the - csa fraternal life · csa journal (issn 0195-9050) published monthly—except bimonthly...

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the

JourApril 2020

In this issue...President’s PieceCalendar of EventsToday’s FraternalBoard ReportMessage from the SecretaryMiss CSACSA Get-TogetherNCSML Scholarship ProgramDistrict CouncilLodge HappeningsScholarship Donation FormScholarship ReportIn MemoriamJust Kids

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Love at First Sight6

On the CoverThis month, we're focusing on the importance of insects.

2 — www.csalife.com - APRIL 2020

Seeing the WorldPage 19

Bake-Off with Friends and

FamilyPage 25

Like us on Facebook

President’s Piece

APRIL 2020 — CSA JOURNAL — 3

Brothers and Sisters,

As I write this article on March 17, we’re knee deep in theCoronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. No doubt that whenmany of you read this sometime in the month of April, thenews, the self-quarantining, and the self-isolation situationwill have changed numerous times. Hopefully at that point,circumstances will have turned and the number of COVID-19 cases will be on the decline.

With that said, I do want to assure all members that yourassets are safe with CSA Fraternal Life, whether it’s a lifeinsurance policy or one of our annuities. Our fraternalofferings will remain and will continue to be excellent,albeit there may be some postponements of meetings andother fraternal items.

Beginning in mid-March and through at least mid-April,we have instituted a work-from-home program for ourstaff. Obviously, the timing of getting “back to normal”will be fluid, and if we need to extend that, we may. Withtoday’s technology, we’ll be able to answer your calls,process any withdrawals and claims, accept and processnew business, and do anything that we were able to doprior to the COVID-19 outbreak. No doubt, this will bemore challenging to organize than it normally is wheneverybody is in one central location at our Home Office,but rest assured, we’re here for you.

Many times I’ve written about our wonderful history,now being more than 166 years old. Being founded prior tothe Civil War, CSA Fraternal Life has seen many thingscome and go in America, from wars, to the GreatDepression, to the recessions, to the stock market’s ebbsand flows, to interest rate swings. Well, here we go again,and we’re up for the task.

As always, if you have questions for me or for the staff,

we’re here for you. Don’t hesitate to reach out. It’s always great to hear from you!

Be safe, stay healthy, and until next month...

Fraternally,John J. Kielczewski, CLU, FLMI

President CSA Fraternal Life

Crazy Times That We’re In

Do you know a CSA member who deservesrecognition?

Are they active in the community?

Do they volunteer often or donate money to char-itable organizations?

Send us their photo, a brief description of whothey are and what they do, and we will publishthem in the Journal.

CSA Journal (ISSN 0195-9050)

Published monthly—except bimonthly July/August by CSA

Fraternal Life, 2050 Finley Rd., Suite 70, Lombard, IL 60148.

Periodical Postage paid at Lombard, Illinois, and at additional

mailing offices. Subscription Rate: $12 per year, U.S. only.

Postmaster: send address changes to:

CSA Journal, P.O. Box 249, Lombard, IL 60148.

CSA LeadershipNational Officers

John J. Kielczewski, President

Matthew Koski, Secretary/Treasurer

National DirectorsTom Ledvina

Iowa, Nebraska and Minnesota

Ken Dvorsky and Cary Mentzer

Northern Illinois, Indiana and WisconsinIrma Farrell

California, Colorado, Kansas, and TexasDiane DiBianca

Northern Ohio and MichiganConnie Wolf

Missouri and Southern IllinoisTerry Placek

Southeastern Ohio and Western PennsylvaniaCarol Tranter

Florida, Maryland, Virginia, D.C.,Eastern Pennsylvania and New Jersey

Paul Vavrasek

New York State and Connecticut

Home Office Hours

Monday - Thursday: 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.Friday: 8:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.

A Dynamic Magazine “Dedicated to OurMembership”

UREDNI ORGÁN JEDNOTY CESKOSLOVENSKYCH SPOLKU VAMERICE

Phone: 800-543-3272

FAX: 630-472-1100

Email CSA: [email protected]

Website: www.csalife.com

Editor-in-Chief, Amanda Lovell

Editor: Cynthia Hall, [email protected]

Contributing Staff: Helen Gaydusek

CSA JournalVolume 133 No. 4 April 2020

CSA Journal

CSA MISSION STATEMENT

CSA Fraternal L i fe is a f raternal benef i t

Soc iety that prov ides fami l ies wi th f inanc ia l

secur i ty whi le promot ing community

involvement wi th vo lunteer ism.

Calendar of Events

o v /


/ o

Sunday, April 1–30, 2020Junior Bowl-o-Rama MonthVarious locations. *Bowling alleys may be closed due to COVID-19. Meet at your discretion.

Saturday, May 2, 2020Join Hands Day Various locations. More details to come!

May 2 - May 3, 202072nd Annual National Bowling Congress TournamentCANCELED

Friday, July 31 – Sunday, August 2, 2020CSA 84th Annual Get-Together Clearwater Beach, FloridaSee pages 8-10.

*All Journal articles are due the 12th of the month priorto publication (Ex: Articles for January would be due December 12.)

Today’s Fraternal

Read the Journal online at: www.csalife.com APRIL 2020 — CSA JOURNAL — 5

COVID-19 Cancelations and UpdatesAt the time of writing this article, we are inthe midst of the COVID-19 outbreak. We’reworking from home and staying away frompublic spaces. How have you been holdingup? Personally, I don’t mind being at homea little more, but I have many loved oneswho are getting a little stir-crazy. My bestadvice is to take this time to learn some-thing new. What is something you’vealways wanted to teach yourself but neverhad the time—crocheting, painting, learn-ing a new language, or maybe you’d like torearrange the furniture and décor in yourhome? Now is your time!

The unfortunate part of “social distanc-ing” is that now our bars, restaurants, the-atres, and other sources of entertainmentare closed. That means many events havebeen canceled. Unfortunately, this year wehave made the hard decision to cancel the73rd Annual Bowling Congress. Not onlydo we want to prevent the potential spreadof disease to our members, but frankly, ourbowling alley is closed! As for the Bowl-o-Rama, technically it is still on, but I knowthat many of our lodges nationwide willface the same fate—everything is closed.There will not be any penalties for cancel-ing your Bowl-o-Rama dates.

We also made the decision to allow ourlodges to skip one (1) meeting during themonth of March, April, or May. This is nota mandatory initiative, and your allocationwill not be affected. When it comes to theLodge Recognition Program, for theBronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum StarAwards, we expect lodges to conduct 6, 8,9, or 10 meetings, respectively, within theyear. If your lodge has already scheduled a

meeting for March, April, or May butchoose to cancel due to COVID-19, you donot have to make up this missed meeting tomeet LRP requirements. This memo wassent to our Lodge Secretaries on March 16.Expect more updates in the future.

In this magazine issue, I wanted to focuson something a little different that wehaven’t touched on before. So, we are talk-ing all about insects and their importance tous. They may seem pesky, but insects arequite beneficial to our everyday lives. Turnthe pages to learn more. Happy reading!Bug Facts:• Fruit flies were the first living creatures to be sent into space.• Dragonflies have been on earth for 300million years.• Bees’ wings beat 190 times a second. • Butterflies taste with their feet.• Caterpillars have 12 eyes!• A single honeybee colony can producearound 220 pounds of honey each year.• An ant-eating assassin bug piles its vic-tims onto its body to disguise itself frompredators.• Bulldog ants can leap seven times thelength of their bodies.• Mosquitos are attracted to our feet!• Grasshoppers have special organs in theirhind legs that store energy for jumping.• A hornet’s favorite food is a bee.• The red postman butterfly develops its

own poison by eating toxic plants!• A sea skater’s leg hair traps air, enablingit to float on water.• Grasshoppers existed before dinosaurs.

“An insect is more complex than a star, andit is a far greater challenge to understand.” —Martin Rees, cosmologist

Fraternally,Amanda S. Lovell

Fraternal [email protected]

“25 Cool Things About Bugs.” NationalGeographic Kids. Web. 23 Mar 2020.


