Welcome New Member Robert Kokenyesi
Robert Kokenyesi came to First Unitarian Church of St. Louis from the Unitarian church in Alton, IL. He was particularly interested in our excellent, caring Partner Church Committee, which he joined even before he became a member of our church on August 27, 2023. It was Robert who gave a succinct and well-thought-out overview of Transylvanian Unitarian history during the Partner Church service on November 5, 2023.
Having grown up in Hungary under the Communist regime, Robert first heard the word "Unitarian" while in Boston doing research at Harvard Medical School. His family in Hungary had probably been Calvinist (Lutheran) at one time, but no one practiced any religion under Communism. As he grew up, Robert came to the realization that under Communism, there was no chance to advance without joining the Communist Party. To further investigate what Communism was like, he spent two summers in the Soviet Union; disenchanted, he started paying attention to all his relatives who had already immigrated to the United States, and he finally left Hungary in 1982 on a tourist passport. Although he did not make a "dangerous" escape, Robert had no intention of going back and was threatened with an automatic three-year jail sentence should he step foot in Hungary ever again. Fortunately, the fall of Communism in 1989 brought with it amnesty for all who had escaped, so Robert can now visit his sister and her children in Hungary once or twice a year. On this summer's visit to Hungary, he also visited our partner church village of Csokfalva, in the Transylvanian region of Romania. There he met our recently-arrived new partner church minister, Noemi Tamasi. He describes her as an “unbelievably courageous young lady."
Robert became a naturalized citizen of the U.S. in 2011. Fortunately, when he made his clandestine escape, he also smuggled out his transcripts, so he was able to continue his life in academia once he arrived in the U.S. by using his Ph.D. in biochemistry and molecular biology. In 1999 Robert came to the St. Louis area—he lives in Godfrey, IL and he currently teaches day and night classes at Lewis and Clark Community College.
In his spare time, Robert creates pottery-both functional and artistic-in his pottery studio. He also does translations (he translated Noemi's message and prayer for our congregation), and creates educational tools for the life sciences. What a journey! Robert, we're glad you're here. Welcome!