Every October the Ambassadors from the Czech and Slovak Republics come to Wilson House to honor the 28th President. A unified Czechoslovakia became independent in October 1918 as one of the successor states to the Austro-Hungarian Empire in large part with the help of Woodrow Wilson. Wilson had met the future Czech President, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, in the United States and had been won over to the idea of self-determination for the Czechs and Slovaks. When a group of Czechoslovak POWs in Russia decided in 1918 to form a free Czechoslovakian Legion to fight with the allies and win independence, Wilson backed their efforts and the United States officially supported the idea of a Czechoslovak Republic independent of Austria and Hungary. Wilson continued supporting an independent Czechoslovakia at the Paris Peace Conference in 1918-1919, and his friend Masaryk became the first President of the new nation.

This year the Czech Ambassador, His Excellency Martin Palouš, gave a brief address on the importance of Wilson’s vision for a new, peaceful world. He then presented a bouquet of flowers to the Wilson House, placing them before Wilson’s portrait in the Library. Unfortunately a last minute event caused the Slovak Ambassador, His Excellency Rastislav Kacer, to miss this year’s ceremony. The event is held each October and is hosted by the Wilson House and the Wilsonian Club - a group of Czech and Slovak Americans who have gathered at Wilson House since 1978.