American Freedom

Editor’s note: This is the final installment of a series about a Canadian County family’s Czech heritage.

Canadian County residents Paul Francel and his wife Lisa Gigstad Francel, several of their adult children and one of their grandchildren wore more than-100-year-old-family Czech kroje (folk dance clothing), and danced during Yukon’s recent Czech festivities.

A superior athlete, Francel’s father, Josef Francl, was a sprinter and hurdler known as “The Hope of Moravia.” But he was also a Czech nationalist hero, fighting for Czech freedom from tyranny. Targeted by the Nazis and the communists, and arrested numerous times, Josef Francl worked in league with top Czech nationalists against Hitler’s Nazi occupation, and then against Stalin’s communist occupation of Czechoslovakia.

Josef Francl proposed marriage to his sweetheart, Vlasta Matochova, and then pushed her out of a window as the communists burst into the room. The communists interrogated and beat him, and for some reason, one communist helped him escape from Czechoslovakia into Germany.

“Dad was a chemist and engineer, and he knew approximately seven languages,” Paul Francel said. “He ended up as a paid translator at the Nuremberg Trials.”

Recognizing Josef Francl as an important person whose life was in jeopardy, officials protected him, and shipped him to Naples where he was supposed to hide. He found a job as a Pompeii tour guide. He formed a basketball team, which won numerous competitions and championships.

An American general shipped Josef Francl to the U.S. He reunited with his fiancé when she greeted him at Ellis Island.

“As a boy, Dad took care of farm animals. So, he got a job working on a farm near Smith College where Mom was a student,” Paul Francel said.

In 1950, Matochova lured her fiancé to Cleveland, Ohio, where she surprised him with a full-blown wedding ceremony. A family relative, a monsignor in Cleveland, not only officiated, but also filled the church with parishioners.

One thing led to another, and Josef Francl landed at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he earned his Ph.D. in science in 1953. Somewhere in his story, he was asked to translate an important academic paper. As it turned out, Josef Francl had previously authored the paper in his Czech homeland.

In 1954, Vlasta and Josef Francl made Toledo, Ohio their home. In 1957, they received their U.S. citizenship, at which time they changed their surname to Francel.

Dr. Josef Francel had a 33-year career as a research chemist, and he developed more than 123 patents in his field of research and enjoyed numerous accolades. Born in 1924, he died at age 76 in 2001.

For many years, Lisa and Paul Francel brought Paul’s mother, Vlasta Francelova, from Toledo to Yukon’s annual Czech Festival. Lisa and Paul Francel’s son, Karl Francel, won the title of Yukon Czech Festival Prince, serving during 1999-2000. Their daughter, Elise Francel, won the title of Yukon Czech Festival Princess, serving during 2002-2003.

Born in 1923, Vlasta Francelova died at age 90 in 2013. She and her husband were Czech patriots and nationalists, who embraced America as U.S. citizens. Their seven children, including Dr. Paul Francel and his heirs, keep their Czech heritage alive. In so doing, they spotlight individual liberties and freedom.