Joe Farkas

Joe Farkas was born in Satu Mare, Romania and was a locally renowned soccer player. He met Helen just before the war and they were engaged to be married. With the onset of WWII he was drafted into forced labor for the Hungarian army. During his time as a slave laborer Joe was lucky to be assigned a job as a cook in the kitchen, which meant he was always able to eat and could even provide a little extra to other prisoners who needed it. His parents, Louis and Channa, were deported and killed in Auschwitz. When Helen and Joe came to the United States, Joe and his brother Morris played professional soccer and started a shoe business in which Joe took great pride. By the time he retired, the family owned three shoe stores in the Bay Area. He was always helping those in need, and looked out for all his family. Joe passed away at age 92.