Message from the Secretary

Board ReportCSA Board Report - March 13, 2020Due to concerns about the Coronavirus,the Board of Directors decided to meetvia a conference call on Friday, March13. As a result, no committee meetingswere held.

Again, due to health concerns, it wasdecided to cancel the National BowlingCongress for this year. However, manyyouth who participate in the Bowl-o-Rama do so on an individual basis, so itwas felt that the Bowl-o-Rama couldcontinue.

It was also decided that we allowlodges to cancel one meeting thisspring—March, April, or May—with nonegative consequences to the LodgeRecognition Program (LRP). This shouldbe notated on your LRP paperwork. YourLodge Secretary received details on thisin March.

Congratulations to all the lodges that

participated in the 2019 LodgeRecognition Program. One Bronze, threeSilver, five Gold, and twenty-onePlatinum Star Awards were presented. Itwas exciting to see a new lodge partici-pate in the program and receive the GoldStar Award. Congratulations to them ontheir first Lodge Recognition Award, aswell as to all those who worked to makethis a success.

A big thank you goes out to BrotherMatt Koski and the Risk and GovernanceCommittee for their work on updatingour Disaster Recovery Plan. Not only isCSA Fraternal Life prepared for any dis-aster, but we are also prepared to run theoffice with a limited staff in the now-declared Pandemic Declaration. Many ofthe staff were supplied with laptop com-puters and phones so that they can workremotely. Testing of the system took

place over the weekend of March 14. Theofficers and certain staff members will bein the office on a limited basis to receivethe mail and handle all pressing items.Service to our members is still our high-est priority.

Our investment advisor, ParkwayAdvisors, in conjunction with our offi-cers, have all been doing a great job man-aging our portfolio. Even with the volatil-ity in the markets and the bond yieldsbeing low, they were able to increase ournet income by almost $95,000 whilekeeping our assets in secure investments.

The next Board meeting is scheduledfor May 15–16. If you have any concernsor questions, please do not hesitate tocontact your Director.

Fraternally,Irma Drahota Farrell

Chair

Have You Ever Disturbed an Anthill?Have you ever disturbed an anthill? It’samazing how they scurry around, work-ing to restore the damage and return thecolony to a state of normalcy. Though ifyou look closer, you will see a highlyorganized group where each individualknows their role in the chain. Some willadvance out from the colony to defendit. Others will attend to larvae, anddepending on the threat, begin to movethem to a new nesting site. Each mem-ber of the colony has a preprogrammedgoal, communicating not through thespoken word, but instead utilizing chem-istry.

CSA is very similar to that antcolony. The Board and its committeeswork to represent the membership. TheOfficers and Home Office employeeswork together to ensure that your needsare taken care of and that the societyremains vital and successful. TheLodges work to help each other andtheir communities through volunteerwork.

As I write this month on a rainyafternoon in March, CSA finds itself in

the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.However, I am pleased to report thatCSA is open for business as usual.Although the majority of our employeesare working from home, our phones areopen for member needs, and checks arestill flowing both in and out. A few of usremain in the office each day to supportthose working from home, and ourDisaster Recovery and Pandemic FluPlan is functioning well thus far. As Iimagine you might be asking yourself,“the what plan”? Yes, CSA—along withmost companies in the insurancespace—maintains plans for events likethis.

I often think about how long CSAhas been a fraternal benefit society. Wewere established in 1854. Consider allof the world events that our society hasweathered: the Civil War, numerouswars, the Great Depression, the SpanishFlu, and more! Like that disturbedanthill, we will weather through thishectic time in our history. Rest assured,the Board of Directors and the HomeOffice are here for you. If you have any

concerns about your coverage, pleasefeel to contact us.

Fraternally,Matthew Koski

Matthew KoskiExecutive Secretary/COO/CRO


Miss CSA

Hello Brothers and Sisters,

I hope everyone is enjoying the warmerweather and April showers. I know Iam! April is a beautiful month, witheverything coming alive again.

This past month has been interesting,to say the least. Over spring break, I wasshocked with the news that my universi-ty was moving to online classes for theremainder of the semester due toCOVID-19. What a remarkable way toend my senior year. I can’t lie, I am dev-astated that I won’t be back in class witheveryone ever again. I wanted so badlyto finish out senior year the “right way.”Although this is not how I envisionedfinishing nursing school, I believe thisexperience will propel me forward tofinally becoming a nurse. In realizingthat I have no control over this situation,I am able to see so clearly why I want tobecome a nurse. My drive to help thosewho need helping has never beenstronger!

As of right now, Carlow Universityis still on track to have our nursing pin-ning ceremony and graduation remainsscheduled. I am still able to completemy transitions and community clinicalhours, but there are some restrictions Imust follow. Overall, it’s about stayingsafe and remaining healthy during thisoutbreak.

Life has kind of been at a standstill,too. All sports seasons have been can-celed or postponed, and I have nothingto watch on TV! All traveling has beenpostponed or canceled, as well. I wassad to find out that the Czech Festival inSt. Louis, Missouri was canceled, butthank you to Lodge Washington No. 30for thinking of me and inviting me! Wewould have had the best time together!

Happy Easter to you and your fami-ly! May you find the renewal of hope,health, and love during this Easter holi-day!

Fraternally,Sis. Hunter Rae Yurkovich

Lodge Groveton No. 4

Happy Spring!


84th CSA Get-Together“Seeing Clearly in 2020”Clearwater Beach Florida, July 31, 2020 – August 2, 2020

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Greetings from sunny Florida! We hopethat everyone has a copy of the 2020 CSAGet-Together registration packet. If you donot have one, please go to the CSA websiteat csalife.com. You will find a button onthe right side of your screen, which willdownload the packet onto your computeror phone. You may also give us a call at352-812-3532 and we will send you theinformation directly.

We are excited to hear that many membershave begun to plan their trip already. TheHoliday Inn & Suites at Clearwater Beachwill honor our discounted rate of $149 for3 days prior and 3 days after our Get-Together. They are also offering discounted rates for 1 bedroom and 2 bedroom suites. You can secure your hotel room(s) bycontacting the Holiday Inn & Suites at 1-800-770-6461.

On the next page is a snapshot of the Get-Together weekend schedule. Below are some of our top picks of places to go andthings to see so you can start to plan your trip to Clearwater Beach. We recommend you check out the St. Pete Clearwater visi-tor information website at visitstpeteclearwater.com. It is full of information!

Our top picks:• Take a sightseeing, dinner, or dolphin exploration cruise.• Check out Captain Memo’s Pirate Cruise, where you’ll ride on a pirate ship!• Travel the “Gulp Coast” and visit some (or all) of the 35+ craft breweries in the area.• Go deep-sea fishing.• Visit the Dali Museum, with the largest collection of his work outside of Spain.• Enjoy a day at the beach. Rent a cabana and remember: “leave only your footprints in the sand!”• Visit Honeymoon Island State Park or Caladesi Island State Park with miles of uncrowded beaches.• Rent a kayak and explore the Tampa Bay waters.• Have dinner on the beach at one of Clearwater Beach’s best restaurants.

Warmest wishes,2020 Get-Together Committee


Tentative Itinerary

Thusday, July 30, 20204pm Hotel Check-In & Get-Together RegistrationDinner On your own. Enjoy what Clearwater Beach has to offer! Check out the 2020 Official

Visitor’s Guide to Clearwater Beach enclosed in your registration packet for list of restaurants, breweries, and attractions.

