The online conference presenting the varied and numerous activities of the organizations of the Hungarian American community in North California was held on 25 October, following up on the first part of the event that took place on 27 September.

Esteban Vajda Széchenyi, born in 1923 as István Vajda in Nagykőrös, Hungary, was a prominent member of the Villa Rica community in the Central Jungle of Peru. Although he found a new home in the South American country, he preserved his Hungarian heritage throughout his life, and passed it on to his children and grandchildren as well.

An in-depth interview with Zsolt Molnár, who emigrated from Transylvania, Romania to the United States, where he ran a successful business until a tragic accident happened. He fell from a roof and broke his spine, after which he had to find a new occupation: he ended up taking over the Bocskai Radio in Cleveland, Ohio, which he turned into a radio station for the local Hungarian community.

‘The diaspora mentality finds the meaning of Hungarian identity in the traditional folk values ​​and advocates these throughout the world. It doesn’t isolate itself either from the world or from present-day Hungary but nurtures contacts with both; builds and maintains relationships everywhere. The idea of ​​a “borderless homeland” means “Wherever there is a Hungarian, there is Hungary.”’

‘Family, school, church, scouting. The combination of these four elements is the only way the Hungarian diaspora can survive in North America. Despite the lack of a perceivable enemy today, we give up ourselves,’ 1956er Gyula Varga, former principal of the Széchenyi Hungarian School and Kindergarten in New Brunswick and an active scout, said in an in-depth interview.

An in-depth interview with Zoltán Vass, son of a Transylvanian minister, who emigrated from Transylvania, Romania to America, initially to New York, then Hollywood, ultimately settling in Toronto 29 years ago as the minister of the First Hungarian Reformed Church. He also serves on the Board of the Hungarian Diaspora Council.

An in-depth interview with Franciscan Friar Barnabás G. Kiss, Pastor of the Hungarian Parish in Detroit, who has been serving in the U.S. for 40 years. While trying to keep various church communities alive in the Great Lakes region, he also strives to keep the Hungarian priests in the North American diaspora together and advocate their cause.

‘Being Hungarian is a spiritual quality. If someone is Hungarian, they are Hungarian first and foremost, and they start to argue only after that—of course, in Hungarian. If we do not have a common value or a common means of communication, what are we talking about at all?’

Father Imre serves a congregation that has many elderly Hungarian parishioners who look to him not only for their spiritual but also logistical needs. He also helps the local Hungarian institutions by baking and cooking meals as well as with the coordination of events of the Hungarian community. Father Imre also caters to a Hispanic community, so he celebrates Mass in three languages.

In 1989 scouting became again legally permitted in Hungary. Consequently, the émigré Hungarian Scout Association changed its name to the current one: Hungarian Scout Association in Exteris. Nowadays it comprises more than 70 troops on four continents, in 14 countries, organized into five districts (Western Europe, South America, USA, Australia and Canada), with a total of 2,950 members.

An in-depth interview with Zsuzsa Csajkás, co-founder of both the South Florida Hungarian Kids Club and the Hungarian Chamber of Business and Commerce in Florida. Born in Csíkszereda (Miercurea Ciuc, Transylvania), she moved to the States for better opportunities and later to pursue a business career, only to then become deeply involved in the life of the Hungarian American community after the birth of her son.

An in-depth interview with Anna (Panni) De Cheke Qualls, co-founder of the Hungarian Folklife Association, who moved to the States as a child with her family in the 1980s, then became actively involved in Hungarian folk dancing after her son, Leó became passionate about it. Now mother and son dance together in the Tisza Ensemble and Bátori Folk Dance Ensemble, where Panni also volunteers.

On 27 September an online conference organized jointly by the Diaspora Project Network of the University of Pécs and Kerko Media Ltd. featured Hungarian communities in San Francisco and its vicinity. The livestreamed discussion, followed in more than ten countries, was an impressive presentation of the diverse voluntary activities and exemplary cooperation of Hungarian organizations.

Both Emese and her husband, László Kerkay have been cultivators of the rich Hungarian historical and cultural heritage and overall active contributors to the life of the Hungarian community of Passaic, New Jersey, having served at the Hungarian school for over 30 years: Emese as teacher and principal, László as treasurer. Emese has also been an active scout since the age of six and was a founding member and for 25 years curator of the American Hungarian Museum of Passaic.

