President’s Letter

Dobrý deň, dear SASW members and friends,

As we wrap up another wonderful year, I want to take a moment to reflect on all we’ve accomplished together — and to thank each of you for being such an important part of our community. SASW continues to thrive because of your passion, creativity, and commitment. This year truly showed how much we can achieve when we come together to celebrate and share our Slovak heritage.

We’re especially excited to invite you to our in-person Svätý Mikuláš Party on December 7, 2025, at the Slovak Embassy in Washington, DC! It’s one of our favorite traditions, and we can’t wait to celebrate the season with you. Space is limited, so please send in your RSVPs and payments as soon as you get the invitation to ensure you don’t miss out!

In 2025, SASW hosted five engaging programs — four on Zoom and our first hybrid event, a TATRATEA presentation live from Slovakia. Most recordings are now available on our YouTube channel, and we loved seeing so many of you participate from near and far! Looking ahead, our 2026 calendar of events will bring even more opportunities to connect, learn, and celebrate together.

A special thank-you goes to Ray Luca, who created a wonderful brief history of SASW with the help of the late Steve Matula, Ken Bombara, Tom Skladony, and Kathryn Tatko. Their work beautifully captures our first 35 years as an organization and was shared at our 35th Anniversary celebration — a milestone we can all be proud of.

None of this would be possible without you — our amazing members, volunteers, and friends. Your energy, enthusiasm, and support keep our mission strong and help Slovak culture continue to shine for future generations.

This past summer, I had the chance to visit Wilber, Nebraska, for the Miss Czech and Slovak U.S. Pageant — and what an experience! I was honored to be invited as one of the judges. It was truly inspiring to see young women proudly embracing and sharing their heritage — a beautiful reminder of why we do what we do. You can view the live event online for one year from the date of the event.

As we look ahead to the new year, we’re excited to build on our momentum with new programs, community partnerships, and ways to engage younger audiences. Together, we’ll continue to honor our roots while creating a bright and inclusive future for SASW.

On behalf of the Board of Directors, thank you from the bottom of my heart for being part of our journey. Wishing you all a joyful holiday season and a happy, healthy new year!

“Veselé Vianoce a šťastný nový rok!”

With gratitude and warm wishes,
Marta Szotáková
President
Slovak American Society of Washington, DC

Returning to Rajec

by Bryan Hoysa

My Slovak great-grandfather was a mysterious figure for much of my life. I never knew him, nor his son, my grandfather. My father didn’t know my Slovak great-grandfather either, but we took pride in him, even if we mostly only knew that he was Slovak, that he immigrated to Chicago in the early 1900s, and that we are, in part, here because of him. But what is his story? After a period of records requests, a visit, and research I have been able to fill in some chapters of his story, enough so that I feel like I now know him more as a person and less as a distant figure.

A relative passed on some family documents to me, one of which is my great-grandfather’s baptismal certificate. I’d looked for something like this in online archives before but had no luck. I knew our surname was originally Hojsa and not Hoysa, but not until getting my hands on this original baptismal certificate did I learn that even before it was Hojsa, it was Hojsza. With this, I had a start in knowing his name and where his life began, in Rajec in 1882.

Knowing the progression of the spelling of his name unlocked the ability to better track him through records. In doing so I was able to trace his journey to the United States as happening in April of 1905. He ended up in Chicago and married my great-grandmother in 1907. These benchmarks helped paint a clearer picture of the man while continually stirring up more questions in my mind. In asking an older family member what they knew about his story, I learned that he was said to have made his journey to the U.S. in large part because he did not want to fight for the Austro-Hungarian army.

Locating records gradually helped fill in more gaps about him and what his life in Chicago looked like. I found his World War I registration card, which identifies he was a “Laborer” for “C & N. W. Ry.” That did little to help me understand what he did for work but the registration card did help paint an actual picture of the man. On the card he’s labeled as “medium” height amongst options of tall, medium, and short and he was also “medium” amidst the build options of slender, medium, and stout. He had brown eyes and identified as a native born “Slovack.” Other records document him and my great-grandmother having three kids, welcoming my grandfather in 1912. I learned that my great-grandfather was widowed in 1937 when my great-grandmother Maria died.

The picture was becoming clearer. I felt at times like I was snooping as I looked for and requested records, but the more I snooped the more I found. I was surprised to find a World War II registration card for him, submitted at the ripe age of 59. This required his employer’s name and address and as a result the puzzle about his work life was solved. The shorthand C & N. W. Ry. was to represent Chicago Northwestern Railway. I later learned from his death certificate that he was a painter.

Amidst doing this family research off and on I attended an SASW lecture last spring about a genealogist’s study of and visit to relatives in Slovakia. It was a couple of weeks before I was due to be in Vienna for a work commitment. I had 24 hours free at the end of my time in Vienna and knew what I had to do: get to Rajec.