Friday, July 31, 2020Breakfast On your own. List of coffee shops and restaurants in registration packet.9am-12pm Group Trip to Clearwater Marine Aquarium12-4pm Hospitality Suite, Snacks, and Cash Bar in Longboat Key Room5:30-6pm Cash Bar in Duval Ballroom overlooking the Gulf (follow the signs)6:15pm Sand Key Beach BBQ Buffet Dinner in Duval Ballroom

Opening Remarks & Weekend InformationMiss CSA ContestDancing

Saturday, August 1, 2020Breakfast On your own. List of coffee shops and restaurants in registration packet.9:30am Announcements, Roll Call, & Service Project with Clearwater Marine Aquarium

“Sweet Dreams with Winter” in Duval BallroomTBD Lunch on your own and enjoy the afternoon.5-6pm Cash Bar6:15pm Plated Dinner (Prime Rib or Crab Crusted Salmon)

Announcements & Crowning of Miss CSAPictures & Dancing

Sunday, August 2, 202010am-12pm Gulf Side Brunch & Program

84th CSA Get-Together“Seeing Clearly in 2020”Clearwater Beach Florida, July 31, 2020 – August 2, 2020

Like us on Facebook APRIL 2020 — CSA JOURNAL — 11

With more than 1 million species,insects are the most diverse group oforganism on earth. This domination ofthe insect is not only in the case of num-bers, but also, they include some of themost beautiful groups of creatures onthe planet. These include butterflies,dragonflies, bees, beetles, and moths.

The atlas moth is the largest species ofmoth in the world. Fully grown, it has awingspan up to 12 inches. This largemoth is also one of the most beautifulmoths in the world. They have a veryattractive rusty-brown front-side andhind wings with purple, red, yellow andblack outlines. Interestingly, the curvedwingtips of the atlas moth have impres-sive markings and patterns that resemblea snakehead. They use it to defend thepotential predators. Despite the largestspecies of moth in the world, this onedoesn’t eat after hatching because theydon’t have a mouth! So, how do theyfeed? Well, they live off of the energyreserves that they obtained as a caterpil-lar. This means that they do not live thatlong, generally only 5 to 7 days.

Glasswinged butterflies are namedafter their transparent wings. It’s a rareand beautiful feature among the familyof butterflies. Rather than reflectinglight, the wings of these butterfliesallow for the light to pass through. Thisexotic butterfly lives in gardens and thewarm, humid forests of Central

America. The wingspan of glasswingedbutterflies can reach 5.5 to 6 cm. Thetransparent wings make these butterfliesvery difficult to spot, and that’s exactlyhow they hide from predators. The bor-ders of their wings have a dark browncolor. The praying mantis is named as suchdue to its long front legs that are usuallyheld together in prayer position. Thereare about 1,800 known species of pray-ing mantises in the world. This insecthas a long neck and a triangular shapedhead with large eyes. The flexible jointsin the head also let praying mantisesturn their heads 180 degrees. The greencoloration helps them to blend in withthe surroundings easily. It’s the mecha-nism they use against potential preda-tors.

The filbert weevil is an attractive, butharmful, insect that is native to the west-ern part of North America. It’s consid-ered a pest, as it can cause serious dam-age to oak trees. Both larvae and the fil-bert weevil feed on the acorn of oaktrees. These small insects have an attrac-tive long snout, but it is tough to spotthem. Because they are speckled brown,they remain hidden on oak trees.

Ladybugs are famed for their oval-shaped bodies with distinctive spots.They also are known as “lady beetles”

and “ladybird beetles”. There are 5,000different types of ladybugs in the world.Even though ladybugs come in variouscolors and patterns, an orange or redbody with black spots is the most com-mon. Their bright color is a warning totheir predators. If threatened, theseinsects secrete a fluid from the joints intheir legs which make them taste andsmell unappealing. The ladybug is afarmer-friendly insect, because it mainlyfeeds on plant-eating insects.

The Christmas beetle is a brilliantly-colored beetle that is native to Australia.These beetles are named so because theyare abundant in urban areas close toChristmastime. There are around 35species of Christmas beetles inAustralia. It’s a large insect with a maxi-mum length of 20 mm. Just like thename, these beetles are famous for theirbright colors. Most species can be foundin green, golden, and brown colors.

Native to Southeast Asia forests, theemerald swallowtail is one of the mostbeautiful and colorful butterflies in theworld. They also are known as an“emerald peacock” or “green bandedpeacock”. As the name suggests, thewings of these butterflies have stunningshades of emerald, dark green,turquoise, and black. The underside of

Continued on page 12.

Beautiful Insects of the World


Beautiful Insects of the WorldContinued from page 11...

emerald swallowtails is orange withblue-black spots. Their wings can reachup to 3.9 inches.

Orchid bees are one of the most color-ful insects. There are 200 differentspecies of these bees. They live in tropi-cal and subtropical regions of South andCentral America. This beautiful insectgroup can be seen in different shadesincluding metallic blue, green, purple,gold, and bronze. There is a strong rea-son behind why orchid bees are namedas such. They play a significant role inpollinating more than 700 species oforchids in the tropical region. Despitethe small size, orchid bees are activefliers and go for long distances (up to 30miles) in search of food. Aside fromtheir brilliant colors, a long tongue isanother highlighting feature of orchidbees. Their tongue can measure up to1.6 inches in length, and it aids them indrinking nectar from deep flowers.

The beautiful cecropia moth caterpil-lar has a quirky, but cute, design. Uponhatching from its cocoon, it has awingspan up to 6 inches, making it thelargest moth of North America. Eventhough it is pretty in moth-form, it is notas impressive as the caterpillar. Theselarvae are mostly found on maple trees.Upon hatching, cecropia moth caterpil-lars have a black color. During thegrowth stage, you can see small projec-tions on their body with tiny black,spiky hairs. These small projectionshave attractive colors including green,blue, yellow, and orange. A fully growncecropia moth caterpillar can reach up to4.5 inches in size.

“Atlas Moth.” KeepingInsects.com.Web. 23 Mar 2020.

“Top 10 Most Beautiful Insects in theWorld.” TheMysteriousWorld.com. Web.

23 Mar 2020.

APRIL 2020 — CSA JOURNAL — 13Read the Journal online at: www.csalife.com

Butterflies and bees, ants and beetles,cockroaches and flies—whether lovedor feared, insects help us a great deal.Unfortunately, many insects around theworld are in decline.

More than two dozen scientists fromcountries around the world are warningof a wave of insect extinctions and areurging swift steps to curb the crisis.Solutions are in sight! Scientists say thatto save insects, we must give them thespace they need to survive while facedwith the threat of climate change.Livable, interconnected habitats that areflush with rich diversity of plant andanimal life are in need.

Ensuring that insects have room tothrive means setting aside local habitats,which include parks, gardens, roadsides,and the edges of farm fields. It alsoentails protecting continent-scale migra-tory passages, like the corridor thatmonarch butterflies pass through fromMinnesota to Mexico—a “butterflyhighway”, if you will.

Not just any area will do, theresearchers caution. Insects need qualityspace, too. The closer an area is to thecondition it was during the pre-humanage, the better. Spaces that are free frompollution and invasive species, withdiverse plant life and a varied landscape,will best help insects. There needs to beenough room for the critters to findfood, seek mates, and rest. "Part ofbeing able to move around is to be ableto 'dodge' natural enemies, from batsand birds, to other insects like predatoryladybugs and parasitic wasps," insect

conservationist Michael Samwaysexplained.

Our changing climate pushes manyinsects to evolve, move, or die—adynamic that often puts them up againstthe extensive transformation thathumans have produced on Earth’s sur-face. Habitat destruction worsens thethreat by limiting insects' ability to tra-verse the landscapes that separate themfrom more suitable surroundings.Scientists know what insects need toprevent extinction, but getting the publicon board is a challenge.

To build that will and interest, scien-tists call for greater efforts to communi-cate the value of insects to society. Forexample, ecologist DeAnna Beasley hasused cicadas—an insect that needs large,adjacent spaces to sustain big popula-tions—in citizen science research. Bydoing so, they receive more data for sci-ence purposes while building moreappreciation for insects among the pub-

lic. In one project, students at Austrianschools successfully assessed the qualityof space for butterflies, laying thegroundwork for follow-up by trainedscientists.

With many insects unnoticed or mis-understood, researchers also recommendthe continued use of “insect icons” and“flagship species” to promote supportfor conservation. Highlighting thespecies that people know best is vital togetting the public engaged in conserva-tion efforts. Though, well-known and“charismatic” insects are just a startingpoint. At the end of the day, people needto understand the consequences of nottaking action, and scientists everywhereare working hard to give the public solu-tions to enact.

Urevig, Andrew. “How to Save Insects?Give Them Space.”Ensia.com. 3 Mar

2020. Web. 23 Mar 2020.

How to Save Insects: “Give us Space!”


