months. Branch 800 has received word from the Huntingdon prison that the Rev. David R. Becker, the Catholic Chaplain at the prison's St. Dismas Chapel, has retired due to health reasons. A new chaplain may be assigned as early as June. It was good to know Fr. Becker all these years and work with him through our branch's donations to the spiritual work at the prison. May God bless you, Fr. Becker. Memorial Day, also known as Decoration Day, is an official patriotic holiday in the United States. This year it will be observed on May 31. Did you know that the custom of placing flowers on the graves of the war dead began way back on May 5, 1866? After World War I, the day was set aside to honor the dead of all American wars, and the custom was extended to pay homage to all deceased relatives and friends, both military and civilian. May all their souls rest in peace. For your life insurance and annuity needs, please call Branch Coordinator Robert Jones at (814) 942-2661. f Branch 8121 y St. Marys, PA J by Margaret Marconi We held our first business meeting of 1999 on April 7 at St. Marys Parochial School annex. We had so much catching up to do, but it was nice to see each other again. Our picnic and Christmas party dates for the year have been set. (More on those at a later date.) April 25 was Communion Sunday at St. Marys Church. What a wonderful event it was. We thank the Ho nr Office for sending us the chec. .or the Holi ty Baskets we distributed during th past Thanskgiving and Christma A lovely lady in St. Marys wa. murdered recently. We ask all our members to remember her and her family in their prayers. Qood 6ye, Joe By Louis A. Fodor B ack in the 1980's, after I retired from the steel mill, I got more involved in the selling of life insurance. It was around this time that I really got to know Joe and Mary Tocash. Joe was a short person, perhaps a few inches shorter than me, but his demeanor made him a very tall person. He never uttered a bad word to anyone, and everyone liked him so much. Many times someone would call him "Little Joe." In his case, it was a sign of respect. Joe and Mary lived in Tiltonsville, Ohio, one of the many small communities along the Ohio River. He was born there, but at the age of three his mom took him to Pápoc, Hungary, in the county of Vas. He got to liking the Hungarian songs there, before his mom brought him back to the U.S.—and Tiltonsville--when Joe was 12. The family opened a small grocery store. > Joe and his three older brothers-Alex, Charles and Árpád—helped out at the store. Later in life, Joe got a job as a crane man at Wheeling Steel. (I was one, too, but at Weirton Steel.) In 1948 he married Mary, and they had a little girl, Paula, in 1953. At that time many of the Hungarian dances and activities were held near Martins Ferry, Ohio. It was at such activities that I first met Joe. Later on, after he found out that I played the violin, Joe would look me up and ask me to play his favorite songs: "/ft hagyom a falutokat nem sokára" ("I'm leaving this village very soon") and "Magas jegenye fán, sárga rigó fészek" ("On a tall poplar tree, there is a yellow thrush's nest"). He was happiest when those two songs were played. He and Mary could dance the csárdás with the best of them, turning first to the right and then to the left. Continued on Page 20 ..... . ''r... ■ - ^ William Penn Life, May 1999 13
