Volume 104 Number 43
ˇ ´ VESTNIK S P J S T Benevolence
H E R A L D
★ Humanity
ISSN —07458800
★ Brotherhood
November 2, 2016
Siblings Amanda and Jason Hermis of SPJST Lodge 142, Houston celebrate the one year anniversary on September 1 since Jason received a kidney from Amanda. Both Jason and Amanda were active youth club members, and Jason was the 1996 Mr. SPJST.
Strudel Time!
Grandma Doreen Honza shows granddaughter Hayden Thornton, both of Lodge 25, Ennis, how to butter strudels for an event at the lodge hall recently. The lodge will host its annual strudel bake sale fundraiser for the upcoming holidays. Pick up dates are Tuesday, November 22 for Thanksgiving and Friday, December 23 for Christmas. To place your orders for November and December, call Margaret 972-878-6149 or Betty 972-878-
A Bond Like No Other
SPJST Lodge 142, Houston members and siblings Jason Hermis and Amanda Hermis, children of Dennis and Elizabeth Hermis, have a bond like no other. Jason, who was the 1996 Mr. SPJST, was born with a rare disease that affects his kidneys. He and the Hermis family always knew that he would eventually need a new kidney. In 2015, the time came that Jason needed a kidney transplant. Sister Amanda passed all of the beginning stages of the donation process. Doctors requested a genetic test, which did not exist at the time. The Methodist Hospital Kidney Transplant Center
then received a grant especially for the genetic test. The results of the test took one month. “We hit the lottery,” Dennis said, when the results came back six out of six, which is a perfect score. That was just one of the many hurdles that Amanda went through to donate her kidney to her brother. On September 1, 2015, the kidney transplant was performed without any complications. Jason, Amanda, and their family celebrated one year of the kidney transplant. They are both doing very well. Best wishes to them for continued good health. —SPJST—
Piano Talk
Piano teachers Thelma Hrncir, right, SPJST Honorary District Seven Director and past sales agent, of Lodge 79, Corpus Christi and Carolyn Filipp Beseda, Lodge 88, Houston sales agent and past District Five President, are seated at Ms. Hrncir’s grand piano in Dyersburg, Tennessee. Ms. Hrncir has taught piano for 68 years and Ms. Beseda for 50 years. Ms. Elsie Balaban Thomas (not pictured) of Lodge 88 enjoyed the visit, as well.
The holidays are coming! Important Vestnik Holiday Deadlines See page 2 for details.
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Vestnik by Email..................................2 Interest Rates ......................................3 Important Dates ...................................3 Readers Write ......................................3 From the Districts ...............................5 Lodge Section......................................6
Inside This Week’s Vestnik
In Memoriam ......................................15 Youth Section ....................................16 Vestnik Project ..................................18 Czech Culture ....................................20 Advertisements .................................21 Lodge Calendar .................................22
Bessie Petr’s Legacy honored at State Fair Page 11
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Page 15
Lodge 154 Fort Worth member participates on “The Voice”
Page 17
Lodge 81 Needville Youth Club visits George Ranch