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A Closer Look:
Records show that the matter was discussed at length in the SPJST District Seven spring meeting in 1954. In late 1954, supporters of the idea met at the new Supreme Lodge offices in Temple to discuss the project. Among those present were Charlie Holasek, Bessie Valcik, Otto Hanus, Edward L. Marek, August Kacir, Raymond Urbanovsky, J.F. Chupick, Charlie Navratil, L.O. Hosek, Milos Podlipny and Jaroslav Kleprlik. The KJT and KJZT were also represented at the meeting. The discussion centered around getting a building to house a museum and the projected costs. The meeting ended with no positive action taken; however, those in attendance agreed that a museum - or a similar facility - ought to be established in Texas. In addition, Hanus, Holasek and Bessie Valcik indicated that they would act as "collectors" of articles for the museum. Several SPJST representatives participated in a meeting in the First National Bank Building in Temple in the early 1960s to discuss the feasibility of establishing a Czech museum in Texas. Representatives and leaders from several Czech fraternal organizations in Texas and other interested people were present. Bessie Valcik and Jaroslav Kleprlik were in charge of the meeting. SPJST President Edward L. Marek, Vestnik Editor Nick Morris and Jerry Valchar of the RVOS were also present. One thing that everyone present agreed on was the fact that they wanted a museum full of Czech artifacts somewhere in Texas. The construction of a new building for this purpose was discussed, as well as the rental of a building. Generally stated, because none of the organizations had appropriated funding for such a project, no definite course of action was taken. The next meeting relating to the establishment of a Czech museum and library took place in Granger in the former KJZT Home Office sometime in the late winter or early spring of 1963. Vestnik Editor Nick Morris was asked to attend this meeting as a representative of the SPJST, since he had written several articles in the Vestnik endorsing the project. Again, the meeting was attended by leaders of several Czech organizations, including members of the clergy. August Kacir was present, along with then Nasinec Editor Josef Maresh and his son, Timothy. The idea of building a museum had lost some of its momentum and that the main thrust of the meeting was the proposition of establishing a library of Czech books. The discussion stalled with no concrete decisions, although all seemed in agreement that a Czech library should be established to preserve the rich storehouse of Czech materials. Towards the end of the meeting, Editor Morris announced that since the project had been discussed for so long that he was going to start, on his own, the nucleus of a Czech library in West. In the fall of 1963, as Editor of the Vestnik, Morris started writing about and soliciting donations to a "Czech Library in Texas." The first donation of books came in about the middle of September 1963 and was donated by West attorney George Kacir. Books poured in from all parts of the United States. Since there was very little space available in the rear of the print shop of the Cechoslovak Publishing Company (which had been accorded to the project by Publisher Joe Holasek), Morris received permission from the owners of a former and abandoned ice house located behind the print shop which had been closed and unoccupied for some time. It had some shelving in it and most of the windows were knocked out, but it did have a padlock on the door and protected the contents fairly well from the rain. The entire interior of the building was covered with a thick layer of dust. Many hours were spent vacuuming and cleaning the inside of the old ice house. This old ice house was the first home of what is now the SPJST Library. About a year later, West National Bank purchased the building and property on which the old ice house was located, razed the ice house, and built an annex to the bank building on the property. The books had to be moved elsewhere. Again, Joe Holasek consented to allocating part of the back room of his publishing house to the storage of the Czech books, but there was no shelving. A $10 donation had previously been received from Fred Burda from the State of Washington towards organizing and financing this library. Of that amount, $9 was used to hire Albin Macik, a local carpenter in West, to construct shelving for about 2,000 books. Step Two: Moving Into the Current Space In attending a Supreme Lodge meeting the latter part of 1968, Morris received permission from the Supreme Lodge to have Otto Hanus transport the approximately 1,500 library books in West to a room on the fifth floor in the SPJST building at Second and Central in Temple. The books reposed there until Hanus became curator and librarian later. In a letter dated December 18, 1969 to members of the Supreme Lodge, Morris, now SPJST President, noted that Director Ernest J. Hanka had made a motion in the special meeting of April 22, 1969 that ". . . the entire body authorize the Supreme Lodge officers to determine plans