Photo credit: Michelle Belliveau
“It’s with mixed emotions that we have this evening,” said Honorary Hungarian Citizen Nash Schott who welcomed guests to a farewell party for Réka Szemerkényi, The Ambassador of Hungary, hosted by Mary Mochary and Aniko Gaal Schott. “She is one of the truly great servants of the nation and Réka did such a good job – it’s not easy. What makes you so distinguished is that you’re a caring person. In the end, what you do for your country is translated in how you act in the community; how do you relate to people; what is the difference you make – because in the end you may not remember the policies – most people don’t – but they’ll remember you because you made such a great difference for your country and our city. I can tell you that you’re a difference-maker. And the last thing I wanted to say tonight is, behind every successful woman is a successful man. Believe me, you’ve got a tough act to follow, but I know something about that. Now I want to say to your four children: This is a very special night. I never want you to forget this night, and I’ll tell you why. There’s a very distinguished group of people that have come here to recognize your mother. I want you to remember what your mother did for her country and this country has never been matched. And no matter how old you are and wherever you go, you should know that your mother has crossed oceans and boundaries and created for many people a much better life than there was before. And you should always be so proud of your mother, and I know you are, and when you get home tonight, give her a big hug. There’s nobody better.”
Nash Schott and Amb. Réka Szemerkényi
“It’s a testament to your success of your tenure that there’s so many people here tonight to honor you,” said co-host Mary Mochary. “You are not only a wonderful Ambassador but a wonderful friend, generous to every organization that asks you for help. You’ve been just amazing and I’d like to present you with this little tray from the United States Senate.”
Mary Mochary, Aniko Gaal Schott and Ambassador Szemerkényi Photo credit: Janet Donovan
“Farewells are never easy, but that is the life of a diplomat,” added co-host Aniko Gaal Schott. “Fellow diplomats who are here, you know how difficult it is to say goodbye. Réka, who became our darling Ambassador arrived in 2013, had her reputation preceded here because she was a Fulbright Scholar; has two masters degrees; a PhD in Economics; two decades of advising the now Prime Minister; she has so many accomplishments I have to read them – Deputy State Secretary, Political State Secretary General, Director of Strategic Studies in Foreign Security Matters, President of the Hungarian New Atlantic Alliance, all to say we knew she was stellar before she even came here. Before her arrival, although she continued to stress the important of NATO Transatlantic Alliance, her focus was really strengthening United States and Hungarian bilateral relations. She always understood and valued the significance of strong cooperation between the United States and Hungary, whether it be the political, economic or energy areas, and firmly believed that this will further unite our two countries and reinforce the strong bond we have for each others. I would be remiss if I didn’t single out the Ambassador’s incredible service to many Hungarian – American communities in Washington and nationwide. She’s loved and respected by the many organizations she so ably served. She touched our various communities, as Mary said as well, having been guest speaker on many common issues on energy and cyber-security being the Baker Institute, St. Thomas University in Texas, Meridian House International, Marymount University, US-Hungarian Business Council, YPO and the list goes on and on. And culturally you were also true to form. You had the Syrian refugee benefit, your children supporting the National Opera, the young concert artist, and Faulkner Red Cross Ball and you always represented the best of Hungary.”
Aniko Gaal Schott, Amb. Szemerkényi with Amb.Colleen Bell
Aniko also recalled the The Sixtieth Anniversary of the 1956 Revolution held recently which was an amazing feat orchestrated under her. “But last but not least, she will always be remembered as the Ambassador who shepherded the purchase of a historic building – that building being the former home of Alexander Graham Bell as well as Vice-President Morton (in case you’re wondering who Vice-President Morton was, he served 1889-1895 as a famous Massachusetts Senator, Secretary of War and State) and Nobel Prize Winner Elihu Root all lived in that building and now that is the new home of the Hungarian Embassy Chancellery. But in the end she was, is and always will be my dear friend.”
Marie Royce and Amb. Szemerkényi
Congressman Ed Royce, Chairman of the Joint Relations of the Congress who was represented by his wife Marie, presented a flag that was flown over the United States in honor of Réka so she can take it home with her and remember how highly she was regarded here in America for all her great deeds and her wonderful representation of Hungary. It says, “At the request of the honorable Edward Royce, members of Congress, this flag was flown in honor of Her Excellency Szemerkényi of Hungary in recognition of your diplomatic service to the United States. We appreciate our friendship and wish you success in your future endeavors. Thank you for including us in the sixtieth anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution. Warmest regards, Ed Royce, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee.”
