Catherine E Horvath

New Shoes for America Catherine E Horvath

Mary Forward immigrated to America in 1847, pregnant, with 5 young children in tow - all without her husband. Anton Horvath immigrated to America in 1906 with nothing but the gift of new shoes on his feet and $22.20 in his pocket. As I grew up, I heard many stories about my family ancestors and my fascination with these seemingly powerhouse figures, of whom I was apparently related. As a creative writer, I felt called to become the scribe of my family's stories. Tracking down extended relatives in central Europe, exploring the countries of my great-grandparents, I soon discovered there was much to learn from the stories of the past. Many of the challenges my family experienced present themselves in society today. As tensions over immigration continue to rise, these stories of all of my family who braved immigration to come to America have become even more important. This anthology of short stories was generated as my senior thesis for the Hutton Honors College and the English Departmental Honors program at Indiana University. It won an award for Best Thesis. Even with the genealogical and historical research I have done for each story, the narratives are largely my own. My family has presented me with basic plots. While being faithful to them and to historical accuracy, I have exercised my imagination on these tales, made them my own, and thereby hope that I have brought out my ancestors' goodness and their humanity. Welcome to my family.