Last year Lyle Spatz and I published our third book together, COMEBACK PITCHERS: THE REMARKABLE CAREERS OF HOWARD EHMKE AND JACK QUINN. It was recently awarded a 2022 SABR Baseball Research Award. Jack Quinn pitched Major League baseball until the age of 50, a remarkable sign of fitness, endurance, determination, and love of the game.
Some years ago I took part in a remarkable genealogical project that determined that Jack Quinn (who took the Irish name to avoid discrimination as an Eastern European) was born in the village of Stefurov, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now Slovakia) in 1883. The family name was PAJKOS. We had the help of a Slovakian genealogist and were able to find his baptism record, as well as his entry on the manifest of a steamship from Germany with his parents. They left the old country after Johann’s (Jack, or John) three siblings died as infants. They settled in the coal country of NE Pennsylvania.
On my last full day in Slovakia, I took a two-hour train to Stropkov (NE of Kosice), where Martin Pazdic met me, and we headed to Stefurov. The mayor, Jana Riskova, knew we were coming. Every town in SLovakia has a mayor, even Stefurov, population 117. When we walked into her office, her binder had a copy of Jack’s Wikipedia page. We discussed the town’s history, looking old entries in a journal. There was a terrible fire in the town, though we don’t know the date. I learned that the wife of a famous Hungarian, Dessewffy, gave the land in the area to the inhabitants.
I then met the town priest, before walking to the lovely little church (recently restored) with an immense bell above. It overlooks such a peaceful valley. The cemetery surrounds the church. The “empty” field adjacent to the cemetery is likely full of graves that have no markers. Many of the stones are no longer legible (see photo-some were worse that this one.) We found the 1913 grave of Anna Pajkos, who died at age 74. So she was born around 1839 and could have been Jack Quinn’s aunt or great-aunt. She married into a prominent family, who had many fancy tombstones and still has family members living in the town.
As we drove through many villages in NE Slovakia, they all had two churches- a Catholic one and an Eastern Orthodox one. In one village, Strocin (see photo), they were side by side.
It was a special day, after years of research and “getting to know” Jack Quinn, to visit his homeland and village.
I had no idea I’d be based in such a lovely city. First, the restaurants in Kosice are many and very good. Slavia (also Slavia Hotel) is a terrific upscale restaurant with a lovely bar, and Bistro Blanc is a casual restaurant that serves a changing menu each day. Kavy Sveta is one of countless coffee houses and one of the oldest. (Photos below.) One night I stopped at the oldest brewery in town, Golem Pub, and the story of the Golem in Jewish folklore is fascinating, esp. in the Czech and Slovak Republics.
BTW, I post restaurant and hotel reviews on Trip Advisor under the name 1926yanks. I have now posted 272 reviews over the last few years.
I returned to the DSA Academy in the town of Trebisov and met the director, who doesn’t speak English, but likes baseball. (See photo.) He’s a fan of sports history and has made some US trips. We talked about the uncertainty of the war, and the school will continue to provide that vital housing as needed. I delivered some big boxes of Legos for the refugee kids the school is housing. Also funding for the therapy of a refugee youngster dealing with MS. During her almost 3 weeks in an underground bunker, she obviously did not get any treatment, which she can now resume. I’ve made another Metro Run to the Food Bank with Ali. When we arrived as the “store” was opening, the line was long and and am distributing the money that I’ve gathered to the local Rotary, while some of you have donated directly to Arnie Weiss’s GoFundMe site. Details are on the previous blog below.
I am excited that Ali and Arnie have connected, and the refugees will now have a medical care center they can turn to.
Jill Biden will be coming to Kosice this weekend, and Arnie is trying to get her to the Food Bank for publicity about the refugees (and a good Photo Opp for her). . . . An interior shot of the majestic cathedral, which towers over the center of the city. . . . An exterior shot of one of the many sidewalk cafes under the shadow of the Cathedral. . . . My college roommate from Jerusalem from many years ago is organizing “We Stand in Silence” protests in front of the Russian Embassies one hour a week and is trying to generate a groundswell at these embassies everywhere.
I want to give a Shout Out to a wonderful company here in Slovakia, whose Kosice team is providing vital support to the refugee children, so many of whom have experienced real trauma. Usmev ako Dar (which means “A Smile as a Gift”) is a company dedicated to psychological support for children. I sat down with one of the psychologists one morning to find out more about this respected and effective company that has been helping children for more than 30 years.
The most moving reminder of the horrors of war and the power of love is this little video of a Ukraine nurse who lost her legs to a leg mine and dances in the hospital with her husband after their wedding ceremony.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2FdDAoTCpY
Finally, a popular Ukrainian song of hope and love, “Obyjmy” (“Hug Me”), “Hug Me and War Will Be Over . . .