PollinationThe value of pollination of plants byinsects is nearly incalculable.Honeybees are clearly among the mostimportant of pollinators, and theirefforts result in an estimated 80% of allpollination in the United States.Pollination by honeybees in the U.S.favorably affects some $20 billion dol-lars in crops per year, including fruits,vegetables, and nuts.

FoodHoney is certainly high on the list ofproducts made by insects that may beconsumed by humans. Some insects areeaten as novelties in the United States,but some other societies use beetle grubsand other insects commonly as food.

SilkThe recognition of silk as a valuableproduct dates back to China, arguably inthe year 2640 B.C. Presently, Chinaannually produces some 30,000 tons ofraw silk, which accounts for 80% of theworld’s supply. Most silk is producedfrom the cocoons of the silkworm,Bombyx mori.

Natural and Biological ControlThe balance of nature depends on theactivities of parasites and predators, themajority of which are species of insects.Researchers use this concept in biologi-cal control, and have been dramaticallysuccessful in many programs.

AestheticsInsects are well known in various areasof arts and can be pleasant to the senses.Butterflies are certainly one of the mostappealing creatures in nature, with theirvibrant colors and patterns. Insects havebeen used by many societies throughouthistory, but are not just limited to color-ful or large butterflies and beetles.Native Americans in the United Statesused parts of insects in a manner similarto feathers in their crafts. Brightly-col-ored wing covers of certain beetles areused for earrings by Jivaro Indians ofEcuador. The Egyptians chose a scarabbeetle as a symbol of their sun god.Bees were depicted on ancient Greekcoins. Most branches of art have exhib-ited insects in some form, including agreat selection of worldwide postagestamps.

Products•Lac is a product from Lac Scaleinsects, Laccifer lacca, and most of it isproduced in India, from where the worldreceives some 40 million pounds annu-ally. Lac is an important ingredient ofmany items, including floor polishes,shoe polishes, insulators, varioussealants, printing inks, and varnish.•Britain alone imports 1 million poundsof beeswax, which can be used as a basefor ointments, polishes, and candle mak-ing. Forty percent of all beeswax is usedin cosmetic manufacturing for lotions,creams, and lipsticks.•Many species of scale insects providedyes that are used in many products,including cosmetics and for coloringcakes, medicines, and beverages.Cochineal is a bright red pigment that isgained from the bodies of a scale insect,Coccus cacti, which lives on cactusplants. Certain synthetic colors werecompetitors during the first decade ofthe 20th century, but then they werefound to be carcinogenic. Thus, the nat-ural dyes from insects again flourished.

The Benefits of Insects to Humans

APRIL 2020 — CSA JOURNAL — 15Like us on Facebook

Tannin is a dye that is gained frominsect galls and is used in the tanning ofhides and in the production of perma-nent durable inks. There are other gallsthat produce dyes.

GeneticsThe fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster,has been extensively studied for over acentury as a model organism for geneticinvestigations. It also has many charac-teristics which make it an ideal organ-ism for the study of animal developmentand behavior, neurobiology, and humangenetic diseases and conditions. Whatmakes it such a good model? Well,they’re more like us than you think! Tobenefit medical studies, a good modelorganism needs to share, on the molecu-lar level, many similar features andpathways with humans. It turns out thatapproximately 60% of a group of readily

identified genes that are mutated, ampli-fied, or deleted in a diverse set of humandiseases have a counterpart in fruit flies.Studying these genes lets scientistsbypass some of the ethical issues of bio-medical research involving human sub-jects. Fruit flies are easy to keep and towork with. They have many practicalfeatures that allow scientists to carry outresearch with ease: a short life cycle,ease of culture and maintenance, a lownumber of chromosomes, a smallgenome size (in terms of base pairs),and giant salivary gland (polytene) chro-mosomes.

Dermestids for Cleaning Skeletons Carpet beetles, which are part of theDermestidae family, are small insectsthat will feed on almost anything organ-ic, including cereals, carpets, and driedinsects in collections. Museum techni-

cians take advantage of this fact, andutilize established colonies of der-mestids to clean skeletons of mammals.

Akre, R. D., Hansen, L. D. & Zack, R. S.1991. “Insect Jewelry.” American

Entomologist, Volume 37, number 2.

Cherry, R. H. 1985. “Insects as SacredSymbols in Ancient Egypt.” Bulletin ofthe Entomological Society of America,

Volume 31, no. 2.

"Drosophila as a Model Organism."ModENCODE.ScienceMag.org. Web. 23

Mar 2020.

Slosson, A. T. 1916. “Entomology inLiterature.” Bulletin of the Brooklyn

Entomological Society, Volume 11, number 3.

The Benefits of Insects to Humans


The National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library’s first-everdigital speech competition is underway, with the winning stu-dent receiving a $750 scholarship to the college or universityof their choosing.

Sponsored by the Aegon Transamerica Foundation, the2020 Velvet Voices of Freedom competition honors VáclavHavel—a civil activist of international stature and author ofplays, poetry, and essays that continue to inspire millions.Havel served as the last president of Czechoslovakia from1989 until the country’s dissolution in 1992, having led thepeople through the Velvet Revolution, which peacefully over-threw communism. His leadership continued during the VelvetDivorce, which saw the country’s peaceful separation into theCzech Republic and Slovakia. Havel was the first President ofthe Czech Republic, serving from 1993 to 2003.

Velvet Voices of Freedom honors Havel by celebrating thepower of human compassion expressed through speech andliterature to transform the world. This year, applicants mustuse excerpts from the play “R.U.R.”, a quintessential piece ofliterature by Karel Čapek, in their video.

Čapek was a Czech writer, playwright, and critic who sup-ported free expression and opposed the rise of fascism and

communism. R.U.R., which stands for Rossum’s UniversalRobots, celebrates 100 years of publication in 2020. NCSMLwill honor this milestone with the exhibition, “A Century ofRobots,” in May.

To enter, participants must record their performance.Videos cannot exceed 15 minutes in length. Copies of Čapek’splay are available to peruse at the Skala Bartizal Library forstudents who do not want to purchase their own. Entrantsshould upload their videos to YouTube with the hashtag#VelvetVoicesNCSML and email the link to Sarah Henderson,NCSML’s K-12 Learning Specialist, at: [email protected] by April 30.

The winner will be announced in May. Velvet Voices of Freedom is open to any high school junior

or senior in the United States. Students do not need to be ofCzech or Slovak descent to enter.

Fraternally,Meredith Hines-Dochterman

Director of Marketing and CommunicationsNCSML

NCSML Announces National ScholarshipProgram – Due April 30


Lodge Happenings

Lodge Missouri No. 1, St. Louis,Missouri – We recently held our annualInstallation of Officers with the otherlodges in our district. Lodge MissouriNo. 1 members present were pleased to

hear that we had once again achievedthe Platinum Award in the AnnualLodge Recognition Program. A memo-rial was held for our members who hadpassed away in 2019 and the DistrictCouncil made a donation in their memo-ry to the CSA Scholarship Fund. SisterMary Ann Sulz received an award forher many years of service as a BoothCaptain for the American-CzechEducational Center and their CzechSchool Board for their annualHomecomings and Czech Festivals.

After many years of collecting prizes,preparing games, organizing workersand making sure there were plenty ofwinners, she is passing the reigns on toanother. We thank her for many, manyyears of service.

Our lodge held their annual UsedBook Sale on March 1. Many bookswere sold to avid readers looking forsomething new to read.

The Czech Festival at the American-Czech Educational Center that wasscheduled for March 28 was canceleddue to COVID-19. We have also decid-ed to cancel our District Council'sAnnual Bunny Brunch. We remain dili-gent and are doing our part to preventthe spread of the virus. Best wishes toall!

Until next time,Marla Breidenbach

Lodge Missouri No. 1

Used Book Sale Success

District Council

District Council No. 12 of NorthernIllinois, Wisconsin, & Indiana – Nowthat the cold, brutal days of winter are inour rearview mirrors, we can look for-ward to the warm, sunny days of spring.April showers and May flowers arebeckoning. April is a wonderful, livelymonth! The grass is green again, flowersare blooming, colorful migratory birdsare appearing again, and baby animalsare making daily appearances. Best ofall, America’s National Pastime (base-ball) is gearing up for a long, excitingseason. Go Sox and Go Cubs!