Éva Voisin is an accomplished lawyer, founder of the Hungarian American Chamber of Commerce and the Honorary Consul of Hungary for Northern California since 1993. She was awarded the Officer’s Cross of the Order of Merit of Hungary in 2013, and is also the 2003 recipient of the Pro Auxilio Civium Hungarorum prize and numerous other awards for her pro-bono legal and civic activities.

An in-depth interview with Enkő Gorondi, founder and headmaster of the Aprókfalva Montessori Preschool and learning pod, a unique Hungarian daily educational institution in Piscataway, New Jersey; and her daughter, who, as a teacher, scout leader and folk dance teacher is also an active member of the local Hungarian community.

An in-depth interview with Kőrösi Csoma Sándor Programme scholars Ágnes and István Vámosi, who undertook the responsibility of teaching Hungarian folk dance in Los Angeles for two years with their little son, Pityke in tow.

Professor Puskás is a highly accomplished researcher, engineer and university professor living in the United States, who is still active in her field of chemical engineering. She has not only excelled professionally, but has also been an active member of the Hungarian Diaspora in America.

An in-depth interview with pianist and choir director Zsuzsánna Balla, who has lived in the United States for more than twenty years, and yet she and her family have preserved and continue to foster their Hungarian heritage, and are active and enthusiastic members of the Hungarian American community.

An in-depth interview with Erika and József Megyeri, former and current presidents of the Hungarian Communion of Friends, about their families’ emigration to the U.S., their involvement in the life of the local Hungarian community as teenagers, and how and why they decided to play a leading role in community building.

‘The current Embassy has been very active in supporting the retention of the culture and also in organizing community events and film screenings, and joining us in National Day celebrations.’

An in-depth interview with Eva Kazella, a prominent member of the Hungarian American community, about the deportation of her family from Communist Slovakia, the vicissitudes before starting a new life in the United States, her family, and the vibrant community life of Hungarian Americans.

‘After all these years, I’m in a phase where I really enjoy my work…I also feel that I’m well known in the local community and that many people come to see me, so my work is a success every day. If only two out of twenty patients thank me for changing their lives because, for example, they can work or because their migraines have stopped, that’s a very good feeling for me. I am also on good terms with my colleagues. My secretaries have learned how to make Hungarian espresso, for example, and when I go to the office, they wait for me with it.’

The documentary presents the most successful ever Hungarian national water polo team that won three consecutive Olympic golds and whose most iconic figure, team captain and then coach Tibor Benedek, passed away at a tragically young age.

‘After being rejected several times in Rome, Cabrini insists on meeting the Pope. While no woman before her has ever founded such an order, Leo the XIII is persuaded by the nun’s determination and allows her to set sail. However, he directs her to New York (instead of the Far East), where at the time two million Italian refugees were chasing the American dream. On their arrival to the Five Points neighborhood of New York, the six nuns are confronted with the reality that most of the immigrants there are victims of crime, prostitution, poverty, and disease.’

‘The movie thus comes to a happy ending for the family involved (apart from the horrors experienced by the minors), but we are not relieved after watching it. Not only because we know that this is a true story, which makes it even more harrowing to follow. But also because by the end of the movie, we also learn (if we were not already aware before) that child sex trafficking is a huge global social issue, and one of the fastest growing businesses (comparable to drug trafficking) affecting millions of children, with millions of abusers and the U.S. authorities not seeming to be truly committed to eradicating it.’

The Hungarian Summit has proven to be a key event for enhancing economic, educational, community, and cultural relations between Hungary and the United States. Its fourth instalment, featuring distinguished speakers and engaging panel discussions on business, educational, community, and cultural topics offered participants a unique opportunity to meet like-minded innovators and develop valuable connections with the aim of building a bridge connecting two nations.

The story begins in 1994, when a Texas pastor and his wife, leading by example, persuade the members of the congregation to take into foster care orphaned or severely abused children nobody else would want.

The staging of the musical version of one of the most popular young adult fiction works ever written in Hungarian, titled Be Faithful Unto Death, was a major undertaking and a dream come true for the initiator of the project, Bernadett Csizmadia. The show was performed on the 50th anniversary celebration of the Széchenyi Hungarian School and Kindergarten of New Brunswick, NJ.

Lili Balogh and István Dániel Molnár of the Angyalföld Vadrózsa Dance Ensemble came to the United States as Kőrösi Csoma Program scholars to teach Hungarian folk dancing in New Brunswick, New Jersey. We spoke with the young Hungarian couple, now engaged to each other, about their motivation, their goals and their US experiences.