TORONTO – The Holodomor National Awareness Tour (HNAT) together with the Ukrainian World Congress held a candle-lighting ceremony in remembrance of the innocent victims of the genocidal policy of the Stalin regime, known as the Holodomor. The ceremony took place at Chaminade College School in Toronto during the Holodomor Mobile Classroom’s visit to the school on the morning of September 21.
This candle-lighting event is part of a global initiative by the Ukrainian World Congress to commemorate the victims of the Holodomor and will culminate an 85-day journey across five continents on November 24, International Holodomor Memorial Day in Kyiv.
Ukraine’s Consul General in Toronto Andrii Veselovskyi.
The commemoration at Chaminade College School included prayers in memory of the millions of people who died during the Holodomor, an excerpt from a Holodomor survivor’s account and the lighting of a candle in memory of those killed during the Famine-Genocide of 1932-1933.
Tony Augello, principal of Chaminade College School, said. “It’s important to respect and honor the people who suffered and died during the Holodomor genocide and to take steps to prevent it from happening again. It’s up to our students to be responsible citizens and become discerning future leaders in our world today.”
Andrii Veselovskyi, consul general of Ukraine in Toronto, added “Understanding a horrific past will help build a rightful future.”
Principal Tony Augello and teacher Olga Kunyckyj.
Olga Kunyckyj, a teacher at the school who organized the school’s participation in the event, said: “I am very proud that Chaminade College High School has been a part of the international campaign during which a candle was lit in the remembrance of Holodomor victims. We are glad to have had this opportunity for our community to honor and respect victims of this genocide. Furthermore, this campaign gave an opportunity to our community to learn about social justice, human rights and value of human life, ensuring that such a tragedy does not repeat itself. Thank you to all the organizers and mostly our students, staff and administration in making this possible.”
Following the commemorative candle-lighting ceremony, the Holodomor National Awareness Tour conducted four one-hour interactive lessons for students of Chaminade College School about the Holodomor and its relevance to the world today aboard its Holodomor Mobile Classroom (HMC).
Readers may view a short video about what students experience on board the HMC by going to https://vimeo.com/202106595.