There are many religious days inApril. Palm Sunday is on April 5,Passover starts on April 9, Good Fridayis on April 10, Easter Sunday is on April12, and Ramadan begins at sundown onApril 23. We also have Earth Day onApril 22—time to plant trees and flow-ers!

Our meetings on February 27 and

March 26 were held at the BohemianCrystal Restaurant in Westmont, Illinois.It was great to see Chuck Courtney fromLodge Anton J. Cermak No. 99 andNick Kosmas from Lodge Betsy RossRoss No. 151. Nick is also the ITDirector at the CSA Home Office. It wasnice seeing many other new delegatesand old friends attend these meetings,too. A $300 scholarship donation wasmade in loving memory of CharlesValestin and Jerry Gaydusek, who weretwo of our hardworking CSA members.May the perpetual light shine brightlyupon them!

Looking ahead to the month of May,we will be holding our annual JoinHands Day activity at the BohemianNational Cemetery on May 9. Comeearly! We meet at 9:00 a.m. at the GateHouse. Dress in appropriate workingclothes and bring gloves. We will tidyup the grounds, clean up inside the

Columbarium and Gate House, and pickup tree branches, etc. Now is a goodtime for our lodges to start thinkingabout and planning for the 84th Get-Together in Clearwater Beach, Florida.August is coming quickly!

Due to COVID-19, it has been decid-ed to cancel our local Bowl-o-Rama(originally scheduled for April 19).Another event to note is Memorial Dayon Monday, May 25 at the BohemianNational Cemetery (TBD). I hope to seeall of our lodges represented at this spe-cial remembrance for our militaryheroes. District Council No. 12 will hostthe Lodge Recognition Award ceremonyin the coming weeks. A speaker fromeach award-winning lodge should beready to tell us all about their accom-plishments. Date TBD and lodges willbe notified.

Fraternally,Edward Slavik

April Showers and May Flowers Are Beckoning


Lodge Mile-Hi Czechs No. 432,Lakewood, Colorado – Well, as I writethis article, it is 70° today, but whoknows about tomorrow! Our Marchmeeting featured intrepid traveler andhiker, Janet Farrar. She continues to seethe world on foot! At our meeting, shegave a very informative PowerPoint pre-sentation on Ethiopia. It was one of thefirst Christian countries in 400 A.D., andlater it became a democracy. For yearsthey also had a Christian radio station inthat part of the world. Fascinating!

She shared with us the rest of herschedule for the year as follows: possi-bly Japan in April (unless COVID-19cancels it), Germany in May, aNorwegian hike in July, a 185-mile bikeride in Maryland this fall, and finally,Morocco in November. Whew! Put heron your prayer list. Janet is one of our“younger” members in their 60s. Ourother “young” (mid-60s) memberprefers indoor trips and shopping. Ourlongtime active CSA member SonnyWolf attended the massive miniaturerailroad exhibit in Denver.

I hope and pray by the time you readthis, the COVID-19 panic will be almostgone.

Until next month,Pat Kenning

Lodge HappeningsSeeing the World


IN MEMORY OF MEMBERS WHO PASSEDAWAY IN 2019 District Council No. 13 IN MEMORY OF JEFFREY NEKOLNY Lodge DuPage Pioneers/Edison No. 409 John & Joann Nekolny

IN MEMORY OF TWO ACTIVE DELEGATESCHARLES VALESTIN AND JERRY GAYDUSEK District Council No. 12, Region E

IN MEMORY OF CAMILLE SHIMA Dolores Clark

IN MEMORY OF JERRY GAYDUSEK Jean M. Warning Helen Gaydusek

IN HONOR OF ALL OUR FELLOW CSABROTHERS AND SISTERS Lodge Kruh Osvojených Žen a Pánů No. 121

TO CONTINUE CSA’S TRADITION OF ASSISTINGYOUNG MEMBERS IN PURSUING THEIR HIGH-ER EDUCATION In memory of Henry C. Houkal

TOTAL DONATIONS $2,012.59

Scholarship Fund ReportFebruary 10, 2020 - Maarch 10, 2020

Lodge Happenings

Lodge Rovnost No. 53, Cicero, Illinois – At our Februarymeeting, we discussed what things we could do to receive aLodge Recognition Program award this year. We noticed somechanges to the program that were helpful for us.

This meeting was a special one because it was held it at the

Lanzel family’s home, and after the meeting, we celebratedtwo February birthdays: Chris Lanzel and Caroline Johnston.

Fraternally,Caroline Johnston

LRP Changes Are Helpful!


Lodge Happenings

Lodge Woodrow Wilson No. 377,Lombard, Illinois – Our March meet-ing’s highlight was Anna Ramirez andher travelogue presentation, where shetalked about her six-country tour shetook last autumn. We were delighted tosee images of her trip that includedGermany, Austria, Hungary, Poland,Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. Her

personal reflections about each placeand about the people and sights alongthe journey gave us all a “virtual holi-day” that was lovely!

In last month’s article, I mentionedabout some upcoming plans, as well asnotes about this year’s meeting sched-ule. If you need a refresher, refer to thatarticle or give me a call. Other “social

gathering” meetings are on the calendar,with opportunities to share food andfriendship with lodge members. Theseinclude our planned “indoor picnic”(June), our “treat testing” competition inthe fall, and end-of-year holiday potluck(December). Mark your calendars now,or check in with me as things develop orpossibly change!

We hope you will be able to join us,but I am also sending a wish that every-one stays healthy during this difficultand frightening time of an internationalpandemic. Be sure to follow guidancefrom the CDC, and limit your exposureto large groups of people. While we area small group when we gather, we willalso understand the need for cautionunder these circumstances. Please keepus posted as to how you are doing.

All my best, Jean Hemzáček Laukant [email protected]

630-915-9745

Spring Forward in Good Health!

Anna presents: “Anna in Europe!”

Lodge Sokol Plzen No. 434, OakBrook, Illinois – President AndrewBultas held a short lodge meeting onFebruary 21 at 5:00 p.m. The meeting

was held at Sheila Kraft’s home inElmhurst, Illinois. The reason being thatwe wanted to combine the meeting witha birthday party for Sheila. This was not

just a regular birthday party but Sheila’s50th birthday. The majority of the lodgemembers are Sheila’s family, such aschildren, nieces, nephews, and brother,so it seemed more than logical to do it.

A short meeting was held prior to theparty. A discussion was had regardingwhat programs the lodge should pursuefor this coming year. It was agreed tocontinue to support T.G. Masaryk CzechSchool, the programs for the blind chil-dren, and other organizations. We willcheck out new ones to see how theirprograms work. President Andy Bultasrecommended that we gather all theinformation we can on different501(c)(3) organizations and determinewhich ones we might want to support.The meeting was then adjourned and theparty began.

Until next month,Andy Bultas

Determing Organizations to Support


Lodge Happenings

Lodge Yankee-Jungmann No. 77,North Riverside, Illinois – OurFebruary meeting was held onValentine’s Day. Kathy Riha made heartmagnets for everyone. Members broughtgoodies that included cheese, meat, andfruit to share with members. We enjoyedthe evening visiting and eating.

Charles Janda and Margaret Jasinskidid the audit for our Lodge.

We had the honor of Ken Dvorsky,National Director from District CouncilNo. 12, install our 2020 officers. Thankyou, Ken.

One of our members, Raymond Riha,

has 75 years with CSA. Ken Dvorskymade the presentation of the 75 Year Pinand I had the honor to pin it on mybrother.

A thank you to Lodge Harrison/ Hus/Garfield and the T.G. Masaryk Schoolfor their huge bag of pop tabs.

