[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 155 (Friday, October 23, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2624]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        HONORING SANDOR KIRSCHE

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. MIKE QUIGLEY

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 23, 2009

  Mr. QUIGLEY. Madam Speaker, I rise today in honor of Sandor Kirsche. 
Mr. Kirsche was born in Czechoslovakia in 1926 and arrived in Chicago 
after surviving Nazi persecution in concentration camps at both 
Auschwitz and Bundenwald. Sandor overcame his personal struggles, 
including the deaths of his brother and father, and dedicated his life 
to making the lives of Jewish Americans easier. To that end, he opened 
the first full-service kosher supermarket in the Chicago area and gave 
back to the community with a life's worth of charity and philanthropy.
  In 1971, Sandor opened a kosher butcher shop, which initially lost 
money. But through his hard work, long hours, and perseverance, he 
expanded the store to include kosher fish and packaged goods. The 
existence of a kosher supermarket was invaluable to the Jewish 
community, who now had a place where people could purchase kosher 
goods. Today, the store is known as Hungarian Kosher Foods and is still 
family owned.
  Anyone who met Sandor knew he was much more than a businessman, and 
understandably, everybody knew him. At his stores, he never just sold 
meats and canned goods. He was always ready with a smile and a story, 
and a piece of candy for his younger patrons. He kept up on issues in 
the community, history, politics, and spoke seven different languages. 
He fought tirelessly to bring his sisters to the United States, and 
after twenty years of never giving up, he was successful in bringing 
them here from Soviet Russia in 1972.
  I am honored to recognize and remember Sandor Kirsche today. He 
exemplified family and community values even after overcoming great 
hardship. His uniquely American story is an example to not only the 
Chicago and Jewish communities, but to everyone who has ever faced long 
odds.

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