I rented a car, drove to Rajec, and visited the church where my great-grandfather was baptized according to the certificate that started this whole pursuit. Being the first of his descendants to return to his hometown and to set foot in the church was surreal. It has sparked the interest of other relatives and now I am able to actually say something about my great-grandfather, who he was, and what he did, and where he came from. My previously mysterious Slovak great-grandfather has a name, Matthew Hoysa (Mattheus Hojsza at birth), and a story, one I’m now eager to share with my family and my children.

Annual Report to Membership

Membership

Our membership numbers have been steadily increasing in the last few years. As of October 18, we have 205 memberships (115 Individual, 56 Family, 26 Lifetime Individual and 7 Lifetime Family, and 8 Honorary). 2024,2025,2026, Life

At last year’s annual meeting on November 2nd we had 189 memberships (139 Individual, 49 Family, 24 Lifetime Individual and 4 Lifetime Family, and 8 Honorary).

Financial

Our financial status is stable. Our total assets as of September 30 2025 were $21,099.27.

Support for Slovak Students Through the City University Scholarship Fund

This past summer, we donated $4,500 to VSM/City University, which provided six scholarships to deserving students in Slovakia. One of these scholarships is awarded each year in memory of Mr. Stephen Matula, a founding member of SASW.

A panel of educators at City University in Slovakia carefully selects the scholarship recipients each year, considering both graduate and undergraduate students.

Your generous donations to the City University Scholarship Fund make a meaningful difference in the lives of these students, helping them pursue their educational goals and future success.

Charitable Donations

The SASW Slovak Endowment, established in 2022 to support Slovak materials, programs, and exhibits at the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library (NCSML) in Cedar Rapids, has grown to over $25,000, thanks to generous contributions from our members and friends. This fall, we invite you to help the endowment grow even more—the larger it becomes, the more it can support future Slovak projects at NCSML. Please consider making your donation by December 15, 2025.

Cookbooks Update

“Dobru Chut!”, the SASW cookbook of recipes compiled from the submissions of our members, has been very popular. Profits from the sale of the cookbooks are added to the City University Scholarship Fund. The SASW cookbook is also for sale in the gift shop of the NCSML. Profits from the sale of our cookbooks at the museum go directly into the Slovak Endowment.

Programs

In 2025, the SASW sponsored five interesting programs, four via zoom and one hybrid. Most of the talks were recorded for your viewing on the SASW YouTube channel.

On January 25, Deah Partak gave a Zoom presentation on her documentary on Slovaktown, Arkansas.

On April 5, Greg Ference gave a talk on the effects of the Magyars, Mongols, and Turks invading the Kingdom of Hungary, of which Slovakia was a part.

On May 3, Prof. Michael Cude, at Schreiner University, in Texas, gave a Zoom talk on his book The Slovak Question: A Transatlantic Perspective, 1914–1948.

On June 7, Robin Rigg, of the Slovak Wildlife Society, gave a Zoom talk on wildlife in Slovakia, with a focus on bears and wolves.

On September 27, we had our first hybrid event, “The story of TATRATEA,”presented by Kristína Slavkovská from Slovakia. A few local members got together in person to watch the presentation and sample some different flavors of TATRATEA.

2025 Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International (CGSI) Conference Sponsorship

We’re proud to be one of the sponsors for the upcoming CGSI Conference in Kansas! Several of our Board members and other members will be attending in person.

Social and Cultural Activities

SASW continues to bring members and friends together to celebrate and share Slovak culture in enjoyable and meaningful ways.

On Saturday, March 29, SASW members and friends gathered for food and fun at the fourth annual Slovak Souper Bowl. Competitors each brought a pot of soup to share, and attendees voted for their favorite.

On May 17, SASW and the Friends of Slovakia held their fourth annual joint picnic at the Knights of Columbus facility in Arlington. It was a beautiful day, and many members from both organizations attended. Everyone enjoyed a delicious meal of grilled chicken and bratwursts, complemented by a variety of potluck side dishes and desserts.

Last year was the 35th anniversary of SASW. SASW member Ray Luca wrote a brief history of the organization using various materials collected over the years by Steve Matula and from old SASW newsletters. Assisting Ray were Ken Bombara, Tom Skladony, and Kathryn Tatko. The history, a great way to preserve our first 35 years in existence, was distributed at the 35th Anniversary party.

Regular meetings of the Advanced Slovak Conversation Group and the Slovak Genealogy Discussion Group continue to be held via Zoom. For more information, visit our website at dcslovaks.org.

We are developing additional opportunities for our members to connect and network. Please look out for forthcoming updates in our 2026 calendar of events.

SASW Elects Board Members for 2026

At the annual meeting on October 18, SASW re-elected Andrea Bomar, Erika Fleegle, and Helen Fedor to the board for another three-year term. Kevin McNamara has also been appointed to serve the remainder of Marlene Yencho’s term. Officers for 2026 include:

• Marta Szotakova Galysh, President
• Erika Fleegle, Vice President
• Brian Belensky, Treasurer
• Mary Frances Zelenak, Secretary

At-large board members include Chris Sedlock, Helen Fedor, Greg Tears, Kevin McNamara, and Andrea Bomar.