Quite
by accident, Peter became aware of a military camp near Rome called Rimini.
He happened upon the camp after talking pilot Joe Romanow into letting
him come on a flight to Rome. He and Joe were of the same stature, and
this way Peter managed to wear one of Joe’s uniforms, pretending to be
an Air Force navigator. What Peter discovered at Rimini was a camp of about
9000 Ukrainian soldiers from the 1st Ukrainian Division of the
Ukrainian National Army. The soldiers, who fought with Germany against
the Russians, were being held there as prisoners of war after being badly
defeated by the Soviet army at Brody, Ukraine in 1944. Peter saw the need
to help these people avoid an uncertain fate at the hands of the Soviets.
Dr Smylski gained the support of the British, and after several months
these POWs were taken to England as free citizens. Most then moved to North
America. Dr Smylski and fellow Ukrainians from Canada continued to push
to allow Ukrainians in DP camps all across Germany to emigrate to the West,
and many did, due in part to these efforts.
After
returning from the war, Dr Smylski completed post-graduate studies in Oral
Surgery and Anaesthesia and opened his own practice. In the mid-fifties
he was asked to lecture at the Faculty of Dentistry at the University of
Toronto. Then in 1964, he accepted the Chairmanship of the Department of
Dental Oral Surgery which he would hold for 12 years. The significance
of this term is that he was so well respected and successful, that he served
longer than the two-term, ten-year maximum.
While
working at the University of Toronto, Dr Smylski realised that the Toronto
Ukrainian community needed a residence near the campus. The idea had been
floating around for some time, but Dr Smylski decided to put it in motion.
Heading up a relatively young board, his efforts were rewarded with the
eventual establishment of the St Vladimir Institute. As Dr Smylski put
it: “young people either do or don’t, and this group did.” Quite unique
at the time, the Institute stood out as a non-denominational Ukrainian
student residence. Today’s Institude is more than just a residence, housing
various organisations’ offices, a resource centre, space for meetings,
and art displays.
Besides
putting smiles on the faces of Ukrainian students attending the University
of Toronto, Dr Smylski’s talent as an Oral Surgeon had many people, with
oral deformities they though irrepairable, also smiling – something they
were physically incapable of doing before his surgery. The Toronto Star
and Toronto Sun referred to him as a “Canadian pioneer” in developing surgery
which allowed his patients to “chew properly, close their mouths,smile
as never before, and most importantly to some, stop being called freaks.”
Ever
humble, Dr Smylski would refer to his advanced techniques as “just basic
carpentry.” His patients, however, understood the vital importance of his
work. As one of his patients once said, “I had become extremely self-conscious
about my appearance…now every time I smile I bless (Peter Smylski) who
changed my life.”
After
retiring from dentistry, Dr Smylski remained a participant in the Ukrainian
community. He always set an example with his enthusiasm and readiness to
realise cultural projects. The release of the documentary Harvest of
Despair was endebted to his exemplary fortitude and he was also a key
consultant on the upcoming film –.
From
his rural roots as a farm boy in Keld, Ontario, to champion of Ukrainian
causes, to trailblazer in the field of Oral Surgery, Peter Smylski applied
his father’s advice of “Don’t sleep too long, and don’t drink” and served
as an example to us all of what great community leadership one can achieve
when applying actions to ideas. Dr Peter Smylski lived a full and happy
life and entered the Kingdom of Heaven on October 1, 2002.
Besides
Doris, his wife of 60 years, he is survived by sons, Thomas and Peter,
daughters Doris-Ann Masnyk, and Nadia Lawrence, and precious granchildren
Anton and Tereza.
³÷íà
Éîìó ïàì’ÿòü!