We received quite a few thank yousfor our Valentines: “Thank you for themoney, it’s definitely a good Valentine’streat. Hope to see you at a meetingsoon,” Teagon and Morgan Michalek.“Thank you for the $5.00, that was verykind of you,” Ben Kuznier. “Thank youfor your Valentine. I always appreciate

them, as they make Valentine’s Day spe-cial. I’m a senior at Fenwick HighSchool and have been busy with schoolwork, scholarship applications andrehearsals for our Spring musical,‘Shrek,’” Grace Vamucka. She is excit-ed to graduate this year and move on toa new chapter in her life. Benny andFrankie Saballus said, “Thank you forthe Valentine card and treats. We will beplaying soccer and football.”

Fraternally,Mary Ellen Janda

Valentine’s Day Meeting

Benny and Frankie Saballus

Lodge Prokop Velky No. 137, Cedar Rapids, Iowa – Ourlodge held our March meeting on Wednesday, March 4. Wehad our soup and dessert contest. There were a lot of greatsubmissions. Our winners were Susan Mihal-Melvin with her“$100 Chili” and Loretta Ledvina with her delicious creampuffs. Thanks to all who brought their favorite recipes for allto share.

Don’t forget to sign up for our spring outing on April 30 tosee the musical “Riverdance” at the Paramount Theater. We’dlove to see you!

Fraternally,Rai Ann Stratton

Think Spring!


Lodge Happenings

Lodge Century of Progress/Bila HoraNo. 231, Cicero, Illinois – Our lodgemet on February 12 at the T.G. MasarykCzech School in Cicero. The Secretaryread the minutes and the correspon-dence, which included information onCSA Serves; Fraternalist of the Year;and the Lodge Recognition Programpaperwork. The Treasurer’s Report wasalso accepted.

As we mentioned in a previous arti-cle, on January 8, lodge memberDolores Klejko celebrated a birthday.What she didn’t know was that her sis-ter, Marianne Slavik, was coming infrom Puerto Rico to help Dolores cele-brate the day. Needless to say, Doloreswas really surprised! Marianne then lefton January 16, and arrived in UnionCity, New Jersey where she planned tovisit her granddaughter for a few daysand then fly back to Puerto Rico fromthere. You remember Marianne, we havewritten about her in previous articles. In2018 in particular, she was the subjectof several articles relating to HurricaneKatrina in Puerto Rico.

On January 18, Ed Slavik, Dolores’brother, picked her up and drove to the

restaurant they had previously agreedupon for the evening. The weather onthis day was a typical January day—cold, wet, icy, and slippery. In the mean-time, Dolores’ family had planned a sur-prise birthday party at that restaurant.Unsuspecting, Dolores walked in to seeher entire family there. She was speech-less! Unfortunately, upon leaving therestaurant, when reaching the car, Edslipped on the icy surface and hurt hisleg. It felt serious.

Marianne, now in Union City, NewJersey, was notified. Instead of continu-ing her trip to Puerto Rico, she turnedaround and returned to Burbank. Shestayed with Ed and assisted with shut-tling him back and forth to the hospital,among other things. Ed is home nowand continues with his therapy. A bigthanks goes out to Marianne for all ofher help!

Fraternally, Elaine Tejcek

Surprises

Lodge Happenings

Lodge DuPage Pioneers/Edison No.409, Lombard, Illinois – President LynBurton called our meeting to order, fol-lowed by the Pledge and password. Wewelcomed Director Ken Dvorsky,Fraternal Director Amanda Lovell, andCaroline Johnston and Joyce Nemec ofLodge Rovnost. Caroline and Joyce arealso members of the Cultural Divisionof D.C. No. 12. Our first order of busi-ness was the reading of the minutes fol-lowed by correspondence. We receiveda sweet letter from the mom of twoyouth members (grandsons of memberJean Warning) thanking us for theirannual Valentine’s Day gift. The boyswere giving careful consideration onhow to best spend their dollars. Weenjoyed hearing from them!

We were pleased to see Karen andAmanda Smith participate in our firstannual Bake-Off. Karen and Amandaare the daughter and granddaughter ofJohn and Joann Nekolny. Karen is a Dr.of Clinical Psychology who works withelderly patients in a nursing home.Amanda is a freshman at MarquetteUniversity majoring in SpeechPathology. The Nekolny’s grandsonJackson will be competing in StateFinals for wrestling. At 188 pounds, 14year-old Jack wrestles in the heavy-weight division through the Batavia

Wrestling Club. We wish him and histeam the best of luck!

Helen gave her Treasurer’s Reportand members approved paying theincurred bills. Ken gave a report on D.C.No. 12’s last meeting, where officerswere installed by CSA’s ExecutiveSecretary/Treasurer, Matt Koski.Donations were made to the CSAScholarship Fund in memory of CharlieValestin and Jerry Gaydusek. Ken wel-comed new delegates, Lyn and DaleBurton of our lodge and Nick Kosmasfrom Lodge Betsy Ross No. 151. Kenalso reported on a lecture given by awoman who discussed, among otherthings, the Czech community in Cuba,which was a surprise to all of us.

Lyn then read a schedule of activitiesfor the coming months. Suggestionsincluded a visit to the T.G. MasarykCzech School, an outing to MortonArboretum, and a family picnic.Decisions and dates will be finalized

soon. A discussion followed regardingthe change to our meeting time to lateafternoon. The subject was tabled for afuture meeting. Our final order of busi-ness was an approved donation to theCSA Home Office for the use of theHeritage Room for our meetings. Thankyou, CSA! Our last order of businesswas wishing a very Happy Birthday toJim Wozniak.

The meeting was adjourned and ourBake-Off began. Delicious entries wereprovided by Helen and KaroleGaydusek, Lyn and Dale Burton, JudyWozniak, Karen Smith, AnnmarieAntos, Helene Schaefer, and GerriRomanelli. After careful tasting and vot-ing, Helen’s wonderful strudel wasvoted the winner. Thanks to CSAAccountant Tom Hummel for tallyingthe votes and announcing the winner,and thank you Fraternal DirectorAmanda Lovell for providing the icecream. Our monthly raffle followed, andmembers carried desserts home to enjoy.

Fraternally,Gerri Romanelli

Bake-Off with Family and Friends



Lodge Happenings

Lodge Cleveland Chapter No. 219,Cleveland, Ohio – We hope everyone is

staying healthy! What a worrisome timewe’re having lately. The recommenda-tion given out to avoid this virus is tofrequently wash your hands whilesinging “Happy Birthday.” We hopethis virus burns itself out soon.

We had 12 members attend ourMarch 10 meeting. Remember, wealways have a great time at our meet-ings, visiting with each other, eating ourlunches together (remember, we bringour own), eating yummy desserts(brought by Tony Genco this month),having a 50/50 raffle (June and Carolwon this month), and playing bingo. Soplease plan on attending. It’s the secondTuesday of every month at 10:30 a.m.,weather permitting.

We celebrated Tony Genco’s birthdayby giving him a rousing song of “HappyBirthday.” Tony’s birthday was March12.

We received several thank you lettersfrom the Home Office for our lodge’sdonations to the Scholarship Fund, our

donation to our other charity and a nicethank you note and picture of us attend-ing another lodge’s meeting.

Our bowling season is windingdown. Our last day of bowling is April15 and our “Fun Day” of bowling isApril 22. We will be having our ban-quet at the bowling alley on April 30.We’ve had a great season with lots offun. At our weekly lunch after bowling,we went to a nice Mexican restaurantwhere Tony got to wear the “traditional”Mexican hat and have “HappyBirthday” sung to him in Spanish. Thebowling group also sang the Englishversion to him – lucky guy!

Remember the pork or phicken din-ners are May 27, June 24, September 23and October 28. Please call Don Kotlanat 216-228-0027 for reservations.

Happy Easter to all. Stay safe andhealthy.

Fraternally yours, Judy (Sevcik) Genco

“Fun Day”

It Was Love at First SightLodge Golden Gate No. 252, San Jose, California – August3, 1957 was a significant day for me. Not only did I celebratemy 21st birthday, but I also proposed to Carol while on ourfirst date. Carol thought I was joking, however, little did sheknow I was very serious. My honey, Carol, spoke Czech andcould cook one outstanding pork, dumpling, and sauerkrautdinner! What more could a guy like me ask for? When Caroltold her mother that I had proposed on our first date, they bothhad a good laugh. Her mother asked if I had been drinking.

