Ambassador John William Shirley (ret.)
Post Office Box 369
Stonington, Connecticut, 06378
U.S.A.
Telephone: 1-860-535-9238

Stonington, October 5, 2004

You will wonder why I write to wish you a happy Christmas as early as October 5<SUP>th, but this letter will have to pass through a number of stages before it reaches you, and I want to be certain you receive it at home during your Christmas holiday, accompanied by the enclosed letter from your Student Association.

I have a number of topics to cover, so let me take them seriatim, in rough order of importance:

1. Enclosed Letter from the Student Association: Please read it carefully. If you have already completed your studies, we who have financed the Foundation out of our own pockets since 1991, ask that you respond positively to the plea for financial assistance. We, the founders, will seek to provide funds for as long as possible, but in gradually diminishing amounts. We ask that you remember not o­nly the help given to you, but the girls and boys who come after you who will need your help, as much as you needed ours. Remember that our Foundation is unique, the o­nly o­ne of its kind in Hungary. And remember that it is right that this should be so, because our initiative embodies the Patak Spirit, the spirit of love and loyalty that each of us carries in his heart for our school, for our teachers, for the friendships we made, and for the sweet memories of the years we spent in that lovely little town o­n the banks of that beloved river. So, please, be as generous as you can!

2. Future of the Foundation: In last year’s Christmas letter I said that the time when you and your friends take over the Foundation is fast approaching. That time is now upon us. At the Kuratorium’s meeting in Patak this April it was decided to hand over to former scholarship winners the lion’s share of the responsibilities currently discharged by the founding members by the beginning of academic year 2006-2007. With this objective in mind, it was decided to invite five former scholarship winners to join its ranks. The newly elected Kuratorium members are Matis Ágnes, Nagy Henrietta, Sallai János, Székely Attila and Tánczos Vera. Many of you already know some of these young men and women from your Patak days, but let me say a few words about each. Matis Ági is a successful banker in Budapest. Nagy Heni is teaching at Gödöllö University where she is also director of the university’s Office of International Relations. Sallai János is writing his doctoral dissertation at Vanderbilt University, in Nashville, Tennessee. Székely Attila is a minister of the Hungarian Reformed Church and pastor to several congregations in the environs of Nagykanizsa. Tánczos Vera has recently won an extraordinarily fine scholarship to Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, where she will spend the current academic year. I think you will agree that we made wise choices when we elected these outstanding young women and men to gradually assume the leadership of the Foundation.

3. Next Meeting in Patak: The Kuratorium will be in session in Patak from Tuesday, April 5, to Friday, April 8, 2005, to interview applicants and re-applicants for I/Á scholarships. The Student Association will hold its first event o­n Friday evening, April 8. The election for president, vice president, treasurer and secretary of the Association will be held o­n Saturday, April 9, the elections to be followed by discussions and a number of social events, including a party in the evening. The gathering will conclude o­n Sunday morning, April 10, with the traditional 10 a.m. service at the Reformed Church. Because the April, 2005, meeting is of great importance to the Foundation’s’s future, I will go beyond my usual practice of just urging you to attend, <U>and formally request your presence, most particularly for events scheduled for Saturday, April 9, 2005. As in the past, so this year, current scholarship holders are asked to remain at the school for the weekend of April 9-10 and to participate in the events organized by the Student Association.

4. The accompanying letter from your Acting President Valler Éva and other officers of the Student Association, explain the steps you should take to assure that we are informed of your intention to join us, and to make arrangements for your meals and lodging. <U>Please make your decisions early and follow the instructions contained in Éva’s letter.

In recent years I have been able to sign my Christmas letter to you, and also add a personal word or two. Because of time constraints, I won’t be able to do so this year, but that in no way detracts from the warmth of my good wishes to you and to your families for a Merry Christmas, and may 2005 bring you and yours o­nly peace, health and happiness!

Take good care of yourself, have a splendid holiday, and see you in Patak!

Jock bácsi