Laszlo de Roth: Pathfinder. Educator. Believer. Fearless. Born Oct. 26, 1941, in Budapest, Hungary; died Nov. 22, 2021, in Ottawa, of cancer; aged 80.
Laszlo de Roth.Courtesy of family
When Laszlo de Roth arrived by ship in Canada in December, 1956, he didn’t have any idea how he would survive. He was alone in the world as a 15-year-old orphan, even though he travelled with others who had also fled their homeland after the defeat of the Hungarian Uprising. During the 13-day revolution, Laszlo participated by pulling a wagon from one apartment building in Budapest to another with two friends, shouting to the floors above that, “the Revolution needs your empty bottles!” Everyone knew that those wine bottles would be used for fiery bombs. Molotov cocktails were weapons the urban fighters used successfully against Soviet tanks on the streets of Budapest. In early November, when the Soviets returned to crush the revolutionaries, kids like Laszlo knew it was time to leave. Too many people had seen them and could identify them with their wagons full of empty bottles.
The only thing that Laszlo knew about Canada was what he learned as a stamp collector: that it was a massive country with lots of space. When he arrived, Canadian immigration officials didn’t quite know what to do with an orphan not yet of legal age.
Several families in Montreal had heard of this courageous young teenager and offered to adopt him, but immigration officials didn’t know how to proceed. Through a translator, Laszlo provided a solution. He asked if he could stay with all four families for two days each before choosing. By the time he had finished his stay with the second family, Laszlo felt that they understood him and would be the best possible parents.
His parents not only offered him a loving home but also a spot in one of Montreal’s best schools, College Notre Dame, where Laszlo was awarded a full scholarship. Laszlo entered the school not knowing a word of French, but within two years, finished first in his class. He went on to obtain his bachelor’s degree at the University of Montreal.
Laszlo met his future bride at a debutante ball organized by the Hungarian community in Montreal. He was completely smitten with the young and beautiful Henriette Zichy. Henny was terribly shy and didn’t want anything to do with this young man; she left the event after their first dance. It was a rocky start, but Laszlo continued to court Henny and eventually won her over. The young couple, by then deeply in love, were married in 1970.
As Laszlo worked toward his doctorate in veterinary medicine at the University of Guelph, the couple welcomed three children, two daughters, Geory and Alice, and a son, Egon. Because Laszlo was three years old when his own father died, he considered being a father a great privilege. The children realized his devotion when once he ran across a busy eight-lane highway to comfort one of them. Another example of his focus on their needs was when Alice was worried about finding the best eraser for her class. She arrived at school to find 12 erasers in her pencil case.
Laszlo was a great storyteller, had a tremendous sense of humour, loved to laugh and make others laugh as well. At the end of the day, he would prefer to watch comedies on TV (Seinfeld was a favourite) rather than heartbreaking dramas.
For 33 years, Laszlo was a distinguished professor and educator, published researcher and university administrator at the University of Montreal. He was a man of strong faith, who with passion and conviction confirmed his faith through his involvement in various parishes, charities and missionary work in both Quebec and Ontario. He was also an active leader in the Cursillo Movement, a spiritual renewal movement within the Catholic church. When he was diagnosed with cancer, he remained positive and upbeat, eager to meet his Creator on the other side.
Susan M. Papp was a friend to Laszlo de Roth.
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