Photo credit: Janet Donovan
Recent US Ambassador to Hungary Colleen Bell flew in from California for the occasion. “I would not have missed this evening to be here with you Réka and all the kids. It’s a night we can celebrate the extraordinary accomplishments of Réka Szemerkényi. So we appreciate you bringing us all here together to celebrate her. Réka served with strength and grace and elegance. And I know better than most that these were not the easiest years to be Hungary’s ambassador to the United States. But Réka was successful, and this success required a bold strategic approach to advancing the Hungarian government’s policies. Prime Minister Orbán chose the right person to do that. Réka’s depth of knowledge and experience combined with her tenacity and professionalism represented her country in the noblest of ways, which I bore witness to on many, many occasions. Réka, you should be so proud of what you accomplished – advancing commercial engagement, law enforcement and security cooperation, connecting with the Hungarian diaspora, over and over with all the flights and miles you logged on the airplanes, opening the new beautiful embassy, and all of the extraordinary creative public diplomacy programs, and so much of the other work that you did. I would like to take you back very quickly to a cold January evening in Budapest. I had just arrived – Brad and I invited her to come to dinner one week after my arrival and before her departure. I had spoken to my staff at the embassy and said, ‘I’d like to have her to dinner,’ and they said ‘That’s very unusual.’ And I said, ‘I think it’s a great idea.’ And it was. At that time, there was a lot of interest in me and a lot of interest in Réka, and in the media it was playing out that these were two very different choices by Obama and Orbán. So our careers in the private sector, yes, they were very different. But what I came to realize that there is nothing that Réka Szemerkényi cannot do. And I’m convinced that she could produce great television (Bell is also a producer), and I think that maybe, just maybe, she would say that I would find a way to navigate through her security policy world. So there you go. As different as our backgrounds go, there was an immediate bond between us, a bond that our countries benefited from because of our respect for each other and our ability to find common ground and work through very, very complicated situations. We are two women who dared greatly, and we will continue to do so with our commitment to promoting peace, security and prosperity for all people. Girls, your mother broke the glass ceiling. She is fierce and she is bold and she is brave and she is amazing, and I’m so proud to call her my friend. So Réka Szemerkényi, congratulations on this lovely evening and it’s been a wonderful journey with you.”
Dr. Réka Szemerkényi and her husband with Rep. Dennis Ross
“What’s interesting is a couple of years ago I decided to get to my roots, which are Hungarian,” said Ross. “I approached the Hungarian embassy and I got to know Réka Szemerkényi. And I’ll tell you, over my experience of the last two years, what she brought was not only her elegance and her grace and her integrity and her diplomacy, but what she brought was the spirit of the Hungarian people in a very personal fashion, all across America, that not only raised the awareness of such a strong relationship that we as Americans have with Hungary, but especially for those of us who are Americans with Hungarian roots, how important that is to not only us but to our future. And what we saw was an Ambassador who just didn’t stay within the confines of Washington, D.C. We saw an ambassador who reached out there to Dallas, Texas, San Francisco, Cleveland, Ohio, visited the Hungarian church – Saint Everett’s, where my parents were married – went all across this great land to raise the awareness and to inspire those of us not only of Hungarian descent, but those of us who understand the importance and significance of having Hungary as a partner to this country. And what we saw happen two years ago in August of 2015, with the immigration debacle that happened, the one country in the EU who stood strong and did right was Hungary. I have to give you and your Prime Minister so much credit, that we here in D.C. can learn so much from you. And I’ll tell you, we’re gonna miss her because of you our relations are much better off than they’ve ever been. And I’ll tell you even more that our relations in the future will continue to get better because of you. And Cindy and I will miss you, but we will never forget that when she came down to Sarasota to visit a Hungarian physicians’ group down there. My wife and I drove down and brought her to our house, where we had a wonderful presentation for a man who was a ’56-er who had retired to my community, and it was very emotional for him, it was for all of us. But as a result of that, she stayed in our guest room and my wife has now proudly called that our Ambassador’s Suite. May God continue to bless you and your great family and of course both of you great neighbors. Thank you.”
Aniko Gaal Schott with Kenichiro Sasae, Ambassador of Japan Photo credit: Janet Donovan
Distinguished guests included Chief of Protocol Rosemary Pauli, The Ambassador of Japan, Croatia, Kosovo, Finland, Austria, Italy and Jordan and Farenc Koszorus who represented 110th year of our organization, the American Hungarian Federation. “Our federation over all of those years has been a strong, strong supporter of good bilateral relations between Hungary and the United States. In fact, we adopted the motto “Fidelissimus ad Mortem,” “Faithful Unto Death,” from Colonel Kovats, who penned the letter to Benjamin Franklin during the Revolutionary War, who offered his services, trained the US Cavalry, known as the father of light cavalry and died in the Battle of Charleston in 1779. Our federation has an award that we’ve developed replicating that and adopting that motto, and our wonderful hostesses are recipients of previous medals, Kovats medals, and it is our pleasure to present the American Hungarian Federations’ Kovats medal to you. We really appreciate the tremendous amount of work you did to help develop and work for better relations between the two countries.”
Amb. of Finland Kirsti Kauppi and Amb. Szemerkényi
“I just can’t find the words to thank you for this wonderful evening,” concluded Amb. Szemerkényi, “because as much as it is hard to say farewell and to finish a mission – especially when you have lots of ideas of what you would like to develop – as much as it is beautiful to find new friends and to make these friends a part of your life – and you can become part of their lives in a little way – I think this is the friendship that carries us forward. And I really very much appreciate it, so thank you so much for this wonderful, wonderful thought of inviting all these wonderful people here that I’m really very honored to meet now. I think if I look at every one of you, I just wouldn’t be able to say, or wouldn’t be able to do anything without your help and support- and so I’m not even able to say enough ‘thank yous’ to express how much I appreciate this. I think we have been through a wonderful experience of really strengthening Hungarian-American relations and of making sure that all the problems can be solved, all the misunderstandings can be resolved, all the issues can be brought forward if we work together, if we listen to each other, and if we try to help each other.”
