KOHTAKT

Serving the Ukrainian community since 1991!

Published by the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, BC Provincial Council

Vol. 8 Issue 4

Serving the Ukrainian community in British Columbia since 1991

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Keep in touch with the Ukrainian community in British Columbia with CONTACT! Here are the stories from the Autumn '99 issue.

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Finding family in Ukraine Touching accountc of one of the many times Myrna Arychuk of Cascade Travel has brought together long-lost relatives on a tour of Ukraine.

President’s Message

Bringing home the gold ... Octogenarian breaks one world record after another in track & field

Telling tales: Danny Evanishen retells the folk tale How April went to Visit March

Tyt i Tam ... travelling tysmbaly, TV news, more on Filip Konowal, Prince George dancers win at Vegreville, plaque honouring BC WW1 internees unveiled in Victoria

Harvesting Memories ... Remembering threshing gangs on the prairies

Landing in North America ...How to find out  when your ancestors arrived in Canada

Remembering the Edge ... by Vladimir Dubissky, winner of the 1998-1999 Anna Pidruchney Award for New Writers (excerpt).

Finding family in Ukraine
By Myrna Arychuk

As my plane descended into Lviv, I felt tension in the air and the unspoken question: Would I be able to help all the people in my group find their relatives?
    I think the only who wasn’t worried was me. But typically, for those anxious to find long-lost family members, the fact that as a travel agent I had done this dozens of times before, quite successfully, was completely forgotten.
    The ones most anxious were those being met at the airport. They had written to say they were coming, but had only been corresponding with their relatives sporadically, sending photos once in awhile. To actually meet each other seemed like a distant dream. Now that we about to land, would they be there?
   The pandemonium in Lviv’s small airport (caused by a recent new rule that arrivals must buy their local medical insurance before entering customs) and the delay it caused frazzled already frayed nerves.
     But, like mist in the morning sun, the tension evaporated as we emerged from customs. Just as I expected, they were there! No longer just faces in photographs, newly reunited relatives were hugging, laughing, and crying all at the same time.
     After two glorious days in Lviv, we left behind five people in our group to stay with family. They would to join us again in Ternopil. Ten years ago, that would never have happened. Today, you’re free to adjust your itinerary to accommodate visits with relatives or jaunts on your own without jeopardizing your tour.
     At our next stop, in Ivana Frankivsk, we set out to find a woman who was born in Canada but had beentaken back to Ukraine as an infant. All we had was an address on an envelope which was 35 years old. The name of the village had changed, her address had changed. But we knocked on doors, approached people in the street, and eventually found her house and arranged a reunion with her long-lost Canadian cousins back at our hotel.
     Travelling in a group has a unique advantage - very often, we have room on the bus, so it’s often possible to take relatives along on a day tour. For locals living in small villages, visiting surrounding tourist sights and eating in a restaurant is a great treat!
     In Chernivtsi, finding relatives was easier. I have friends whose families have lived there for hundreds of years. (In Ukraine, they don’t move around as we do in North America. Their land is their land, passed down from generation to generation.)
     One of my Ukrainian friends accompanied three of my tourists by taxi to their ancestral village. The villagers there recognized the faces in the photographs and sent us on our way to an unexpected but pleasant surprise - relatives of both parents who were close friends in Ukraine.
     On our way to Ternopil, a lady in our group wanted just to photograph the town her father came from, believing he had no relatives. But for Svitlana, our Ukrainian tour guide, and myself, this was not good enough - we had to find the exact house!
     By now, the whole group was involved. After talking to the townspeople, we learned there were relatives in a nearby village. On the way, I noticed two hitchhikers (locals) going in the same direction, and asked the driver to pick them up. It turned out they knew of our mystery relatives, but there was a problem - the road stopped at a certain point, with only a path going beyond.
     It wasn’t very far, but because everyone was anxious and excited, our hitchhikers’ offer of a lift on their motorbike was gladly accepted. As the rest of us waited, a group of delighful children from the village came to inspect our "huge" bus and completely charmed us with their delight over the gifts of pencils, pens and crayons – and their perfect Ukrainian and adequate English (thanks to an English teacher from America in their village).
     Twenty minutes later, another joyful reunion as the relatives joined us at the bus, clutching photos of their new-found cousin!
     When visiting family for the first time, there are many things to see - the family’s church, schools, the cemetery where ancestors are buried. It’s wonderful to wander through the glorious gardens of enormous sunflowers.
     In the countryside, we saw gardens with a variety of vegetables, and farm animals such as ducks, geese, chickens, goats, and cows. There were men and women stacking hay with pitchforks, although we also saw modern tractors and combines.
     There has never been a better time to visit Ukraine – before the older generation passes on and you miss the opportunity to hold that special hand, and hug that special person. Ukraine is still relatively unspoiled by development, and the currency exchange is favourable.
     Along with some of the best rates to Ukraine, Cascade Travel offers a unique service – helping you find those special family members in Ukraine. If I’m off helping another group find family in Ukraine, one of our knowledgeable travel agents can help you with your travel arrangements.
     Then, when I get back, I’ll have more heartwarming stories to share with you!
Let Cascade Travel help you make your trip to Ukraine a memorable experience! Call (604) 430-5454 or visit us at www.surelux.com/cascade

