KERHONKSON, N.Y. – The annual Miss Soyuzivka contest, sponsored by the Ukrainian National Association, was held at Soyuzivka Heritage Center on Saturday, August 12.
Ukrainian-born Isabella White was crowned as the new Miss Soyuzivka for 2018. The daughter of Sherry and Morgan White of Mainesburg, Pa., she was adopted at the age of 13 from Odesa, Ukraine. Arriving in America, Isabella joined her new family of 10 siblings, five of whom are also adopted from Ukraine.
Miss Soyuzivka Isabella White (center) with first runner-up Natalia Muzyka (right) and second runner-up Andrea Wasylyk.
Miss White would like to be an international translator, translating Ukrainian and sign language. She enjoys reading and music, and is active in her new community by teaching in the Sunday School and tutoring.
The first runner-up is Natalia Muzyka of Kerhonkson, N.Y., daughter of Olha and Alex Muzyka. She attends Mount St. Mary’s College in Newburg, N.Y., where she is studying to be a nurse practitioner. Miss Muzyka is a member of the Syzokryli Ukrainian Dance Ensemble and an instructor at Anne Hebard School of Ballet in Kingston, N.Y.
The second runner-up is Andrea Wasylyk of Cottekill, N.Y., daughter of Marianne Hawryluk. Currently a senior at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., Miss Hawryluk is studying to be an optometrist. She is a recipient of the RPI Leadership Scholarship. Miss Hawryluk is a member of The Rusty Pipes, an a capella group from RPI, and the Ukrainian American Youth Association.
The judges for this year’s Miss Soyuzivka contest were Ukraine’s Consul General Igor Sybiga of New York; Dr. Tania Bazarko, a podiatrist in Westport, Conn.; and Roman Hirniak, former mayor of Randolph Township, N.J., and pedagogical adviser for the Ukrainian Educational Council.
Stefan Kaczaraj, president of the Ukrainian National Association and the Ukrainian National Foundation, had the honor of dancing with the newly crowned Miss Soyuzivka to the music of Tempo. He presented each of the young ladies with a check and an annual subscription to Svoboda or The Ukrainian Weekly.
Mark Lonkevych
Miss Soyuzivka 2018 Isabella White is flanked by Ukraine’s Consul General in New York Igor Sybiga (left) and Stefan Kaczaraj, president of both the Ukrainian National Association and the Ukrainian National Foundation.