The Svobodas of Chvaletice

Two publications included articles which included Frank Albert Svoboda.

In 1937, John Reichman, published “Czechoslovaks and the development of Chicagoland”.

“Frank A. Svoboda, Director and owner of the Kedzie Avenue Department Store was born in Prairie du Chien in the State of Wisconsin some odd fifty years ago.  As a young boy he was taken by his parents to a farm in Kansas, but 46 years ago left for Chicago where he began his business career in his uncle’s store and where he also met his life’s companion with whom he has been living in a happy marriage ever since, blessed by six children.  Mrs. Julia Svoboda was born in Chicago.  Their six children, Georgiann, Edward, Mildred, Violet, Ruth and John received high school education, and five, exception, John, the youngest one, are married.

Mr. Svoboda’s slogan is: “Service with a smile”, and that accounts for his remarkable business record.  His son, Edward Svoboda, has been assisting him as manager of several departments in their store, located on Kedzie Avenue and Cermak road.

Mr. Svoboda’s activities extend also to civic affairs.  In which he gained recognition and sympathies of all his compatriots and co-citizens.  He was appointed to the honorary office of a trustee of the House of Correction, is the President of the Building and Loan Association, Vojta Naprstek, a member of the Bohemian Workingmen’s Singing Society Lyra, Lodge Praha IOOF, Club Zobak, and McClaren Lake Club in Wisconsin where he spends every year a part of his summer vacation.

Mr. Svoboda’s father, Frank A. Svoboda, was born in Pisek where for long years he was engaged in the trade of a smith.  His mother, nee Catherine Pakorna, came to the United States from Kutna Hora in Bohemia.

Mr. Svoboda inherited in a great measure his father’s sterling qualities – honesty and straight dealing, so characteristic with the Czech smiths – and thanks to this mental disposition developed into one of our outstanding commercial leaders, acclaimed as such by the general public." (11)

In 1939, the Amerikan Kalendar descrbed Frank Svoboda:
…….” We can say that the business profession is in the blood of Svoboda's family. His uncle, John J. Svoboda, was engaged in the trade of cut goods in Czech California under his name and later under the name Grand Leader. P. Frank A. Svoboda has a sister, Kateřina nu Němečková, who also excelled in the general merchandise business. The appointed uncle gave Mr. Fr. A. Svoboda's basis for the success of his career. After all, in his Chicago department store, our compatriot was listed in the trade; there he trained in the profession and went through the school, brisking his way forward until he became chairman of the well-known Kedzie Avenue Store department store.

When Mr. Svoboda realized that it was impossible to be a man alone, he married Sl. Julia Novotná and from this happy marriage came the following children: Jiřinka Bartels, Eduard Svoboda, Milada Kasík, Violet Tuder, Ruth Janeček and John J. Svoboda. Although Mr. Svoboda is very busy with his business profession, he still finds moments that he devotes to the good of our regions, as evidenced by the fact that he is the director of the Czech Charitable Society, which performs so many beautiful philanthropic work among our compatriots. He is also the chairman of the Vojta Náprstek Auxiliary Association, he also belongs to the fraternal organization Odd Fellows, the Sokol Chicago unit and the Zobák Club. In these associations he finds refreshment after the daily worries, which he has as the chairman of a large plant, Kedzie Avenue Store. Music also brings him refreshment. - He likes to catch fish, he likes to go hunting, to the castle grounds and to travel. The fact that he is faithful to his origin proves his love for the Czech book. He has read many Czech books, and among his favorite authors are Tomáš Čapek, Sokol Tůma and Javořická.

He pays close attention to the homeland from which his parents came out, and he was very saddened on September 21 this year, when Czechoslovakia. the government was forced to give in to Hitler. "President- Liberator Masaryk is beyond a shadow of a doubt an immortal giant," he says of the Czechoslovak founder. of the Republic. "His place in history is fully secured, and rightly so. President Beneš follows in his footsteps. A difficult time has come for him, but he is acting manly, honestly, and swiftly, in full awareness of the immense responsibility that rests on him.

I give these two greats as an example to our people, born here. These certainly cannot be ashamed of their origin, because they came out of a nation that is most cultural……” (Article translated using Google Translate.  Good enough to provide a decent picture.) (12)