President’s Message

National: The Ukrainian Canadian Congress elected a new Executive at its 19th TriAnnual National Convention held in Winnipeg last October, with Eugene Czolij, a young lawyer from Montreal as the new president.
     Since that event, many meetings and consultations have been held, and a Plan of Action was devised which promises to greatly improve the networking and communications between all UCC branches and provincial councils across Canada.
     It is the intention of the new president to visit each provincial council and become acquainted with the members of the active Ukrainian communities, and to become familiar with their achievements and their concerns. This open approach will most certainly launch a new spirit of co-operation and exchange of ideas which will benefit Ukrainian communities in the new millennium.
     Since 1991, the support of UCC-National has been of prime importance to our provincial council. Without the moral support and financial aid, the 1991 Ukrainian Days at the Plaza of Nations and the 1992 Ukrainian Showcase Pavilion celebrating 100 years of Ukrainian settlement in Canada, our centennial celebrations in BC would have been on a much smaller scale.
British Columbia: Our Millennium Project - the Ukrainian Showcase 2000, to be held at the Plaza of Nations August 18-20, 2000, has begun to generate a great deal of excitement and enthusiasm around the entire province.
     Several Ukrainian organizations have shown their commitment to the project by sending in their contributions towards the deposit required to hold the Plaza of Nations for those dates.
     The following organizations have participated: Ukrainian Community Society of Ivan Franko, Richmond; St. Mary’s Ukrainian Canadian Women’s League, Vancouver, Holy Eucharist Ukrainian Canadian Women’s League, New Westminster; Ukrainian Canadian Congress, Vernon; Ukrainian Cultural Society of Nanaimo; Ukrainain Women’s Association, Whalley; Ukrainian Studies Society, Victoria; Svitanok Performing Arts Society of BC; St. Mary’s Ukrainian Orthodox Parish, Surrey; St. Mary’s Ukrainian Catholic Parish, Vancouver.
     Ukrainian Showcase 2000 offers the Ukrainian community in BC an opportunity to bring our Ukrainian culture and history to a public largely uninformed about us and our history. We need to work together to develop a high degree of confidence and a spirit of giving among individuals and organizations within the Ukrainian community if we are to succeed.

Octogenarian keeps winning the gold
at track & field meets
by Paulette MacQuarrie

Most people expect world record-breaking athletes would begin their careers very young - in early childhood. But in some cases, "young at heart" is just as good a time to start.
     Certainly it is for Olga Kotelko, who at the age of 80, recently brought home nine (9) medals from the World Veterans Athletics Championships in England, and set two world records there.
     The West Vancouverite began to compete in Track & Field at the age of 77. Happily retired, she kept herself busy, enjoying her grandchildren and activities such as singing with the Svitanok Chorus of Vancouver, taking fitness and painting classes, and senior’s slo-pitch.
     It was slo-pitch that led her to Track & Field. After a while doing slo-pitch, Olga began to feel she should step aside for younger 50-year-olds. After the rest of the team talked her out of quitting, she still felt she needed to better herself. So she went to the library and read up on sports activities. Running and shot put seemed like the ideal activities to build up the muscle groups she felt she needed, and so she got started.
     She hasn’t stopped since. She began winning medals right off the bat, which got her hooked on the challenge of competing. Her winnings soon also included javelin, discus, hammer throw, high jump, and pentathlon.
     A few weeks after Olga returned from England, she racked up another 6 medals at the BC Senior Games, and was invited to compete in the U.S. Senior’s Olympics in Orlando, Florida this October. She’ll do that after a two-week holiday in Egypt.
     Beyond that, she’s looking forward to the next round of world championships in Australia.
     Not bad for a farm girl from Saskatchewan!

