Irena Schusterová (12 November 1937 – 24 May 2008) was a Slovak

dietician A dietitian, medical dietitian, or dietician is an expert in identifying and treating disease-related malnutrition and in conducting medical nutrition therapy, for example designing an enteral tube feeding regimen or mitigating the effects of ...

who served as

First Lady of Slovakia First lady of slovakia or first gentleman of Slovakia ( in Slovak language, Slovak) is the title attributed to the wife or husband of the president of Slovakia. The country's current first gentleman is Juraj Rizman, partner of President Zuzana Č ...

from 1999 until 2004 during the

presidency A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified b ...

of her husband,

Rudolf Schuster Rudolf Schuster (born 4 January 1934) is a Slovak politician, who served as the second president of Slovakia from 1999 to 2004. He was elected on 29 May 1999 and inaugurated on 15 June. In the presidential elections of April 2004, in which he so ...

Biography

Schusterová was born Irena Trojáková on 12 November 1937 in Bobrov,

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

, to a

peasant A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasan ...

family. She graduated at the Secondary Medical School (''Strednej zdravotnej škole'') in

Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all List of cities and towns on the river Danube, cities on the river Danube. ...

. Schusterová then worked as a

and dietary nurse for 33 years. While studying in Bratislava, Irena Schusterová met her future husband,

, who was working as a scientist at the

Slovak Academy of Sciences The Slovak Academy of Sciences (, or SAV) is the main scientific and research institution in Slovakia fostering basic and strategic basic research. It was founded in 1942, closed after World War II, and then reestablished in 1953. Its primary ...

. The couple married in 1961. In 1962, they moved to the city of

Košice Košice is the largest city in eastern Slovakia. It is situated on the river Hornád at the eastern reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains, near the border with Hungary. With a population of approximately 230,000, Košice is the second-largest cit ...

in 1962, where they resided for much of their lives. Schusterová accompanied her husband throughout his political career. For example, while Schuster served as the last Ambassador of Czechoslovakia to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

from 1990 until 1992, Schusterová handled the diplomatic social duties expected of an ambassador's spouse. Schusterová served as the second First Lady of Slovakia from 1999 until 2004 during her husband's presidency. During her tenure as first lady, she established the Irena Schusterová Foundation to assist children suffering from

congenital heart defects A congenital heart defect (CHD), also known as a congenital heart anomaly, congenital cardiovascular malformation, and congenital heart disease, is a defect in the structure of the heart or great vessels that is present at birth. A congenital h ...

. Her foundation raised more than 20 million korunas to fund a new pediatric heart clinic in Bratislava. Irena Schusterová was admitted to the hospital on Thursday 22 May 2008, after feeling ill. She had been in relatively good health at the time. Two days later, Schusterová died from a sudden heart attack while in hospital at the East Slovak Institute of Cardiovascular and Vascular Disease in

on 24 May 2008. She was 70 years old. Schusterová was survived by her husband of 47 years, Rudolf Schuster, and their children, Ingrid, a heart disease specialist, and Peter. The

funeral mass A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect the ...

for Schusterová, a lifelong devout

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, was held on 29 May 2008 at

St Elisabeth Cathedral The Cathedral of St. Elizabeth (, ; ), also called Saint Elizabeth Cathedral, is a Gothic architecture, Gothic cathedral in Košice, Slovakia. It is the largest church (building), church in Slovakia and one of the easternmost Gothic cathedrals ...

in Košice. She was buried in a family tomb in Rozália cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schusterova, Irena 1937 births 2008 deaths People from Námestovo District Slovak Roman Catholics First ladies of Slovakia Dietitians 20th-century Slovak politicians 20th-century Slovak women politicians 21st-century Slovak politicians 21st-century Slovak women politicians Slovak health professionals