$150.00 - Luxembourg American Heritage Information Center

The third Section member to hold the Grand Presidency is the incumbent, Stephen N.
Heinz. Steve was born on January 17, 1936, the oldest son of the late Steve Heinz and Anna
Kayser Heinz, both of whom emigrated from Luxembourg. The elder Heinz was a stalwart
member of Section 8 holding the post of Trustee from 1945-55. Steve, Jr. became a member in
1952. Upon the death of his father in 1955, Steve took over the family greenhouse business,
located in Park Ridge, Illinois.
In February, 1957, he married Doris Marie Votava, the daughter of Section 8 member, Ed
Votava. He and Doris have three children, Stephen E., Michael and Patricia and live in Lake
Forest, Illinois. Stephen E. is currently a member of Section 8.
Steve was elected the fourteenth Grand President of the L.B.A. at the 45th Bi-Annual
Convention held on May 2, 1965. In 1972, he was appointed Vice-Consul of Luxembourg in
Chicago and was elevated to Consul in 1978. He and his brother, John, also a member of Section
8, are in the land development and leasing business in Park Ridge.
The preceding three men from Section 8 were elected to the L.B. A.'s highest office. But their
achievement does not end the story of Section 8's contributions to the L.B.A. A review of the
Golden Jubilee Program Book, issued in 1952, depicts the efforts of many other men, among
them Charles K. Schwind.
Charles K. Schwind was born February 6,
1886 in Pratz, Luxembourg. In 1905 he immigrated
to America and settled in Evanston. His
occupation was that of a gardener and he found
work with the Luxembourg greenhousemen of
Evanston. In 1907, he married and eventually
raised six children. In 1910, he joined Section 8.
In 1933, at the Chicago World's Fair, Charles
Schwind was instrumental in organizing the
Luxembourg Day parade. Here is what Fred
Gilson wrote about Charles Schwind in the 1952
Golden Jubilee Book:
Charles K. Schwind
May I say right now for posterity
that I do not retract one iota of all
the comments and facts I have written
about Charlie Schwind. If anyone
can prove to me that Charlie
was not what I pictured him to be,
then we did not know Charlie. He
had missed something in his life. To
have Charlie as a friend was a special
privilege, and like good wine,
his friendship improved with age.
And speaking of friends, I believe
Charlie Schwind had more friends than any other member in the Luxembourg Brotherhood
of America.
As president of Section No. 8 for fifteen or more years, Charlie Schwind had set a
record that is hard to beat. He may be beat in length of service by some presidents of
other Sections, but he can not be beat in accomplishments achieved for the benefit of his
Section and for the benefit of the members of the Section.
Charlie Schwind was not only active in his Section alone; he was at all times active in
all Luxembourg undertakings, be they fraternal, social, educational, charitable, religious
or otherwise. Charlie always rendered his services in an unstinted manner. I could
name at least twenty-five various projects that have been sponsored by the Luxembourg
colony in the past 15 years, and you will find Charlie Schwind's name on each list
of promoters.
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