In England last August, Olga won gold in high jump (92cm), shot put (5.97 m), hammer throw (16.5m), 100-metre (21.49 sec.), javelin (16.92 m), and weight pentathlon (3,557 points). She won silver in 200-metre (46.03sec), discus (15.39m), and 4x400-metre (17.20 min). She also set world records in high jump and weight pentathlon.
     At the BC Senior’s games a few weeks later, she won gold in discus (15.90), shot put (6.25m), javelin (16.92m) and high jump (96cm), breaking her own world record. She won silver in the 100-metre dash (23.8 sec) and the 200-metre dash.
     Olga shares, in her own words, her exciting experience this summer at the world championships in England:

XIII World Veterans Athletics Championships (WAVA) were held July 29 - August 8, 1999 at Gateshead, England.
     This being my first World Track & Field Meet abroad, I was anticipating with trepidation competing with experienced, seasoned former Olympian athletes.
     The sounds of the many different languages from various countries when meeting new people made it even more exciting. The whole experience was truly one of a kind!
     However, I began to blend in with the crowd of almost 6,000 athletes from 74 countries, of which 120 were from Canada - and I was one of them.
     The first day, competing began in hammer throw and 100-metre sprint in the W80-84 age group. I placed first and received 2 gold medals.
     The excitement and challenge in me were building even more, because I was able to overcome my fear and realize I could throw farther and run faster than the big, experienced, muscular German and Russian athletes.
     This momentum continued throughout the Meet and eventually I came home with a total of six (6) gold and and three (3) silver medals for my endeavours, and established two world records - high jump (92cm) and weight pentathlon (3557 points). The total experience was incredible! I will not forget it for a long time.
     Many of the athletes kept asking me where I had been all this time and not competing like they were. I truly was unaware this type of competitions existed. I’m glad I explored it and I’ll not stop competing in track and field until I drop.
     The next WAVA Championships in 2001 are in Brisbane, Australia and in 2003 in Kuala Lampur. I am anticipating to compete there and meet up again with my new acquaintances.

The WWW Cossack and E-media
by Dr. Andrij Ukrainec

Whenever I mention "media" to my father he gets excited because he thinks I’m going to offer him some of his favourite food, honey ("med" in Ukrainian). After getting over the initial disappointment, he’s quite amazed at the extent to which communications has developed since he built a crystal radio as a boy. At the time, some of the old folks just couldn’t believe that there wasn’t an orchestra hiding somewhere behind that small, simple radio contraption.
     Today, the Internet links together a variety of electronic media from around the world. It reaches far beyond the immediate Ukrainian community and makes resources available to a wider audience seeking information about key current issues. It hosts an amazing array of players, from traditional Ukrainian media wishing to have a presence (or are in transition to this new medium), to the birth of entirely new forms of media.
     A good place to start exploring Internet media resources on Ukrainian issues is the web page "Ukrainian Media on the Internet" at www.infoukes.com/organizations/media/. There are sites hosted from Ukraine, Canada, Czech Republic, England, Poland, Russia, and the United States. Some of the traditional media players - newspapers, magazines, journals, radio and television are represented but what’s especially exciting is the new forms of media that the Internet has made possible.
     One of the traditional players that has embraced the Internet in a big way is English language newspaper The Ukrainian Weekly (www.ukrweekly.com). It posts a subset of their current newspaper articles, and makes available an archive of past issues. A robot program on InfoUkes indexes these archives periodically.
     If you’re researching certain topics, you can now do a keyword search using the search engine at InfoUkes (www.infoukes.com/search) and find all the articles which mention that keyword on the Weekly website. Other newspapers, such as Novij Sliakh (New Pathway) (www.infoukes.com/newpathway), archive Ukrainian language articles on their site and require the right fonts installed on your computer. Currently there are several standards for Ukrainian fonts on the web, but this should soon be simplified by emerging international standards for fonts.
     Another source of news about Ukraine is provided by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL). Originally a short wave radio service, they now deliver news about Eastern Europe over the Internet daily. At InfoUkes, the content is automatically filtered for articles about Ukraine, which are stored at our web site for readers to access (www.infoukes.com/news/rfe-ukraine). In the spirit of short-wave radio, RFE/RL also broadcasts a Ukrainian language version of the daily news over the Internet in RealAudio (www.rferl.org/bd/uk/uk-realaudio.html).
     RealAudio (which can be downloaded free off the Internet) allows audio to be served over the Internet live, even on slow connections. Many traditional radio broadcasters are now also broadcasting their material in this format. You can even listen to a pop radio station in Lviv over the Internet!
     Soon, compressed digital video on the Internet will begin challenging television, and Ukrainian television broadcasters are currently exploring this new way of reaching a wide audience beyond the limits of conventional (and expensive!) television broadcasting.
     The horizon of possibilities for new media on this electronic steppe is always expanding, and no doubt only limited by the imagination of those who wish to ride across it.²

