William Penn Life, 2013 (48. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)

2013-09-01 / 9. szám

The real culinary treat, however, was the wonderful cooking by lea Martincsek, assisted by instructor Tamás' wife, Ursula, and John Toth. On the first night of the Experience, we were greeted with chicken paprikas. Chicken soup, gulyás, yellow bean soup, breaded pork chops, roast beef, freshly made pies and cheesecake rounded out the week's menu. Experience organizer and WPA National Vice President-Fraternal Endre Csornán told one participant she'd gain 10 pounds over the week, and he wasn't far off!

We also had the opportunity to create some folk art.

Magyar Marketing owner Liz Szabó Vos brought some wooden plaques and planters to paint and decorate.

Second-year attendee Linda Enyedy brought materials to make cloth dolls. She also plays the citera (zither) and shared her music with us. Linda said she twice went to zither camp in Hungary, and her group actually brought the teacher here for four years.

She also taught the women students a traditional circle dance that they performed as part of Friday night's program for WPA Board members and other invited guests.

This is the third year that husband and wife David and Elaine Valentine, from Elyria, Ohio, have participated in the Experience. David said that he comes to "learn more language, have a good time and get to see old friends." He said the Heritage Experience is "one of the best things I've done in my life."

For first-timer Mary Bowser, 73, of West Middlesex, "It was very hard; there were a couple of tears," she

said. But, all in all, she said it was a wonderful experience and she would come back again. She was impressed with the genealogy lesson, tracing the origins of the Magyar people.

Elizabeth Vos, daughter of Liz Vos, was there for her fourth year, along with her mother and younger sister, Hannah. Having just graduated from high school, she said it's a different experience to be one of the only teenagers there. But, she said, "It's a welcome break from being with friends

my own age." She also said, "it's nice to learn from the experience of the other people."

Ervin Simon, from Hungary, not too long out of his teens, was at the Hungarian Heritage Experience as an intern for WPA. He is spending three months with WPA; previously he spent three months at the Bethlen Home in Ligonier, Pa. His internship is being paid for by the Hungarian government. In addition to the Heritage Experience, he has assisted with WPA's golf and bowling tournaments.

"It was a privilege for me to take part [in the heritage camp] with all the beautiful and wonderful people

in their 50s, 60s and 70s who want to maintain their Hungarian heritage," Ervin said. One thing that surprised him was that Endre Csornán was so "full of energy!"

Dr. Nicholas Szilagyi and his wife, Kathryn, came from St. Louis to attend the Experience for the first time. Nick said he "wanted to connect with my heritage, to make it more a part of my life, and to develop my language skills to be able to speak with real Hungarians." For him, the language classes were the highlight.

Kathryn, who is not Hungarian, said she didn't know what to expect. "For one thing, I wondered if I was capable of learning a new language," she said. Instructor Markus said she did very well!

The other student who traveled a long distance was Marcia Smith, from Florida. This was her first time at the camp, but she was in the advanced class. She said she taught herself Hungarian. About the class, she said, "it was fun. We had a lot of conversation. Tamás made us talk and he talked a lot in Hungarian."

This year, eight members of the Bolla family attended the Experience. They are the descendants of Gabor Bolla, who was the first treasurer and initial charter member of the Verhovay Aid Association. Attending were: Bolla's grandson, Ted; granddaughter, Thelma Van Eiden; Ted's son Mark; Thelma's daughters Vicki Loesch and Liana; and cousins Liz, Elizabeth and Hannah Vos.

Mark, who is going on the WPA trip to Hungary in September, said he can now "get halfway through a sentence before I have to look something up." He said he is learning a bit more each year he attends the Experience and "a bit more fits into place."

10 0 September 2013 0 William Penn Life