2024-10-05. Members of the Swiss-American Society enjoyed a guided tour of South Park, which was designed by Paul Riis, a Swiss immigrant to the United States in the early 1900s.
(Photos courtesy Lynn Rethi and Anne Oyler)
Update: Memorial Service for Evelyn Baker Ruffing (July 20, 2024)
July 7, 2024. A message from the family of Evelyn Baker Ruffing:
Dear Members and Friends,
Please join us for a memorial service and celebration of life in loving memory of our mother, Evelyn E. Ruffing(November 1, 1934 – April 12, 2024).
Saturday, July 20, 2024 at 11:00 a.m.
UU Fellowship of Ligonier Valley
1724 Rt 30 East, Ligonier, PA (1.5 miles east of Ligonier)
A light buffet-style lunch will follow the service from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m.
We would love for you to join us and share your stories and favorite memories of Evelyn.
Thank you,
Paula Baker, daughter
Andy Baker, son
_________________________________
If you are not able to attend in-person, the service will be available to view via Zoom:
https://zoom.us/j/8846210872?pwd=SUNmc1ZJQWJCbkNZdGszeURERWU1dz09
You can click on it to join or use this Meeting ID.
Meeting ID: 884 621 0872
Passcode: UUFLV
If you would like to join by phone, please dial 1-646-876-9923.
Use this Meeting ID- 884 621 0872
Passcode: UUFLV
Memorial Information: Evelyn Baker Ruffing
June 27, 2024. The family of Evelyn Baker Ruffing will hold a memorial service for her at 11:00 AM on Saturday, July 20, 2024 at the Unitarian Fellowship of Ligonier:
1724 Lincoln Highway (Route 30), Ligonier PA 15658.
Following the service there will be a buffet style lunch at the church from 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM.
Evelyn had been a member of the Swiss-American Society of Pittsburgh since 1976. She had spent many years studying ethnology in Switzerland and developed a love of Swiss culture and languages. With her extensive knowledge of traditional architecture, she had also been a key contributor to the design of the Swiss Nationality Room at the University of Pittsburgh.
NASSA Sängerfest
2024-05-10. We are excited to share that our sister organization, the Schweizer Männerchor Helvetia of Allegheny City, is hosting the 43rd Sängerfest of the North American Swiss Singing Alliance in Pittsburgh. All are invited to the Grand Concert on Friday, June 21, 2024, at 7:00 p.m. at Soldiers and Sailors Hall. Admission is free and we hope to see you there!
More information is available at pghsaengerfest.com.
In Memory: Evelyn Baker Ruffing
2024-04-20. We are sad to share that longtime Swiss-American Society member Evelyn Baker Ruffing passed away on April 12, 2024. Her enthusiasm for Switzerland, Swiss culture, and the Swiss-American Society will be missed. More information will be shared as it becomes available. In the meantime, this Pittsburgh Tribune-Review article discusses Evelyn’s contributions to the creation of a Swiss Nationality Room in the University of Pittsburgh’s Cathedral of Learning.
A Message from our Honorary Consul, Dominique Schinabeck
2014-05-22, Pittsburgh.
Dear friends of the Swiss-American Society of Pittsburgh,
It is with regret that I must share with you today the news of my resignation as Honorary Consul of Switzerland, effective April of this year.
This news is both happy and sad; happy for me as I have decided to return to Switzerland permanently after being fortunate enough to have spent eight wonderful years in Pittsburgh. And, sad for me, as I will no longer be able to join you and attend all the special events of the SAS. I will certainly miss the exchange of the participation of these events, but most of all, I will miss the friendships that were created with the position of Honorary Consul.
The Consulate of New York will inform you regarding the succession planning of the Honorary Consul position accordingly. Thank you for all the good times we spent together, and for all the memories that will always be special to me. I send to all of you my very best regards – uf wiederluege!
Sincerely,
Dominique E. Schinabeck
Richard Sink Wins Award for the Swiss Nationality Room
2013-12-31. SASP member Richard Sink’s Mountaineer Wood Industries was awarded an Honorable Mention in the 2013 Best of the Best competition, sponsored by Custom Woodworking Business. You can review the publication showcasing the winners of the 21st annual Custom Woodworking Business Design Portfolio Awards, featuring a photo of the Swiss Nationality Room on page 25, on the magazine’s web site at http://www.magcloud.com/browse/issue/680452.
Evelyn Ruffing Honored by the Westmoreland County Historical Society
2013-10-23, Greensburg. SASP member Evelyn Ruffing received the Arthur St. Clair Historic Preservation Award from the Westmoreland County Historical Society on October 23 at the Greensburg Country Club on Route 130 west of Greensburg. Evelyn is a founder of the Derry Area Historical Society, and led the restoration of the Simpson Voting House, which was the polling place for the Simpson precinct for more than 100 years. The voting house structure was restored and the building can now again be used as a voting house. Evelyn is a long-time member of the Swiss-American Society of Pittsburgh and member of the Swiss Nationality Room Committee, for which she provided key guidance on historical and architectural decisions.
Swiss Cultural Attractions Coming to Pittsburgh!
2013-10-01, Pittsburgh. As part of the Pittsburgh International Festival of Firsts (featuring the four-story-high Rubber Duck floating on the Allegheny River), the inventive Swiss directors duo Zimmermann & de Perrot will be staging Hans was Heiri at the Byham Theater at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, October 18, and at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 19. Zimmermann & de Perrot have crafted an original and mischievous marriage of theater, circus and dance. Poets as well as magicians, their choreography, music and set design overflows with cunning depth and humor. In Hans was Heiri, the stage design revolves on a horizontal axis, forcing the performers into the most unlikely positions.
Tickets are available at the Box Office at Theater Square, online at TrustArts.org/First, or by calling 412-456-6666. Also, the Ballet du Grand Theatre de Geneve will be performing at 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 8, 2014, at the Byham Theater. Directed by Philippe Cohen, the Geneve Ballet is known around the world for its exquisite dancers and exciting artistic collaborations. Tickets are available at TrustArts.org/dance or by calling 412-456-1390.
Conrad Ostertag Honored by the Alliance of Germanic Societies of Pittsburgh
2013-09-14, Pittsburgh. Conrad Ostertag was honored by the Alliance of Germanic Societies of Pittsburgh at a recognition luncheon at the Teutonia Männerchor on September 14, 2013. As part of this recognition, Koni was mentioned in a Pittsburgh City Council proclamation declaring the date to be “German Heritage Parade Day” in the City of Pittsburgh. The proclamation includes the following: “Whereas, honoree Conrad Ostertag, whose father emigrated from Basel, Switzerland in the early 1920s, has served as the President of the Swiss-American Society of Pittsburgh, and is currently the President of the Swiss Singers, and Vice President of the Alliance of Germanic Societies, where he plays an important role as Parade Coordinator.” We congratulate Koni on this well-deserved honor.
Swiss-American Society of Pittsburgh 