Ukrainists call for Canadian branch
by Anatoliy Kruglashov

The International Association of Ukrainists (Mizhnarodna Assotsiat-siia Ukraintsiv) is calling for the establishment of a National Association of Ukrainists in Canada in order that Canadians can be represented on its executive.
     Some 500 researchers from 23 countries attended the fourth tri-annual Congress of MAU this past August in Odesa. They came from Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Poland, Hungary, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Canada, and the USA. Topics of discussion included History, Culture, Economy and Policy of Ukraine. There were numerous reports, round tables, and discussions.
     Canadians came from the the University of Toronto, York University, the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies (University of Alberta), and elsewhere. The presentation on the legacy of 20th century historian Mykhailo Hrushevskiy, organized by CIUS, attracted a large audience.
     Based in Kyiv, the MAU was formed in Italy in 1989 as the professional International association for scholars and researchers of Ukrainian Studies around the world. The interest generated over the past congresses (held in Kyiv, Lviv, and Kharkiv, respectively) has increased steadily, indicating that Ukrainian Studies is a growing discipline in Ukraine and in the rest of world.
     The newly elected president is Mykola Zhulynsky, former deputy prime-minister of Ukraine and currently Director of the Institute of Literature at the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences. Outgoing president is Jaroslav Isaievych.
     The IV Congress of Ukrainists was held in Odesa in order to encourage and promote Ukrainian studies, language and culture in the historical and commercial center of southern Ukraine. The next Congress will take place in 2002 in Chernivtsi.²

Telling tales
By Danny Evanishen

I began my Ukrainian folk tale collection when my father showed me some stories he had translated into English. Some of the stories came from his boyhood memories, and others from a battered old book his father had given him many years ago.
     These folk tales delighted and fascinated me, so I began to make inquiries to see if there were others like them. After talking to several university professors, I came to the conclusion that Ukrainian folk tales in Canada had never been collected. And so my project was born.
     But if I didn’t get busy and start collecting, the stories would soon disappear. The last generation to tell folk tales to any extent was the pioneer generation, but once they came to Canada, the stories began to get lost.
     Our pioneers were a people in a new country with a new language. Because the children had to learn English to survive, the Ukrainian language fell by the wayside. Along with the language went the stories.
     Unfortunately, I started my project too late to get the stories first hand. All too often, I read an obituary of someone I hadn’t met that says, "He/she was a marvellous storyteller."
     The only people who still know the stories are the few remaining pioneers and some of their children and grandchildren. Now we can only hope they remember some of Baba or Dido’s words, and are willing to share them.
     Following is a sample of the folk tales I have been collecting and retelling. I have published six volumes of folk tales, and several other books on Ukrainian pioneers and other subjects.
     If you would like a copy for yourself, or for a gift, or if you have a story to share, please call Ethnic Enterprises at (250) 494-3205 or email devanishen@img.net.

