Bela Szigethy

born on December 23, 1910 as the fourth child of a shoemaker´s family in Szekelyudvarhely, at the time in Hungary, he was valedictorian of his high school class at the Reformed Hungarian Collegium, whereupon in 1928 he entered the Theological Seminary in Kolozsvar, by then in Romania. From 1932 to 1933 he was assistant pastor in Bucharest, Romania, then studied for a half year each in Zurich and Basel, Switzerland, and in 1934 was appointed Traveling Secretary for the church´s mission in then Chinese Manchuria. Called back in 1935 to Bucharest, he founded, organized and built the second Hungarian Reformed Church in that city and served its congregation for six years. During his Bucharest days he married Maria Juhasz (1918-2003) and they had their first son in 1939. It was there, in 1936, that he adopted his life-long diet of lacto-vegetarianism. World War II forced him to take his small family to Beszterce in then north Romania, but which briefly reverted to Hungary toward the end of the war. During this period he was also engaged as a Hungarian civil servant to guide youth social affairs in Szekelyudvarhely and Beszterce-Naszod County. But he and his family were again forced to flee in 1944 to Germany, where they lived in refugee camps for nearly five years in the American occupation zone before finally reaching the United States as displaced persons in 1949. After another year of temporary residences, he became pastor of the Hungarian Reformed Church in Buffalo, NY, where he served for six years. It was there in 1955 that their second son was born. The family moved to Wharton, NJ, in 1956 when its bi-lingual Hungarian Reformed Church chose him as pastor. Following this, from 1961 to 1977 he served as pastor in the wholly English-speaking United Presbyterian Church of Flanders, NJ. It was from here that he retired and subsequently spent his remaining 31 years on Bainbridge Island, WA, as a member of the Northwest Synod of the Presbyterian Church (USA), where he occasionally conducted pastoral services. He died peacefully at home on August 26, 2008 at the age of 97. He is survived by sons Zoltan of Bainbridge Island, Bela of New York City, and grandchildren Tivan of New York City, Geza of Berkeley, CA, Cara of New York City, and Ian of New York City.A memorial service will be held at 2:00 p.m., Saturday, October 4, at the Rolling Bay Presbyterian Church on Bainbridge Island. Remembrance donations may be made to benefit students of and improvements to his high school in Szekelyudvarhely. Please make checks out to 'Calvin Synod Conference United Church of Christ,' indicate 'In memory of Bela Szigethy,' and mail to Calvin Synod Conference United Church of Christ, Attn: Gabriella Nadas, P.O. Box 36141, Canton, OH 44735. An accompanying note can also mention the purpose as 'Reformed Church School in Szekelyudvarhely, Romania, aka Bacskamadarasi Kis Gergely School.