COMMUNITY CHRONICLE (12/02/01)

COMMUNITY CHRONICLE

Chervona Kalyna members welcome Cardinal Husar

by Oksana Kuzyszyn

GLEN SPEY, N.J. - September 10, was an unforgettable day for members of the Chervona Kalyna Plast fraternity and their families. "Otaman" Ihor Dekajlo and his wife, Luba, invited members of the Kalyna family and close neighbors to their summer home to spend the day with a distinguished and revered guest, Cardinal and Archbishop Mayor Lubomyr Husar, leader of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church.

Invited guests impatiently awaited the arrival of Cardinal Husar, a longtime fellow member of Chervona Kalyna. Though many years have passed since their days as young members of Plast, Cardinal Husar never lost touch with other members of the Plast fraternity. Over the years, during his numerous trips to the United States, he always found time to meet with fellow "Kalyniaky," even if only for a short while, and he has remained a member of the group to this day.

As Cardinal Husar arrived he was greeted with loud applause; the atmosphere was very friendly and warm, largely due to the hosts' hospitality and hard work in preparing the special event.

Everyone reminisced about old times and exchanged pleasant memories of the past. The guests had a chance to meet with Cardinal Husar informally, and to share in their joy that the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church had finally received worldwide recognition. Present at the gathering was Rev. Lev Goldade, also a member of Chervona Kalyna, who had just arrived from Rome.

Boston events celebrate Ukraine's independence

BOSTON - Greater Boston's Ukrainian community celebrated Ukraine's 10th anniversary of independence with a series of three very successful events, starting with a flag-raising ceremony on Ukrainian Independence Day at Boston's City Hall, followed by a picnic for all, and culminating in a September gala banquet and dance.

These events not only celebrated Ukraine's independence, but raised funds for several humanitarian programs that directly benefit those in need in Ukraine. At a presentation ceremony on October 14, a total of $6,000 was presented to five charitable organizations: the Ukrainian National Women's League of America Scholarship Fund, Ukrainian Orphan Aid Society of Boston, Emergency Medical Aid to Ukraine (the medical mission of the Ukrainian American Youth Association-SUM), the Father John Danylevich Foundation and the Children of Chornobyl Relief Fund.

These events were sponsored by a cooperative committee of 13 local Ukrainian organizations. Led by the Ukrainian American Heritage Foundation and the Boston Branch of the Ukrainian Fraternal Federal Credit Union, cooperating member-organizations represented area churches and youth organizations, as well as other Ukrainian civic, educational and service organizations. With such broad-based community support, these celebrations were well-attended and drew from a wide geographic area from around New England.

The honorary chairman of the organizing committee, Joseph Charyna, opened the banquet and welcomed the dignitaries present, including Ukraine's ambassador to the United States, Kostyantyn Gryshchenko, the evening's keynote speaker, as well as former Minister of Defense of Ukraine Kostyantyn Morozov, with their spouses.

The commemorative program book highlighted the depth of local commitment to this celebration with published proclamations from Massachusetts Gov. Jane Swift, Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, as well as greetings from members of both the Massachusetts Senate and the U.S. Congress.

The book was also instrumental in raising additional funds for the humanitarian efforts in Ukraine through a variety of advertisements, greetings and list of donors. The committee thanked all supporters of its effort to provide assistance to those most in need in Ukraine.

Yonkers UNWLA slates bazaar to support its charitable activities

by Olga Rudyk

YONKERS, N.Y. - The members of Ukrainian National Women's League of America (Soyuz Ukrainok) Branch 30 are at work again.

This year's Christmas Bazaar is scheduled for December 9, from 8 a.m. to noon in the church hall of St. Michael's Ukrainian Catholic Church, 21 Shonnard Place, Yonkers, N.Y. It will feature artists such as Bohdan Tytla, Petro Holowatyj, Marta Iwanycka, Slava Gerulak, Roman Demko, Natalka Kormeliuk and Daria Hanushevsky. A great opportunity to purchase paintings, photographs of Ukraine, ceramics and jewelry. There will also be Christmas cards, baked goods and hand-made crafts available for sale. A special attraction will be a raffle for a Bohdan Tytla painting donated by the artist.

Branch 30 is only a small part of the UNWLA; it is also a relatively new addition to the St. Michael the Archangel Parish family in Yonkers, N.Y.

One of the major contributions of Branch 30 to St. Michael's parish has been maintaining a Ukrainian preschool, which was established in 1983. The preschool is for Ukrainian children age 3-4 who come together on Saturday mornings.

Under the supervision of a Ukrainian teacher, they listen to a story hour, sing songs and play games in a Ukrainian environment. Here they are able to hear and practice the language of their forefathers.

A milestone undertaking and accomplishment of Branch 30 was the production of a children's audiocassette titled "Approach with Faith," recorded both in English and Ukrainian. The tape contains the Our Father, the Hail Mary, the Ten Commandments and various songs and hymns, and is an excellent aid in helping young children to learn their prayers especially in preparation for Holy Communion.

In pursuing the goal of preserving the Ukrainian culture, Branch 30 has sponsored various educational activities which included a kolach-making course, a mini cake decorating course, the art of decorating a paska, the making of a korovai (Ukrainian wedding bread), a course in rendering traditional Ukrainian embroidered shirts, and courses in making gerdany (traditional Ukrainian beaded necklaces).

In addition to regular monthly bake sales held in the church hall after Sunday services, from time to time Branch 30 has sponsored cultural exhibits. In 1988 a showing of traditional Ukrainian religious vestments organized by Branch 30 took place at the College of New Rochelle. This was followed by an exhibit of authentic Ukrainian embroidery from various regions of Ukraine by Myroslava Stachiw of New Jersey, and several subsequent exhibits and sales of Byzantine icons by Ivan Mitzyk, Halyna Tytla, Antoine Solounias and the Makarenko Studios.

Since UNWLA is a non-profit organization, the proceeds from its fund-raising activities are directed to the support of two seminarians in Rome, a "babusia" (elderly woman) in Ukraine, The Ukrainian Museum and the Children of Chornobyl Relief Fund.

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