Orthodox parish in San Diego area to celebrate 40th anniversary (10/13/02)

Orthodox parish in San Diego area to celebrate 40th anniversary

by Alexander Skop and Alex Nesterenko

SAN DIEGO - St. Mary Protectress Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Spring Valley, Calif., this year celebrates the 40th anniversary of its founding here in the San Diego area.

Church life in the area is closely tied to the organizations developed by the first Ukrainian settlers in California, especially those in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

The number of Ukrainians in San Diego grew at the end of World War II, particularly with the arrival of immigrants and refugees who had come from the displaced persons camps in Germany and Austria.

In the late 1950s a Ukrainian American Association was formed, which was later accepted into the international organization House of Pacific Relations in Balboa Park as the House of Ukraine.

On June 20, 1961, a group of nine individuals met to discuss how to form a Ukrainian Orthodox parish in San Diego and passed a resolution to name the parish St. Mary Protectress Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The Rev. Oleksiy Limonchenko traveled once a month from Los Angeles to conduct services.

In the spring of 1973 San Diego greeted the newly ordained Bishop Constantine for the first time.

Every year St. Mary's Ukrainian Orthodox Church celebrated its Saint's Day with banquets and special programs. Church picnics were also held regularly in Balboa Park.

In the spring of 1979 a commercial building on University Avenue was purchased. The large property needed much renovation, and church members did the majority of reconstruction. St. Mary's Parish celebrated Christmas and New Year's Day 1980 in its own building that was blessed by the Rev. Lev Porandowsky. Church services were held every two weeks.

In the spring of 1987 the Orthodox and Catholic parishes of San Diego formed a joint Jubilee Committee to Mark the 1,000th anniversary of Christianity in Rus'-Ukraine, which included pastors of both churches and the church councils. In conjunction with the national committee in Washington, billboards were placed in various parts of the city advertising the anniversary of Christianity in Ukraine.

The New York-based Ukrainian Museum's traveling exhibit "Lost Architecture of Kyiv" was exhibited at the University of San Diego. The celebration of the Saint's Day of St. Mary's Church on October 29, 1988, was simultaneously the celebration of the 1,000th anniversary of Christianity in Ukraine.

After a number of years, parish members sought to find a new location for the church. A new home was found in a former school and kindergarten on Campo Road in Spring Valley. The generosity of the members of the parish, funds accumulated throughout the years and the sale of the former parish building made it feasible to purchase the property and redesign the existing structures into a church and a church hall. The Building Committee took charge of the reconstruction. Every day, parish members came to do the necessary work.

Archbishop Constantine blessed the new church on October 14, 1990. Almost the entire Ukrainian Catholic congregation, along with their pastor, the Rev. Andrew Mykyta, was among the 200 participants of the festive banquet.

The joyous achievements of the church community in San Diego were being celebrated at the exact same time that Ukraine was experiencing dramatic developments in its national and spiritual rebirth.

August 2, 1998, became an unforgettable day in the life of the parish of St. Mary's, as Deacon Ihor Miroshchenko was ordained a priest of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in the U.S.A. by Archbishop Vsevolod. The consecration took place in St. Mary's Church with the participation of clergy from California, as well as faithful and church choirs from Los Angeles and San Diego.

In early 2001 the church council started discussing plans for the 40th anniversary of the founding of the parish and participation in the Sobor of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the U.S.A.

In March the parish was stunned by the news of Father Ihor's serious illness and in June he passed away at the age of 70. Archbishop Anthony officiated at the funeral service in Los Angeles, with almost the entire San Diego parish in attendance.

In August 2001 the parish heartily welcomed its new pastor, the Very Rev. Myron Mykhailiuk, and Dobrodiyka Halyna, who had come from South Bound Brook, N.J., to start a new chapter in the life of the local community.

On Sunday, October 20, the St. Mary Protectress Ukrainian Orthodox Church of will celebrate its 40th anniversary and feast day with the participation of Archbishop Vsevolod. Parish members will greet the archbishop at 9 a.m. followed by a hierarchal liturgy at 9:30 a.m. A celebratory banquet and cultural program will begin at 1:30 p.m. at the Red Lion Hanalei Hotel in Mission Valley.

For more information on the parish's 40th anniversary celebration, or for tickets to the banquet, readers may contact St. Mary Protectress Ukrainian Orthodox Church, (619) 464-1830, or e-mail [email protected].

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