How April Went to Visit March

A long time ago March invited April to be his guest for lunch. April was very pleased about the invitation and, on the appointed day, she set off in her wagon.
     March, who was really a frivolous fellow, had not been at all serious when he made his invitation and, when he saw April coming to visit, he took measures to prevent her from arriving at his house.
     He made the weather so warm that the snow melted, and the sleigh could hardly move on the bare ground.  pril took the sleigh home and started out again but, this time, she went with a wagon instead of a sleigh.
     March now turned on the winter again. The North wind blew so hard and so cold that the rain froze solid as soon as it hit the road. It became so slippery that the wagon slid sideways and could not go forward. It was impossible to travel and the disappointed April had to turn home again.
     Later, April met May and began to complain to her: "Whenever I try to visit March, there is no way I can get there, either with the wagon or the sleigh. When I take the wagon it becomes so cold and the road so slippery that the wheels will not turn. If I take the sleigh it becomes so warm that the snow disappears and I cannot make it either. How am I ever going to visit March for lunch?"
     May knew all about March and his habits; she thought it was time somebody stood up to his foolishness and exposed him for the knave he really was. She said to April, "I will advise you how you can visit March. Take with you, all at once, a wagon, a sleigh and a boat; then you will be sure to reach him."
     April took her advice and started out again. She travelled by sleigh, on which she put the wagon and a boat.
     March blew in the warm air and melted the snow, so April put the sleigh and the boat on the wagon and kept going. March blew cold, and there was frost and snow; April put the wagon and the boat back on the sleigh.
     When March melted the snow again and the streams flooded, April put the sleigh and the wagon on the boat and travelled much faster on the water. Finally, she arrived safely at the home of the shameless March.
     March did not know quite how to react; he was very surprised, and asked April, "Who taught you how to reach me?"
     April replied, "May showed me how I could work around your trickery." March then cried:
"You just wait, May; I will trim your wings too, one of these days!"
And that is why there often are March frosts in May because, even now, March is still very angry at May.

