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A Life Dedicated to Slovak Interest

Joe Senko, a charter board member and treasurer of Friends of Slovakia, has been involved in Slovak affairs since childhood. Both his parents immigrated to the United States from Slovakia as young adults before 1913. They were married in a Slovak church in Pittsburgh in 1914. Joe is the youngest of seven children. He has a master's degree and is licensed as a Certified Public Accountant and as a Certified Financial Planner. He was an owner of an accounting firm for 29 years, and he has held offices in various civic, religious, charitable and professional organizations. Joe and his wife, Albina, who was born in Slovakia, have been married 52 years and are the parents of six children. The family still observes Slovak traditions, and in 1999 visited Slovakia to see and experience the country of their ancestry.

Because of the active role that Joe played in Slovak events in Pittsburgh, the Slovak Foreign Ministry appointed Joe the Slovak Honorary Consul for Pennsylvania in 1997. In that role, Joe has promoted Slovakia in many ways. He and Albina have entertained over 100 overnight guests from Slovakia at their home, and he has led eight tours to Slovakia which included approximately 250 visitors. He answers phone calls and e-mails seeking information regarding Slovak matters or seeking solutions to Slovak problems. In his capacity as Honorary Consul, he also attends approximately 30 to 40 ethnic social events each year. Since Metropolitan Pittsburgh has the highest population of Slovak-Americans of any city in the United States, Joe formed a non-profit organization (501- c-3), Western Pennsylvania Slovak Cultural Association in 1997. He has been the Executive Director since its inception. During the past 10 years, the Association has held over 70 cultural events such as Slovak language, cooking, and dance classes and Slovak film festivals.

Joe is most proud of his various shipments to Slovakia. In 2004, Joe sent 250 re-built computers, monitors and keyboards to Slovakia that were distributed to 44 schools in 12 different cities. In 2005, he sent 60,000 "Children's Highlights" magazines to 830 Slovak schools, reaching about 45,000 students and teachers. Within the next month, Joe will be sending a 20 foot shipping container to a nursing home near Bratislava. The container is filled with medical equipment valued at $10,000.

Joe has served as the National Chairman of Auditors of the First Catholic Slovak Union for twelve years, a fraternal benefit society headquartered in Independence, Ohio. He is also a member of five other Slovak fraternal societies and serves on numerous nonprofit boards.