Ferenc Sasváry (known as Francis Sasvary in American sources; date of birth unknown – Johnstown, Pennsylvania, 1947) is a Hungarian Roman Catholic priest. For more than three decades, he led the Hungarian Catholic community in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, and was the longest-serving pastor in the history of St. Imre Parish. He was ordained a priest in 1911 and then emigrated to the United States in 1913, where he presumably served initially in the Hungarian Catholic community in Newark, New Jersey. However, the duration of this ministry is not confirmed with complete certainty by currently available American sources.
In 1915, he was appointed head of the St. Emerich Parish in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, which had been founded in 1905 for the Hungarian Catholic faithful there. The parish was originally named after St. László, but was renamed St. Emerich upon the consecration of the new church built in 1913. From that time on, Ferenc Sasváry led the parish until his death in 1947. According to the parish’s official history, he was its longest-serving pastor.
During his pastoral ministry, the Hungarian community underwent significant development. It was also during his tenure that the church had to be rebuilt following the devastating 1936 Johnstown flood. His work extended not only to organizing liturgical life but also to preserving Hungarian identity and community life among Hungarian immigrants living in the mining region.
It is known from the history of the Hungarian Catholic community in Portage that he also served as the first pastor of the St. John the Baptist parish, which was established in 1915, presumably commuting from nearby Johnstown. This suggests that he was also involved in providing pastoral care to several other Hungarian communities in the area.
He died while in office in 1947. His successor was György Talabér, also of Hungarian descent, who led the parish from 1947 to 1972.