The AHF Hungarian Ball: April 12, 2008, Washington, D.C. |
4/12/2008 - Tavaszi Magyar Bál! This April 12th, 2008, the Annual Hungarian Spring Ball returns to Washington! A very special evening benefitting AHF's 2008 programs and the Hungarian Scouts of Washington! A very special evening will include dancing and debutantes from the metropolitan Washington area.The proceeds from the black-tie affair are equally shared between theFederation and the DC-area Hungarian Scouts. Tavaszi Magyar Bál Buy Tickets Online Now! Below is the 2007 Ball! 2007 raised funds to help cover the costs of the Hungarian Scouts participation in the 21st World Scout Jamboree in England and the Federation's 2007 100th Anniversary programs. Former AHF National Secretary and Ball Committee Chair, Erika Fedor, welcomed guests that included representatives from the Hungarian Embassy, and leaders from the Hungarian Scouting Association, AHF (including current and former President Atilla Micheller and Stefan Fedor respectively), Best-Selling Author and National Aviation Hall of Famer Walter Boyne, and Hungarian Parliamentarian Dr. Janos Horvath. Mihaly "Misi" Meszaros, leader of the Hungarian Scouts of Washington, thanked guests for their support and talked about the upcoming jamboree and the need to support Hungarian Scouting. AHF Executive Chairman, Bryan Dawson-Szilagyi, addressed the audience and called attention to the 100th Anniversary of the founding of AHF and the need for unity and a national identity: "In 1906, Hungarian societies, institutions, and churches from every state in the union came together to form a national federation to defend the interests of Americans of Hungarian origin." He added that, with the tragedies that befell Hungary over the decades, AHF's mission had broadened to include support of people of Hungarian descent on both sides of the Atlantic. He provided a historic perspective on AHF's 100 years of proud service to the community. From Budapest’s George Washington Statue in 1906 to the Louis Kossuth Statue in the United States Capitol in 1990, to refugee re-settlement efforts after WWII and the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, to tractors for Hungarian farmers in Transylvania, to Scholarships for outstanding Hungarian students, to Disaster Relief for Hungarian communities affected by Hurricane Katrina and Transylvanian flooding, to educating the public and preserving our heritage, he said AHF would continue to work to represent our common interests. [download his full remarks] AHF Co-President Frank Koszorus introduced Gabriella Koszorus-Varsa being 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." 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. Ms. Koszorus-Varsa and her husband, Colonel Ferenc Koszorus who was one of the great heroes of the Hungarian Holocaust, immigrated to the United States in 1951 with their son, Frank. She had been commissioned to paint some of the most important moments and persons in American history. A supporter of AHF for many decades and responsible for the design of some AHF stamps during its 1956 relief efforts and beyond, AHF is honored to present her with our highest honor. Reverend Zoltan Kovacs said the blessing to commence dinner. After diner, Erika Fedor introduced the 2007 Debutantes: Sári Bárczay, Olívia Fedor, Krisztina Kárpáthy, and Andrea Kölus. All are members of the Hungarian Scouts of Washington. Kalman Magyar's phenomenal Continental Dance Orchestra (Continental Tánc Zenekar) from New York provided music and featured the amazing vocals of Lisa Apatini. The evening closed with a raffle that included fine Hungarian Wines from Crafstman Wines and art from József Domján, known as the most important color woodcut artists in the Twentieth Century. This year's table presenters included Barbara Lanciers whose "Leaves with A Name," a play about her Hungarian grandmother, will soon debut in Maryland. Additional pictures (click for larger images)
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Buy Tickets Online Now! 2008 BÁLBIZOTTSÁG / BALL COMMITTEE
Tiszteletbeli Védnökök / Honorary
Committee
About the Hungarian Scouts [more] The Magyar Cserkészszövetség, the primary national Scouting organization of Hungary, was founded in 1912, and became a member of the World Organization of the Scout Movement in 1990. The coeducational Magyar Cserkészszövetség has 7,198 members as of 2004. Scouting in Hungary is maintained through Magyar Cserkészet Tanácsa, the Council of Hungarian Scouting. There are two associations in this national federation, Magyar Cserkészszövetség, the Hungarian Scout Association, and Magyar Cserkészcsapatok Szövetsége. Also serving Hungarian Scouts is Magyar Cserkészlány Szövetség, the Association of Hungarian Girl Guides. Hungarian Scouting was founded in 1909 under Austria-Hungary, and the first Scout group in the dual monarchy, MCA-1912 HAS, was founded in Budapest in 1910. Scouting started in the separate nation of Hungary in 1919, at the end of World War I, when Austria and Hungary were divided. In 1920, the magazine Magyar Cserkész ("Hungarian Scout") was first published. Hungary was a founding member of the World Scout Bureau in 1922 and later was a founding member of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, WAGGGS, which was in fact established in Parád, Hungary, in 1928. In 1924, at the World Scout Jamboree in Copenhagen, Hungarian Scouts attending their first jamboree came third in the competition of the nations, behind British and American Scouts. They were especially good at water sports. The first Hungarian National Jamboree in 1926 had 10,000 participants. Hungary hosted the fourth World Jamboree in 1933 at the royal forest of Gödöllo, outside Budapest, in which 26,000 Scouts from 54 nations camped together. The camp chief was Teleki Pál, the member of the International Committee who later became Prime Minister of Hungary. This was the first time there was a Jamboree subcamp for Scouts taking part in aviation. To celebrate the 60th anniversary of the fourth World Jamboree, the Hungarian Scout Association hosted a fourth World Jamboree Memorial Camp at Bélapátfalva, Hungary in 1993. After World War II, the Külföldi Magyar Cserkészszövetség
started operating in the displaced persons camps in Germany and Austria
in 1948 as the Teleki Pál Scout Association, renamed in 1948 as
the Hungarian Scout Association. Scouting was well organized and popular
in Hungary until it was officially abolished by the Communist regime in
1948, but remained nascent underground... 100 ÉVES A NEMZETKÖZI CSERKÉSZMOZGALOM Sign up for the AHF mailing list. Your information is not shared!
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