On Christmas Eve 1959, I surprised my honey with adozen long-stemmed red roses. Enclosed in the roses was abrightly shining diamond engagement ring. Ten months lateron October 17, 1959 at Holy Trinity Church in Chicago’sPilsen neighborhood, we were married.

Here we are, 60 amazing years later, happily married inCalifornia with five children and many grandchildren andgreatgrandchildren. We celebrated our 40th wedding anniver-sary in Budapest, our 50th wedding anniversary in the CzechRepublic, and our 60th wedding anniversary on the sandybeaches of Maui.

The years have gone by so quickly, but we’ve enjoyedevery bit!

Fraternally,James F. Martinek


Lodge Happenings

Read the Journal online at: www.csalife.com

Lodge Cleveland Chapter No. 219,Cleveland, Ohio - Member FreddieShima is involved and active in manyareas of volunteering. Besides being awonderful and generous member of ourLodge, she is very active in the DTJfamily, donating gift baskets and time.She is also busy as a docent at theCleveland Metroparks Zoo. Last, butnot least, Freddie has been part of theSki Patrol at Boston Mills/Brandywineski resorts.

Recently, Freddie and members ofthe Ski Patrol hosted the athletes of theOhio Special Olympics. They havehosted this for 45 years. The athletescompete in many of the similar eventsthat non-disabled Olympians compete in(every 4 years). The athletes do down-hill, slalom, and combined events withboth the Special athlete competing andcoaching in combined times. TheBoston Mills, Brandywine, and AlpineValley Ski Patrols provide hill safetyand first aid, and they host a crew in thekitchen to prepare a lunch for all ofthose participating in the two or three-day events. Some years, the athletes go

on to compete in the National games.Many of the athletes have been compet-ing for years and they have graduated tomore difficult terrain at the ski area. Itis a great event and there are also manyvolunteers who help with race timing,starting, and just cheering on the teamsas they compete in the various events.The games are opened with the lighting

of the cauldron by skiing the torch downthe main hill and the athletes take theOlympic oath, too. On the last day ofthe events, most of the medals are pre-sented and the cauldron is extinguished.

Thank you, Freddie, for all that youdo. We are so proud of you.

Fraternally, Judy Genco

Meet the Member - Freddie Shima

Many of the Ski Patrol members around the cauldron

Freddie Shima at the Olympic caul-dron flame.

Freddie with a Gold Medalist winnerand Boston Mills/ Brandywine ClubDirector.


Lodge Happenings

Lodge Benjamin Franklin No. 02, Seven Hills, Ohio – Aswe finally put the gray and chilly doldrums of a northern Ohiowinter behind us, it’s a pleasure to report that our lodge had itsfull complement of 2020 meetings. All of the officers haveassumed their former positions for yet another year. Leadingthe cast is President Scott Krecow, Secretary Vicki Zidlicky,Treasurer Ken Burdzinski, and I continue as VP and Scribe.Dave Kus remains as Sentry, as does Jimmy Zidlicky in theGuide post.

Our Treasurer was quick with the numbers as the AuditCommittee of Mike Cernosky and Jimmy Zidlicky declaredthe books to be in good order during their January review. Itwas unanimously decided to suspend our small refreshmentstipend for attending members and use it to increase our chari-table contributions.

It was previously reported that our lodge bowling team isusually slow out of the blocks and should pick it up during thewinter months. Well, the Good Guys have done it again! TheParma Builders League at Seven Hills Lanes split their seasoninto thirds with a wild card team at the finish for the playoffs.Team Franklin took command and captured the second third,assuring a roll off spot in April. All this was done without ourhigh power anchorman, Danny Krecow, whom is on maternityleave. Belated congratulations to Terri and Dan on the birth ofOwen Daniel on October 9, 2019. Baby Owen checked in at 8

pounds 13 ounces. This team should be phenomenal whenDanny returns to his former position and with a young upcom-ing bowler waiting in the wings!

The legendary Dave Kus, well known for his grandentrances and stand up comedy, kept up his tradition this win-ter. Dave was sporting a new headdress at a recent meeting.One couldn’t be sure if he returned from a Siberian sabbatical,or had gotten the hat from a protagonist in a James Bondmovie. Brother Kus does profess to be a 007 trivia expert. Hemust know more trivia than movies though, as he enters radiocontests regularly and won tickets for a craft beer convention,Cavs game, and motorcycle expo. Dave offered them to any-one at the meeting. It was a good month for you Dave, thanksfor your generosity!

Hope all our members and friends enjoyed a happy andblessed Easter!

Fraternal regards, Jeff Zidlicky

[email protected]

The Good Guys Have Done it Again!


Lodge Happenings

Read the Journal online at: www.csalife.com

Lodge Kruh Osvojenych Zen A PanuNo. 121, Dillonvale, Ohio – Our lodgemembers met on March 8 at Eat ‘N ParkRestaurant for our monthly meeting.While many members dined at thebrunch buffet, others enjoyed some spe-cial orders and appetizers, too. Duringthe business portion of our gathering,we finalized plans for the upcomingBowl-o-Rama, approved our GTG pro-gram ad and purchase of raffle tickets,and heard thank-you letters from someof the recipients of our recent CSAServes donations. It was honestly a“March Marathon” meeting, as we metfor almost three hours! Now that’s realharmony and fraternity, friends!

Now, flash forward to present day…At the time I wrote this article, I had justfinished assisting my principal, secre-tary, and some of my partner teachers inpassing out three weeks of preparedschoolwork, along with bagged lunchesto families who showed up at our schoolto get the needed items for a three-weekshutdown. Yes, that’s correct… a “three-week shutdown” ordered by GovernorDe Wine of Ohio for all Ohio schools,effective March 16 due to theCoronavirus COVID-19. Wow! In aninstant, our lives and lifestyles took adrastic change in direction. Up until thispoint, most of us realized that the newswasn’t good, but I don’t think any of uscould foresee what truly was to come.

Stories of toilet paper, hand sanitizer,and disinfectant wipes flying off thedepartment store shelves headlined thenews reports. Shortages of COVID-19test kits, stranded travelers and cruiseship patrons, and truck drivers strug-gling to keep up with the demands ofconsumers all kept us glued to our tele-visions, along with a plummeting stockmarket. As of today, probably like you,I’m not sure what to think. This isunchartered territory for all of us; that iscertain.

There have been many disappoint-ments, too. Most of us have experienceddeep sadness over special events havingbeen canceled—most of them with

rescheduling not even in the foreseeablefuture. With a future graduating highschool senior in my home, it’s hit usespecially hard. I have realized a fewthings, though. In this crazy world welive in—all the hustle, bustle, etc.—ourminds are constantly racing. We arealways running from one activity to thenext, overbooked and overworked.Maybe, just maybe, we have been givena blessing in that we are now beingmade to settle down, observe some quiettime, and just be with our families. Yes,we actually have to be together now.

By the time you read this, we maypossibly have even more sanctions. Atthis time in Ohio, all restaurants andbars are now closed. Some restaurantsmay still offer drive-through or pick upservice. We are limited to gatherings of10 or less people with a 6-foot distancebetween us according to the CDC.

Shouldn’t we take advantage of thistime and spend it bonding with the fami-

ly that we live with? If you ask me, Ithink we could find a silver lining in thatwe have been given an awesome gift inthe middle of all this chaos. Through itall, we may finally be able to see thatthe most beautiful gift we have is in thecompany and companionship of familyand friends. They have always beenthere. Perhaps, now, we can really seeeach other!

Our lodge members wish you, morethan anything, good health! We pray foryour safety and hope that in the uncer-tainty of the days to come, you cancount on the love and support of familyand friends. More than ever, we need tobe present for each other. Check onsomeone you love today.

Fraternally,Sis. Wendy Kurtz Lovell

In An Instant


Lodge Happenings

Lodge Groveton No. 4, McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania –Hello once again, fellow CSA members. Lodge Groveton No.4 here again, hoping everyone is staying safe and healthy dur-ing these trying times. With so much uncertainty and negativi-ty going on in the world today, it is difficult to find positiveaspects to hold on to. Fortunately, we here at Lodge Grovetonhave a few “little” things to keep our outlook positive. Ourlodge is experiencing a Youth Movement, with some newyouth members joining us in our already crowded lodge.

