THE UKRAINIAN NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FORUM

A family reunion at Soyuzivka: what could be simpler?

by Osyp Hawryluk

No planning! No grocery shopping! No frantic cleaning! No messy cooking! No dirty dishes! No need for extra bathroom towels! No extra laundry after the guests leave! All you do is visit with each other, and not worry about anything!

What is that?

A family reunion at Soyuzivka!

That's exactly what I did New Year's Eve weekend 2005!

Thirteen extended family members met to welcome in the New Year with some dancing, and to celebrate the January 5 birthdays of twins Diana (Hawryluk) Burns and Ulana (Hawryluk) Pedersen. Family came in from Johannesburg, South Africa; Albany and Buffalo N.Y.; Parma, Ohio; and Matawan and Teaneck N.J.

We also did some hiking in the snow, singing in the Main House, and shopping at the beautifully stocked gift shop with Sonia Semanyszyn at the counter.

By the end of the reunion, nobody was complaining about how much work it had been, and about all the cleaning they would now have to do.

After all, Office Manager Olesia Guran had coordinated all the reservations (845-626-5641), Master Chef Andrij Sonevytsky had done all the food shopping and cooking, and General Manager Nestor Paslawsky's staff had done all the cleaning. At the end, we just packed our bags and left.

Sure, you can have a family reunion at any American venue. But for me, a Ukrainian American, nothing beats family time at the Soyuzivka estate of the Ukrainian National Association.

My advice: book your reservations today.

Young UNA'ers

• Brian C. Hawrylciw, son of Mark and Ellen Hawrylciw of Foxboro, Mass., is a new member of UNA Branch 253. He was enrolled by his grandparents Joseph and Carolyn Hawrylciw.
  
  
• Zachary T. Hawrylciw, son of Sean and Jennifer Hawrylciw of Amesbury, Mass., is a new member of UNA Branch 253. He was enrolled by his grandmother Sally A. Hawrylciw.

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, January 29, 2006, No. 5, Vol. LXXIV

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