In Memoriam

7/10/2008 - AHF Mourns the Loss of the Rev. Dr. Imre Bertalan, minister to our community, voice of unity, former President and Chairman of the American Hungarian Federation, President of the Hungarian Reformed Federation of America (HRFA), Hungarian American Coalition board member, and representative of the American Section of the World Alliance of Hungarians. Rev. Bertalan passed away on July 10, 2008 at his sister's home in upstate New York. He was 90 years old. [read more]

3/17/2007 - Great Painter, Sculptor and Hungarian, Gabriella Koszorus-Varsa passes away in her home in Washington, DC. Heralded as a master of portraits, figure compositions, as well as sculptures, Ms. Koszorus-Varsa's depiction of the charge of the cavalry during the battle of Charleston in ``Fidelissimus ad Mortem'' is a magnificent master work and hung in the US Capitol and was displayed at the AHF Congressional Reception in honor of the 50th Anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution. In 2007, she was honored with AHF's highest award, the Col. Commandant Michael Kovats Medal of Freedom for "her lifetime accomplishments and dedication to the preservation of our Hungarian heritage." A supporter of AHF for many decades and responsible for the design of some AHF stamps during its 1956 relief efforts and beyond. [read more]

11/6/2007 - AHF mourns the loss of Mózsi Ferenc, author of thirteen volumes of poetry. He was born in Budapest. He left Hungary in 1970 and lived for a time in Belgium pursuing literary studies at the Catholic University of Louvain. In 1974 he moved to the United States and founded and edited the Hungarian critical and artistic review Szivárvány. At the 1984 World Congress of Poetry in Marrakech, Morocco, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Poetry. Ferenc Mózsi lived in Chicago and owned Sebok Travel Services.

8/31/2007 - Imre Gazda, President of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex Magyar Cultural Circle passed away on Friday August 31st, 2007 at the age of 64 after a brief but courageous battle with laryngeal cancer..

Imre was born February 1, 1943, in Hungary and spent his childhood in Mezokovesd and Eger, Hungary. He went to university in Russia and received a master's of engineering degree from the I.M. Gubkin Moscow Institute of Oil and Gas Industry in 1965. [read more]

8/6/2007 - Dr. Jean Dobos, Ph.D., passed away on August 6, 2007. Jean was born on November 21, 1939 and is survived by her loving husband, AHF Board Member Frank Dobos. She graduated from Holy Name Elementary and High School and received her B.S. from Notre Dame College, Master's Degree from Cleveland State University, and Ph.D. from Ohio State. She was a retired Assistant Professor at Cleveland State and Kent State where she loved her research and advising her thesis and dissertation students. An avid gardener, Jean looked forward to the Hudson Garden Club's annual flower sale where she volunteered. She enjoyed playing the saxophone and clarinet in the Bonita Springs Village Band in Florida and with the Two Generations Band in Brimfield. Mass of Christian Burial and reception were held on Saturday, August 11, at St. Emeric Catholic Church in Cleveland.

6/9/2007 - AHF mourns the loss of Dr. Paul J. Szilagyi, Father, Professor, Nagypapa, AHF Leader, and Hungarian Freedom Fighter...

His son, Bryan Dawson-Szilagyi wrote: “Apuka,” “Pali,” Dr. Paul Szilagyi, passed away suddenly, June 9th, of a heart attack at the age of 71. We will miss his unique humor, wisdom, and precious, colorful life. His extreme humility left much of his past hidden, even from me. I do know Paul was a "Pesti Srac" (Kid from Pest), young Freedom Fighters during the 1956 Hungarian Revolution. The communist regime declared the family "enemies of the state," because of their name, so he was not allowed to enter the Technical University for chemistry despite his high marks on the entry examinations... [he] would become the only Hungarian American to complete his Ph.D. under the tutelage of Dr. George Olah, Nobel Prize Winner and fellow Hungarian with whom he would go on to publish a number of scientific papers. "Dr. Szilagyi" would become an expert in organic chemistry, but few know that he also has numerous patents for his biomedical inventions. One of his first patents was a groudnbreaking vascular prosthesis, marketed as the "Szilagyi Woven Graft." He also invented a process to biocarbon coatings to improve prosthetic implants and aid in the ingrowth of bone. [read more]

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Gergely "Bajusz" Pongratz... One of the youthful rebels of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution was Gergely Pongratz. He and his four his brothers were heavily involved in the organization of the revolt and fighting and their names were known to the Soviets. Along with their two sisters, the brothers fled Hungary. Gergely wound up in the United States where he spent the next several decades living in New Jersey, Boston, Chicago, and, finally, Arizona. Gergely returned to Hungary in 1990. With his own money, he established the '56 Museum near Szeged. The museum is filled with memorabilia of the revolt--- a Russian tank, flags, maps, newspaper articles, photos of the Freedom Fighters (both survivors and those killed in battle or later hanged), maps, and a large assortment of the weapons used in the 1956 revolution. [read more]

11/15/2005 - AHF President Emeritus, Entrepreneur, Freedom Activist, and 1959 US "Citizen of the Year," George K. Haydu, passed away after long illness. The death of this great humanitarian and leader is a major loss for the Hungarian-American community and to all his many friends.

With the Soviet crackdown on the ill-fated Hungarian Revolution, George Haydu was commissioned by the Governor of New Jersey in October 1956 as the civilian Commander of the Hungarian Refugee installation at Camp Kilmer, NJ. George Haydu and Ambassador Bang Jensen, a diplomat accredited to the United Nations from Belgium, received death treats from the Hungarian Secret Police if they went ahead with testimonies about the atrocities of the Soviets and Hungarian Stalinist Communists in Hungary. Both refused to comply. Ambassador Jensen was shot to death in New York's Central Park, but Haydu continued to lead anti-Kadar demonstrations in New York City in response to the execution of Prime Minister Imre Nagy, General Paul Maleter and others. Haydu was eventually shot in the leg at the October 1957 "Loyalty Parade" in New York City. [read more]

12/10/2004 - JENO SZEREDAS, 90, Hungarian Freedom Fighter Federation Founder, AHF Member, and Noted Artist Dies...

Jeno Andras Szeredas, Hungarian political activist and Senator, 1956 Freedom Fighter, Founder of the Freedom Fighters Federation in the United States, poet and artist of rare talent died quietly in his sleep at his daughter's home in Connecticut on November 30. He had just celebrated his 90th birthday. [read more]

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