The story of Liberty Press actually begins in Hungary in 1955 when Frank Benedek, of Liberty Press, was born.  The country of Hungary suffered greatly both during World War II and afterward when it came under the control of the Communist Soviet Union.  Because of the horrible oppression, Frank’s father, among many other Hungarians at the time, decided to flee from their homeland in 1956 to the freedom of bordering European countries.  Along with his young wife and their infant, they attempted to cross the guarded border.  Twice they were caught; once it resulted in imprisonment for the senior Benedek.  Their third effort was successful, but only after baby Frank was given sleeping medication to keep him from crying and alerting the enemy AND Frank’s mother fell into a pit covered with sticks and leaves, breaking her leg.  So, Frank’s father carried him in one arm and braced his mother with his other arm as they crossed over to Austria.  Next, they lived in Italy for 5 years before immigrating to the United States. How ironic that this family’s struggle for freedom ultimately resulted in a printing business called “Liberty” Press!

 

Frank Benedek and his wife Nancy started their printing business as “Impressive Impressions” in 1984 from their home in Loch Sheldrake. They ran it for 10 years as their children grew up. Their kids often helped out: their daughter collated and stapled, their son learned how to run a press.

 

When Liberty Press (LP), located in Liberty, NY, went up for sale in 1995, the Benedeks saw it as a business opportunity. They wanted to buy LP and merge it with Impressive Impressions.  To do so meant they needed to secure the funds to not only purchase the print shop but also the building that housed it. The result was 3 mortgages!  Because printing was quite profitable at that time, they were able to manage the huge financial responsibility while maintaining a comfortable working capital to keep the enterprise going.