UCCA executive board holds first meeting since congress (12/10/00)

UCCA executive board holds first meeting since congress

Ukrainian National Information Service

WASHINGTON - The newly elected president of the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America, Michael Sawkiw Jr., called to order the first UCCA executive board meeting since the XVIIIth Congress of Ukrainians in America. The meeting was held on Saturday, November 18, at the UCCA building in New York City.

The UCCA president welcomed all the members of the executive board, particularly its newest members, and called upon everyone to work in tandem to help promote the activities of the Ukrainian American community.

One of the principal topics on the agenda at the executive board meeting was the nomination of members to the UCCA's standing committees. In total, 12 standing committees were proposed: Organizational, Student/Youth, Membership, Council on Aid to Ukrainians, External Affairs, Grant-Writing, Financial, By-Laws, Million Dollar Fund, Educational, Legal Advisory, and Fourth Wave (a reference to the newest immigrants from Ukraine). The members of the various committees represent different regions of the country and various age brackets; many community members from the newest Ukrainian immigration are involved. The nominations were to be proposed, discussed, and ratified at the UCCA's National Council meeting in December.

A major topic of discussion at the board meeting was unity within the Ukrainian American community. The UCCA executive board expressed its desire for unification and pledged to rededicate its efforts to bring together the community after 20 years of disunity.

Toward that end, the UCCA executive board established a Committee for Reunification, headed by Prof. Taras Hunczak. The five-member committee is to conduct talks with various organizations, as well as with the Ukrainian American Coordinating Council (UACC).

Asked about the Reunification Committee's objective, UCCA President Sawkiw stated: "Ukrainian American organizations must recognize that a unified, strong and active community benefits everyone. Let us put aside our differences from the past 20 years and open a new chapter for the Ukrainian community at the dawn of the 21st century."

The recent commentary in The Washington Post proposing the removal of the Taras Shevchenko monument sparked a lot of interest during the meeting. As the UCCA was one of the sponsoring organizations in the early 1960s that established the Shevchenko Monument Committee, executive board members were concerned about the plight of the monument. Mr. Sawkiw reminded the board members that the author of the article was not an editor or staffer of The Washington Post. In reaction to the article, the UCCA sent an official response to the newspaper, while its Washington office, the Ukrainian National Information Service (UNIS), issued an "Action Item" to the community with a sample letter to the editor.

Before ending the meeting, the UCCA president asked Ukrainian World Congress President Askold Lozynskyj to provide a brief overview of the world premiere of the film "Undefeated," co-produced by Oles Studios, the Dovzhenko National Film Studio, Ukraine's Ministry of Culture and the UCCA. Mr. Lozynskyj represented the UCCA during the film's debut in Kyiv on November 11. Nearly two hours long, the action film depicts the heroic life of Gen. Roman Shukhevych - Taras Chuprynka, commander of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA).

In attendance at the film premiere were its director, Oles Yanchuk, as well as several prominent Ukrainian government officials, including Prime Minister Viktor Yuschenko and Minister of Culture Bohdan Stupka, as well as many foreign diplomats. "Undefeated" will debut in other Ukrainian cities and will premiere in the United States in 2001.

| Home Page |