Laszlo Szabo

“The important thing is to not stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing.” – Einstein.

Laszlo Szabo, known to us as “Apu” (Dad in Hungarian), passed away on August 25th.

Born on January 15, 1954 in Budapest, Hungary, he was the son of Laszlo and Ibolya (Nagy) Szabo.

Mr. Szabo is survived by his children, Laszlo Szabo and wife Tami Musumeci-Szabo, Tamas Szabo and wife Christine, Viki Buckley and husband Matthew, and Attila Szabo, grandchildren, Samantha Petrusch, Lukas Szabo and Sloane Buckley, and sister, Ibolya Nagyistok and husband Nandor.  He is also survived by Judith Szabo, his ex-wife and partner of many decades.

He won his decades long war against the IRS and other oppressive forms of government, proving that one part of death and taxes in life is not certain. He loved to tinker and had an engineer’s mind, always appreciating how things worked, and was an expert at fixing everything, with or without a service manual. He used those wits to support his family and to start several businesses. He was a perpetual optimist which also helped him through tough times, and he was always motivated by the potential of the future. He started from scratch numerous times in his life: several times in Hungary, then in Austria as a political refugee, then several times more after arriving in America in 1987 at the age of 33, with three kids and five pieces of luggage. He learned to speak English by being taught English from a German teacher who translated German to English. He acclimated to any area and to any culture quickly because of his immediate and genuine interest in people. He was persistently curious, made fast-friends with everyone, and always had a seat and a plate of food for unannounced guests.

The family will receive friends from 1 to 4pm, on Saturday, September 3, 2016, at the Keeney & Basford Funeral Home, 106 E. Church Street, Frederick, MD 21701.  Inurnment will be private.