NEWS AND VIEWS: A secret of the prairie: St. Vladimir's College in Manitoba (08/06/00)

NEWS AND VIEWS

A secret of the prairie: St. Vladimir's College in Manitoba

by Steven Rudyk

ROBLIN, Manitoba - We had arrived the night before and various secrets were revealed to us very quickly. The first was, that here in western Manitoba, a concert scheduled for 8 p.m., begins at 8 p.m. Not 8:05 p.m. (when we arrived), but at the scheduled hour. For us New Yorkers, it was an embarrassing surprise that the audience was in place, the lights were dimmed, and the program began on time. We had already missed the choir's rendition of "O, Canada," and "Otche Nash" (Our Father).

We went to this concert expecting a good program. As the second secret, a very talented and well-trained young men's choir, was revealed to us, we looked around and shook our heads in disbelief. This exceptional three-voice choir, under the direction of Paul Bakan, was not a professional choir. These were high school boys. The opening of the concert consisted of Ukrainian religious hymns, followed later in the program by various Ukrainian folk songs.

Our joy and amazement continued when we later found out that these young men, all of Ukrainian descent, ranged from first through fifth generation, born in Canada. These were not your garden variety New York or Toronto area Ukrainian high schoolers weaned on a steady diet of Ukrainian school on Saturday, Plast or SUM summer camps, Ukrainian music and dance classes, and, of course, Soyuzivka.

Many of these young men had learned all their Ukrainian in this wonderful prairie secret - St. Vladimir's College in Roblin, Manitoba. The former Redemptorist Seminary is now a Ukrainian Catholic boarding school for boys in grades 9, 10, 11 and 12.

I believe we "discovered" it before the masses "back East" in the United States and Canada did. This school rivals many tony and pricey prep schools available for high schoolers throughout North America. And it's Ukrainian to boot!

Its geographic location, the physical plant, the experienced and dedicated faculty, the stunning student-to-faculty ratio and the rich curriculum provide the winning learning environment we wanted for our son. And that excludes the dizzying smorgasbord of extracurricular activities that includes basketball, volleyball, golf, hockey (this is Canada, after all), fishing (ice fishing included), tae-kwan do, computers, photography and juggling - to name just a few. (And speaking of juggling, the concert I wrote about featured another first for me: a "sharavary"-clad juggler.)

A student at St. Vladimir's wastes no time commuting. The dormitories are "down the hall" from the classrooms, the labs, the library, the dining room, the gym, the weight room, the dark room, the TV room (yes, even that), the headmaster's office, the chapel, the laundry room, the music room, etc. The old axiom, "an idle mind is the devil's workshop," is strictly non-applicable at St. Vlad's. No idle minds here, as there is no idle time. A well-planned and balanced seven days per week program takes care of that.

And, as my anxious son found out, there is a reasonable amount of time set aside for the all important boob tube and boom box, a staple of today's high schoolers. That comes with several big ifs: If ... you've done all your assigned classroom work; If ... you've completed all your assigned housekeeping chores; and finally, if ... you actually want to do the couch potato "thing" with everything else going on around you.

Back to that concert we attended. This was the program the students put on in several cities throughout Canada. (The school has its own genuine Greyhound-type bus, emblazoned with the school name and logo on the side. It's a safe and convenient way to get around for long or short trips. Two licensed drivers are available on the staff.) Ukrainian folk dancing was intertwined throughout the program, and included the traditional "Pryvit," and ended with a fiery Hopak.

We especially enjoyed hearing Mr. Bakan sing "Vziav by ya Banduru," accompanied by a trio of student "bandurysty," plus a sopilka (flute) player. A breath-taking rendition! And when was the last time you heard tsymbaly at a Ukrainian concert ... played by high schoolers? And they were quite impressive on the trembita as well. We stood for the Ukrainian national anthem sadly aware that this fine evening of entertainment was over.

Later that evening we spoke with George Iwasechko, headmaster at St. Vlad's, and some of the parents of these fine students. They all beamed with pride and the satisfaction of a job well done - well done by the faculty and staff, well done by the students. This program, coupled with the following day's graduation and awards ceremonies, were the culmination of a productive year for all involved.

Sharing in the joy was the special guest of honor and the patron of St. Vladimir's College, Metropolitan Michael Bzdel of Winnipeg, archbishop of Ukrainian Catholics in Canada. We enjoyed an enthusiastic description of his days as a student at St. Vlad's, as well as his many years on the faculty and administration.

The metropolitan is committed to making this school a successful Ukrainian Catholic school for young men for many years to come. Some of the members of the school's board of directors shared with us their ambitious plans for its continued growth and success into the future, while maintaining those characteristics that make this school so unique.

Graduation ceremonies began the next morning with a divine liturgy during which Metropolitan Bzdel was the main celebrant. The excellent choir we enjoyed the previous night sang the responses and contributed to the richness of the service. The liturgy concluded with the distribution of diplomas to the graduates.

A banquet immediately followed. After opening ceremonies and prayer, we enjoyed a great buffet luncheon prepared by the school's own staff. (These students certainly dine very well.) We listened and applauded an array of awards presented for excellence in various subjects and activities. Winners and parents shared these happy moments.

But the most memorable part of this banquet was the traditional speeches by top graduates on behalf of their class. All were well-written, and meaningful. I will always remember the moving speech by graduate Roman Hrycyna of Toronto. The speech was rich in emotion rarely seen or heard in such a young man. All present shared tears of joy.

With the conclusion of the banquet, the graduates were free to leave for home, yet, each one of them chose to spend one more final night at St. Vlad's with their friends for life.

I'm happy that we chose St. Vladimir's for my son. This school will give him that extra advantage so necessary to succeed in the 21st century. You may wish to consider this fine school for your son as well.

More information can be obtained at the school's website, [Editor's note: The website address cited for St. Vladimir's College is no longer valid for the school], by phoning (204) 937-2173 or faxing (204) 937-8265. As they say in those late night infomercials, act quickly, as only a limited number of openings are still available for the 2000-2001 school year.

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