In memory of Helen Torok

From the Forties to the Sixties the Reader’s Digest ran articles entitled “The Most Unforgettable Character I Have Ever Met.”  For me that would have been my friend Helen Torok, who died earlier today of complications from the Coronavirus.

I first met Helen at a 4-H Roundup when I was visiting from California and she was taking pictures of the kids and their animals.  I asked my sister Kay, “Who is that black woman taking pictures?”  Kay said “That’s Helen Torok,” like, who else would it be?  Helen was the most multi-talented person I have ever known.  She was a professional singer, a jewelry maker, a businesswoman, a computer expert, photographer, political activist, excellent cook, organizer, office holder, community volunteer, and so much more.

Helen lived the civil rights movement.  When she and Tibor married, their interracial marriage was illegal in a number of states.  Tibor was himself an amazing guy, one of the Hungarian freedom fighters in 1956 who managed to get across the border to Austria and escape certain death.  

I was Helen’s campaign treasurer when she ran for borough council in Lehighton.  The question at the beginning of that campaign was, “Can an African-American Jewish woman win a council seat in Lehighton?  Answer:  yes, if it was Helen Torok.

There will be a memorial at a synagogue in Bethlehem, the details to be announced.  Another bad thing about our current situation is that Helen’s friends can’t meet to grieve in a normal way.  We will grieve in private, but we will definitely grieve.