Submitted by:  Nadine A. Hardin

Name in Obituary:  Julia E. Lukacs

Names Mentioned:  Lukacs, Szabo, Peltz, Slutsky

South Bend Tribune, May 12, 1997.

“Radio Host Lukacs Dies at 91”

SOUTH BEND – Julia E. Lukacs, the woman who brought Hungarian music to thousands in the South Bend area through the radio broadcasts of the “Hungarian Hour,” died on her 91^st birthday, Saturday, at Holy Cross Care and Rehabilitation.

Mrs. Lukacs and her husband, Wendell, broadcast the “Hungarian Hour” of traditional Hungarian tunes for 63 years on WSBT-AM. They retired from the show in 1994. Mrs. Lukacs was born in South Bend on May 10, 1906. As Julia E. Szabo, she married Wendell Lukacs on Oct. 19, 1935, in South Bend. They had met in the church choir at St. Stephen Catholic Church when her mother prompted her to meet the “charming young Hungarian.” He died in 1995.

The couple began to assist broadcast of the Hungarian music show when there were live bands and choirs performing on the third floor of The Tribune.

There were several hosts until the Lukacses assumed the chief role in the mid-1960s. They played music from an extensive music collection that filled their home. The couple never missed a broadcast.

They were honored in 1993 by Foreign Languages Alive in Michiana Education (FLAME) for their work in maintaining the richness of ethnic diversity and foreign language in the area.

In addition to her work in radio, Mrs. Lukacs worked for St. Joseph County and South Bend city offices.

Friends may call from 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday in Zahoran Funeral Home. A rosary will be recited at 5:30 p.m.

Services will be at 10 a.m. Thursday at Our Lady of Hungary Catholic Church.

Indiana South Bend Tribune, Obituaries; May 13, 1997.

Julia E. Lukacs (May 10, 1906 – May 10, 1997).

SOUTH BEND – Julia E. Lukacs, 91, formerly of West Indiana Avenue, South Bend, Ind., died at 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 10, in the Holy Cross Care and Rehabilitation Center.

Mrs. Lukacs retired from the South Bend Police Department where she worked in the treasurer’s office. Julia was also a co-host, along with her husband Wendell, of the WSBT Radio Hungarian-American hour for many years.

She was born on May 10, 1906, in South Bend. On Oct. 19, 1935, in South Bend, as Julia Szabo, she married Wendell S. Lukacs, who preceded her in death on March 9, 1995. She is survived by a niece, Lila Peltz of South Bend; a nephew, Harold Slutsky of South Bend; six grandnieces and nephews; and by 10 great-grandnieces and nephews. Mrs. Lukacs was a member of Our Lady of Hungary Catholic Church, its Harvest House, St. Ann’s Society, and the Sacred Heart and Rosary Society. She was also a member of the St. Theresa Society of St. Stephen’s Church, the St. Anthony Society Ladies Auxiliary, the Daughters of Isabella (572), the Ladies of Charity, and the Wiliam Penn Association of which she was past president.

Services will be at 10 a.m. on Thursday in the Our Lady of Hungary Catholic Church, with burial in the Highland Cemetery.

Friends may call from 5 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday in the Zahoran Funeral Home, 1826 S. Kemble Avenue. A Rosary will be recited at 5:30 p.m. by the St. Ann’s Society, the Sacred Heart and Rosary Society, the St Theresa Society, the Anthony Society Ladies Auxiliary and the Harvest House.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Our Lady of Hungary Repair Fund.