for the contents of the archives, museum, and library in the new building. Motion carried." In that letter, Morris set forth basic plans, ground rules and suggestions as to what might be included in that area, which were approved. In a letter dated November 19, 1969, Otto Hanus offered his services to administer the library, archives and museum areas in the Home Office. In the January 1970 meeting of the Supreme Lodge, the decision was made to employ Otto Hanus, effective March 1, 1970. Hanus went to work rebinding some of the books that were in bad condition and started accumulating items for the museum. All of this was done in a room on the fifth floor of the Supreme Lodge Headquarters building at Second and Central in Temple. The collection was later expanded into two other rooms on the same floor. By the time the SPJST Home Office was ready to channel operations into its new building, there was already an overflow of books and museum artifacts. By the time of the dedication of the new building in January 1971, there were already enough items for display in the museum and enough material and books in the library and archives on the first floor. Hanus worked hard, travelling to all parts of the state collecting books, artifacts and items for the museum. The Supreme Lodge, in its July 1979 meeting, decided that library and museum space would be needed for various administrative purposes and that there would be several advantages in relocating it to the basement. Because of the expense involved, the Supreme Lodge sought and obtained convention approval in June 1980. The move of the Library, Archives and Museum was started in about the middle of December 1980 and completed in the early part of January 1981. Thelma Bartosh Groppel was hired in late 1980 to serve as an assistant to Hanus. Following the death of Mr. Hanus in 1986, Ms. Groppel became curator, a position which she held until she retired in 1991. The growth and development of the SPJST Library, Archives and Museum was the subject of considerable focus in the 1990s. Delegates to the 1992 SPJST Convention in Victoria established a committee to study and investigate the long-range plans for the SPJST LAM. Serving on that Committee were: Mildred Holeman, By-Laws Committee; Monta Foster, Finance Committee; Ben Jarma, Insurance Committee; and Angeline Kristinik, Publication Committee. Past District Seven Director Thelma Hrncir was named chairman of the LAM Committee by the Supreme Lodge. In its report to the 1996 SPJST Convention, the LAM Committee made the following recommendations:
Step Three: Positioning for Future Growth The far-reaching decision was the result of two actions. The first was a motion made by District Three Director Johnnie Krizan to implement the most economical means of establishing the Library, Archives and Museum as a separate, non-profit entity. The motion was seconded by District Five Dir-ector Louis Hanus. The second initiative, that the SPJST establish a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization to administer the growth and development of the Library, Archives and Museum, was presented by Legal Advisor Sidney Kacir and seconded by Financial Secretary Jerry Mikulas. In each case, a majority of Supreme Lodge members voted to support the motions. Legal Advisor Sidney Kacir accepted the responsibility to coordinate the effort on behalf of the Supreme Lodge. Final ratification of the effort would be in the hands of delegates to the Twenty-Eighth SPJST Convention in Temple. "I feel very positive about the recent action taken by the Supreme Lodge concerning the LAM and commend them on taking this progressive action to improve and upgrade our present Library, Archives and Museum," said Sister Hrncir, in a story which appeared in the January 26, 2000 Vestnik. "At the 1996 convention, our LAM Committee made six recommendations, the sixth being, "Continuing efforts to keep the museum alive, dynamic, and creative - even visionary. "I feel this action to achieve non-profit status for the LAM is truly a step in the right direction. I hope the board will continue to support and promote this new idea and truly make our LAM the jewel of Texas," she said. "We've reached a critical point in the development of the LAM," said by then Supreme Lodge Vice President Leonard Mikeska. "Step One was setting up the museum. Step Two was moving into the current space. Step Three is all about maximizing our growth potential - which is considerable." "The sky's the limit," observed Supreme Lodge Financial Secretary Jerry Mikulas, who seconded the motion to pursue non-profit status. "To do nothing would be limiting ourselves to what we have now. I can see this being the start of something big for the SPJST, its members and the people of Texas." LAM Articles of Incorporation Issued SPJST delegates took action at their Twenty-Eighth Convention in Temple, Texas to ratify the actions of the Supreme Lodge and to pursue the growth and development of the SPJST Library, Archives and Museum as a non-profit enterprise under IRS guidelines for 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations. The Latest Chapter |