William Penn Life, 2010 (45. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

2010-08-01 / 8. szám

Prof. Molnár. It became a part of his life to see his father's construction jobs come to fruition. "As soon as I was able to, I'd go out with him in the summer on his jobs. I really enjoyed that," Prof. Molnár recalls with a smile. He also recalled that, in the 1930s, his father rebuilt Branch 14 of the former Verhovay Aid Association, located on 80th and Buckeye Streets in Cleveland, and remembers accompanying a Hungarian man in his truck to locate building materials for this project.

By the time he was an established tradesmen and businessman, the elder August met his wife Mary, also from Hungary, who had settled in Cleveland in the 1920s, along with her sister and brothers. Although the Molnars did not live in a typically Hungarian neighborhood in Cleveland's Westside, they maintained close ties to relatives in Warren, Ohio, and in Sharon, Pa., where Prof. Molnár recounts visiting as a child.

Born March 24,1927, in Cleveland, August J. Molnár was the oldest of three children and the only boy.

He was about two years old, around the time that his sister Helen was bom, when his father arranged for Mary's mother to immigrate to the United States to help Mary, who was in poor health. Prof. Molnár says this arrangement was a "great plan", having another maternal influence in the family. Several years later his youngest sister Irene was born. He and his sisters and their families are now scattered across this country, with Helen in Naples, Fla., and Irene in Tulsa, Okla., but Prof. Molnár remembers their closeness during their childhood. "That growing up period was very important for us from having a grandmother with us. It was extremely important." And having a businessman father who was in much demand, it was an important factor to always have a "maternal figure present in the household." Unfortunately, in 1940, his grandmother passed away, and his mother as well the following year.

His father remarried several years later, relocated the family from Cleveland's city life to a farm life in nearby Lyndhurst, Ohio, near his step-mother's family, and built a new family home.

Moving to Cleveland's rural suburb proved very beneficial to the young Gus Molnár. "That really shaped my life,

I think, because of the school system," he said, nodding his head. He entered the 10th grade at Lyndhurst's Charles F. Brush High School, which was part of a school district totaling about 600 students. Had his family not moved there, he would have attended one of Cleveland's larger technical high schools and would have been amongst several thousand students. Attending a smaller school allowed

teachers to give each student "very personal attention in very many, many ways," he said. "They had good teachers who were very much able to see and notice talents."

Young Gus' talent and skills as a writer were honed when he became the editor of HiLite, the school's yearbook. His talent and experience as a builder—gained while working alongside his father—were utilized to help build sets for school plays. This led to Gus winning one-line roles in various plays. He chuckles at the memory of when he was assigned his first major acting role, playing the lead in the student production of Abe Lincoln in Illinois, a role he felt was thrust upon him. However, before it was staged, the director left and a new teacher agreed to go on with the show. Recalling the difficulty of this production, with its 15 scene changes, young Gus and the other cast and crew rose to the occasion. Apparently these types of challenges—public speaking in front of a live audience and the willingness to adapt to change-would prove to be useful assets throughout his life.

During his formative years, there were a number of influences which guided August Molnár to the path he would eventually walk. First, there was his Hungarian- American family, who freely spoke the Hungarian language at home and to acquaintances. Then there was the Hungarian summer school he and his sisters attended, which taught them more extensively their ancestral language, history and culture. There were his neighbors in Lyndhurst, who he described as not only relying on one another, but were very giving and shared whatever skills or talents they had to offer. This close-knit community took care of one another. All of this nurturing made a lasting impression in his mind and in his heart.

But, again, Prof. Molnár recalls the dedicated teachers at Charles F. Brush High School who recognized his various talents, drew them out and showed him how to develop these talents into life skills.

One teacher in particular, John Jacques, who taught history, left an indelible mark on him. Mr. Jacques counseled students who wanted to further their education beyond high school. Serving as Gus Molnar's college advisor, Jacques remained friends with Prof. Molnár and his wife Priscilla for many years. Prof. Molnár smiled as he recalled the last piece of advice that Mr. Jacques gave to him: "Gus, don't ever get old!"

And then there was his father. One could reasonably say that August Molnár was definitely his father's son. Since his father was a businessman, young Gus was accustomed to seeing him deal with clients as they came in to their family home, where the dining room served as

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