You may have heard about PATRON (pronounced pa TRONE’), the little Ukrainian Jack Russell terrier, who has been sniffing out mines in Ukraine that the Russians have left behind. He has gone viral and is even getting a stamp of his own (see below). You may have even seen a video clip of him in action:
Now I want to ask you to become a PATRON of Ukraine. As the war goes on, the need remains overwhelming, yet human nature is such that the urgency begins to drop as time goes on. We see it in something as basic as the decline in the number of daily donations to the Food Bank here in Kosice.
I have been here almost two weeks, trying to understand the rescue and refugee support efforts in Eastern Slovakia. There is much great work, though it is fragmented, with many companies and people involved. It also happens to be my birthday this Tuesday, and Facebook always suggests using it as an opportunity for the birthday person to designate his favorite charity. So if that gives you another reason to contribute, so be it.
There are many worthy groups here, and I want to suggest just two or three ways you can make a difference.
1. Arnie Weiss, an east coast (US) businessman, married to a lovely Ukrainian woman, Sylvia, and now living here, has been a tireless supporter, making regular runs out of his own pocket to the Metro (warehouse store) to replenish the SOS Food Bank for the few hundred refugee families here. I made three runs with him last week and will make a few more this week. All of the money you donate will go directly towards food and toiletries that the hundreds of refugee families in this area need, which Arnie will purchase. (See photos of Arnie and me below.) He has set up a GoFundMe account:
2. Rotary Club 2240 Kosice While Rotary International has been doing great work in support of Ukraine refugees (as well as those throughout the world), I want to get the money to the “front lines” as fast as possible. This is my decision. Unfortunately, right now, the local Kosice Rotary Club does not yet have a “DONATE” button that makes it easy to donate. So instead, I am going to make two suggestions:
A. Send a Bank Wire directly to the Rotary Club 2240 in Kosice. I am attaching the two-page letter from the head of the local Rotary Club. It is running trucks with tons of foods and medical supplies to the dozens of Rotary Clubs INSIDE UKRAINE.
Here is that Bank Wife info, which is also on the second page of the letter:
Official District 2240 bank account:
IBAN: SK03 1100 0000 0029 4112 4258
Bank account name: Rotary klub Košice
Bank account holder: Rotary klub Košice Classic
Hotel Slávia, Hlavná 63, 040 01 Košice, Slovakia
Bank SWIFT: TATRSKBX
Bank name: Tatra banka, a.s.
Bank address: Hodžovo námestie 3, 811 06 Bratislava 1
Country code: SK
B. If you find this wire transfer too cumbersome, I am accepting money into my PayPal account, which I’ve always used to pay for the baseball wire photos I collect and never to get money coming in. This was not my desired choice, but the situation is urgent. MOST OF THE MONEY YOU SEND TO ME IN THE NEXT 72 HOURS (until Wednesday night at midnight), I will get into Ukraine Rotary clubs. A portion of it will go to the Medical School students who are supplying the Emergency Shelter at the bus station (led by Ali Adel, who grew up in Baghdad during that war), where arriving refugees are received. Ali’s group is not set up to handle direct donations. (I will make a run with Ali to Metro tomorrow.)
Go to your PayPal account OR www.paypal.com
Click on SEND & REQUEST
Select Friends or Family, as opposed to buying Goods and Services (There is a small fee for “Friends and Family” if you use a credit card, as opposed to paying from a linked bank account.)
Enter my email address or phone # ssteinberg@trinorth.com 206 972 2048
Enter the AMOUNT of your donation
Review, Confirm the amount, and decide on your funding source-PayPal account, linked bank account, a credit or debit card
MOST OF THE MONEY I RECEIVE BY WED NIGHT US WILL GET INTO THE PROPER HANDS TO GET ACROSS THE BORDER TO ROTARY CLUBS IN UKRAINE. (A portion will go to the Medical school students, for the Rescue Center.) IT WILL GO ONLY FOR HUMANITARIAN NEEDS, AND NOT WEAPONS OF ANY KIND. I can assure you it will get to where it can make the most impact the quickest.
These donations may not be tax-deductible. Consult your tax advisor.
Finally, here are some photos of Ukrainian families I have been in contact with. I posted on Facebook that one way to combat Random Acts of Violence is with Random Acts of Kindness, like the Legos I’ve been buying for kids. (See photo) I’m delivering some Legos for “Ages 4-99” (see Lego boxes, photo) to a nearby village that is housing refugees. I had dinner with a dear friends (married to a Slovak fellow) Her mom and little brothers are refugees here. They call home each day, where dad has stayed behind to defend his country. (See photos) And today in a citywide celebration, my friend’s dance studio did some amazing performances. I met with a talented girl who had just escaped from Ukraine and fit right in. (see photos)