We would like to welcome Jacob and Jackson Roosato our family. Jacob and Jackson are 4-year-old twin boys wholove going to Lowes with daddy and helping him with homeimprovements. Proud parents JR and former Miss CSAContestant Krystle Roosa liken Jackson and Jacob to thefamous television stars of “Property Brothers”, Jonathan andDrew. The Roosa Family currently lives in Delaware butmakes frequent trips to Pennsylvania to visit proud grandpar-ents Mickey and Tammy Lewicki, also current members ofCSA Lodge Groveton. Lodge Groveton would like to wel-come Jacob and Jackson aboard, ensuring that our lodge willbe well represented for years to come.

Continuing with the youth of Lodge Groveton, wewould like to wish a very Happy 2nd Birthday to JourdynForrester. Jourdyn is the daughter of former Miss CSA ContestDana and her husband Gary Forrester. Jourdyn is an “active”

member of our group, frequenting most lodge meetings, lodgeactivities, and providing an extra bit of energy and cutenessthat is much needed during these times. Here is to many happybirthdays, Jourdyn.

Sadly, not everything going on with our lodge is ashappy and positive as Jourdyn, Jacob, and Jackson. LodgeGroveton, as well as every other CSA member and their fami-lies, are dealing with the seriousness of the COVID-19 virusmaking its way through our country. We are urging all mem-bers and loved ones to stay inside, stay safe, and stay healthyduring these difficult times. If any member needs anything,feel free to reach out to us at Lodge Groveton, whether it beon our Facebook page or through a phone call and we will doour best to assist in any way we can. Many of our upcomingevents, meetings, and activities have been canceled for thesafety and well being of our members. As in everything, thiswill pass, and it will make us stronger as a society. Until then,the prayers of Lodge Groveton are with you.

Until next time, stay safe CSA members. Fraternally yours,

Bro. Gary Forrester

Youth Movement at Lodge Groveton


In MemoriamClaim Name Lodge Location Date of Death Age53553 Mildred L. Thein 4 PITTSBURGH, PA 02/15/20 8253548 Marilyn J. Michal 77 CHAMPAIGN, IL 12/26/18 7853549 Rose B. Green-Booth 77 REDLANDS, CA 02/11/20 9553575 Joyce Nekolny 77 LYONS, IL 10/26/18 8953532 Pauline M. Grabosky 121 RAYLAND, OH 04/21/19 9753562 Dorothy E. Divis 137 MONTGOMERY, IL 02/08/20 8653558 Henry C. Houkal 151 ALEXANDRIA, VA 12/20/03 9953561 Constance E. Fasanella 170 BOLINGBROOK, IL 04/05/18 7653529 Lue Esther Bates 181 PRESTON, MS 11/16/19 8953543 Hersilia Pierre 211 ELIZABETH, NJ 12/05/19 8953546 Lynne A. Glancy 211 PT. PLSNT BCH, NJ 12/30/19 8453567 Willie H. Brown 211 MORRISVILLE, PA 03/04/20 9253573 Margaret S. Skof 219 PERRY, OH 03/02/20 9053538 Mildred M. Zednik 231 LA GRANGE PK, IL 07/09/18 8953571 Elaine B. Valenta 231 WESTMONT, IL 01/07/17 8953572 Laura B. Hellwig 231 BERWYN, IL 03/02/20 7053539 Janet Lou Hevel 366 ALMA, MI 01/28/20 7053545 Carl E. Verba 366 LIVONIA, MI 07/29/19 9353574 James E. Vimr 366 DEARBORN HTS., MI 03/03/20 8253530 James A. Lorence 372 MAYFIELD HTS, OH 10/17/19 7653537 Gerald A. Besselman 372 MACEDONIA, OH 03/01/19 8553555 Charles J. Valestin 378 ST. CHARLES, IL 11/26/19 9853544 Joann K. Moore 388 CEDAR RAPIDS, IA 02/26/18 8453550 Joan M. Rischer 388 VAN HORNE, IA 12/21/17 9053559 Betty Cybulski 392 INDIAN HEAD PK, IL 08/18/16 9953547 Geneva Foster 408 ITHACA, MI 02/06/20 8653551 Ella Benda 409 CAMPBELLSPORT, WI 11/03/12 9453557 Concepcion Dellaria 422 BRONX, NY 02/21/20 6253560 George J. Hranicky 428 LAUREL, MD 11/15/19 9153565 Patricia A. Byron 428 BALTIMORE, MD 02/03/20 7953566 Larry Krizan 448 WILSON, NY 02/22/20 7253563 Bohuslav J. Vlasak 450 VESTAL, NY 01/29/20 9453534 Patrick J. Seabol 458 BIRMINGHAM, AL 04/06/19 7253536 Martha M. Seabol 458 SAN CLEMENTE, CA 01/24/19 9753564 Rosemary Palshis 458 TEMPE, AZ 02/18/20 9153570 Frank J. Shramek 458 APPLE VALLEY, CA 01/21/20 8353541 Henry K. Berry 463 NEW PORT NEW, VA 12/27/19 4353568 Branislav D. Smetana 475 WOODRIDGE, IL 02/24/20 7453533 Charles S. Havelka 484 HOLLAND, PA 06/20/17 8153540 Mary S. Cruey 484 FREDERICKSBURG, VA 02/16/20 78

Doris Kopac (nee Woelfert) passed away on March 9, 2020 at age 90. She was alifetime member of Lodge Missouri No. 1. Doris was the beloved wife of the lateJerome Kopac. She was the loving mother of Richard (Maryjane), Donald(Gerianne), Thomas (Terri), Gary (Darlene) Kopac, Sharon (Gregory) Viele, andLinda (David) Spellmeyer. She was a dear grandmother and great-grandmother.

Doris was a long time and faithful member of Lodge Missouri No. 1, attendingmeetings and participating in activities. Doris was also a longtime member ofSokol St. Louis and a longtime delegate to the American-Czech EducationalCenter's Board of Directors working to support our Czech community. She was amember of the ACEC Quilters Club meeting weekly (until health no longerallowed) making quilts for raffles and sales with all proceeds supporting theAmerican-Czech Educational Center. Doris loved her family and friends from theCzech Hall. She was a cherished member of all organizations and will be missed.


Lodge Happenings

Lodge Harrison Hus Garfield No.378, Cicero, Illinois – On a nice Marchday, our lodge met for our annual springluncheon and Installation of Officers atthe Czech Plaza Restaurant in Berwyn,Illinois. We were honored to have CSAExecutive Secretary/Treasurer MatthewKoski install our officers. This leisurelyafternoon allowed for a Q&A betweenMatt and our members. This was a veryproductive meeting, where many ques-tions regarding our insurance productsand annuities were answered. Memberswere satisfied to hear that CSA is doingwell and continues to provide service tomembership.

I was honored to present a 50-YearPin to Bill Kostecki, an original LodgeHarrison member who has been loyal inhis support. Bill was our third HonorFlight participant. He told us that heremembers when the Degree Staffwould install and march, and he was thedesignated tape operator.

Also attending was Charles ValestinJr., who learned a lot about the lodgethat his parents were so involved with.We received information on the 2020Get-Together this summer, which willbe held in Clearwater Beach, Florida.We also discussed this year’s LodgeRecognition Program.

Thank-you cards were received fromthe Wildman and Harner families for theChristmas donation.

On March 4, CSA Fraternal Life cel-ebrated our 166th birthday.Congratulations to us!

Members who traveled recently wereMike and Pam Dvorsky in Salt LakeCity for a major genealogy conference,as well as Keith Dvorsky who wentdogsledding in Canada.

Please note that May 4 is our nextlodge meeting at T.G. Masaryk CzechSchool at noon, and May 9 is JoinHands Day at Bohemian NationalCemetery at 9:00 a.m.

Fraternally,Ken Dvorsky

Annual Spring Luncheon


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