Tyt i Tam

TRAVELLING TSYMBALY: Three members of Surrey’s Valley Tsymbaly Ensemble packed up their dulcimers and headed off to delight audiences in Manitoba last July. The first stop was Winnipeg, where Evelyn Shindruk and Gladys Andreas performed at the popular Kiev Pavilion at the Folklorama celebration. For three days, visitors to the Pavilion were greeted with the joyful sound of the tysmbala, played by BC’s own. Next, it was off to Sandy Lake, where they performed for the afternoon celebration at the 100th anniversary of Sandy Lake, commemorating Ukrainian immigration to their area. They also participated at the Agricultural Parade in Shoal Lake, and entertained at the afternoon and evening fair festivities. Ignace Kulczyck joined Evelyn and Gladys in Dauphin, where they performed on the side stage at the 34th annual Canada’s National Ukrainian Festival. They also performed in Dauphin nursing homes. Watch for this delightful group at locations around the Lower Mainland or in your area. For more information on the Valley Tsymbaly Ensemble , call Gladys Andreas at (604) 576-7970.
ECHOES OF UKRAINE IS TRAVELLING! This fall, cable TV channels across BC will be airing Echoes of Ukraine classics. Last April, a series of thirteen Echoes of Ukraine programs aired in Kamloops on Shaw Cable, thanks to the sponsorship of the Ukrainian Women’s Association of Kamloops. On Shaw’s recommendation, Kelowna is now airing the programs, and negotiations are underway to send the series on to Vernon, Prince Rupert, and Victoria. The programs feature genealogist Muryl Andrejciw Geary, bandurist Roman Bociurkiw, Tropak Ukrainian Dance Theatre, Pysanky Workshop, and others.
YALENKA DANCERS WIN AT VEGREVILLE: Congratulations to the Yalenka Ukrainian Dancers of Prince George who dazzled the crowds at Vegreville’s Ukrainian Pysanka Festival this year. They brought home eight (8) medals – two gold, three silver and three3 bronze. Twenty two dancers participated. Winning categories were Junior (one group, one solo and one duet), Intermediate (one group and two duets), and Senior (Hopak and Adult Character).
FILIP KONOWAL TO BE HONOURED IN UKRAINE: A plaque unveiling, honoring Filip Konowal, VC, will take place in Kutkiw, Ukraine on Aug. 21, 2000. Canadian politicians, diplomatic and military personnel will be in attendance. Any one wishing to attend the unveiling and would like to receive an invitation should contact Jerry Gangur, 3171 Mountain Highway, North Vancouver, BC V7K 2H4 or call (604) 984-4515. Filip Konowal was the only Canadian of Ukrainian heritage to receive the Victoria Cross, the British Empire’s highest award for valour. A plaque honoring Filip Konowal, VC was unveiled in New Westminster on April.5, 1997 by his regimental association, The Royal Westminster Regiment Association.
MISSING VICTORIAL CROSS: The Victoria Cross of Filip Konowal is missing from the collections of the Canadian War Museum. Efforts are now being made to recover this medal so that it can be publicly displayed. Anyone knowing of the whereabouts of Konowal’s Victoria Cross is invited to contact Professor Lubomyr Luciuk, 22 Gretna Green, Kingston, Ontario, K7M 3J2. Tel: (613) 546-8364 or email luciuk-l@rmc.ca. Confidentiality is guaranteed.
PLAQUE UNVEILED: A plaque commemorating internees in all eight WWI concentration camps in BC was unveiled at the Ukrainian Cultural Centre on July 11, 1999. The plaque will be placed on a "suitable" outer wall of the Centre, located on Douglas Street, Victoria’s main thoroughfare. However, Kari Moore, president of the Ukrainian Professional and Business Association of Victoria, and a major driving force behind the project, was disappointed that she wasn’t able to secure placement of the plaque on provincial or city property.
     "I travelled through so many revolving doors without success," she said. "There was nobody that had a suitable place for a plaque that is meant to commemorate Ukrainians and other Europeans interned in the [eight] internment camps during World War I."
     She first approached Andrew Petter, Minister of Finance and Corporate Relations, who turned down her request. Next she went to the City of Victoria, who referred her to Parks & Recreation, who turned her down. Then the BC Building Corporation, with no success, and the Provincial Capital Commission in the Victoria Harbour Area, who advised her to approach the Government of BC "or perhaps more suitably", the Government of Canada".
     "We are indebted to the Ukrainian Cultural Centre, which has recognized the historical significance of this plaque," she said, adding that members of the UPBA-Victoria are very proud to be able to bring this tragic episode to light where thousands of people can be informed and educated.
     This is the 11th plaque to be unveiled at internment sites in Canada, she explained, adding that these community-based efforts are an indication of just how intent the Ukrainian community is on getting an official acknowledgement of this injustice and restitution for the confiscated wealth of Ukrainian internees, which still sits in Ottawa’s coffers.
     The plaque recalls the 79th anniversary of the end of internment operations on June 20, 1920, and shows the lcoation, opening, and closing dates of all the BC camps – Fernie/Morrissey, Field, Revelstoke, Moshashee/Mara Lake, Nanaimo, Vernon, and Edgewater. Acting Mayor Bea Holland brought greetings from the City of Victoria, and expressed pride to be chosen for the placement of the commemorative plaque.
     Keynote speaker, Dr. Paul Thomas of the University of Victoria, summarized the plight of Ukrainian immigrants deemed enemy aliens and subsequently interned in these camps. He also shared a harrowing personal experience while working in Africa which somewhat paralleled their plight and illustrated the terror of being imprisoned by an unsympathetic regime.
     Other dignitaries included Julia Stashuk, president of UCC-BC; Yaro Koropecky of the Ukrainian Cultural Centre; and Mary Goodwin of St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Parish. The Luna Ukrainian Ensemble (Motria Koropecky, Olga Lang, and Pati-Ann Lawe) closed the program with songs by the beloved bard, Taras Shevchenko.

Harvesting memories
by Gena Crowston

Ah, prairie harvests ... the mellow air, the gentle sun. The smoke haze hanging over the hay meadows in the early morning and evening. The hum of the threshing machines and the anticipation of when they would arrive to thresh our crop. The hustle and bustle when they finally did. The bologna sandwiches.
     During my young years on my father’s farm in Saskatchewan, harvest was always my special time of year. What excitement there was when we learned that our place would be the next to be threshed!
     A threshing crew consisted of 26 or more strong, hard-working men who ate three-square meals a day, plus morning and afternoon lunches. Threshing often went late into the evening as long as it stayed dry enough; it was always a rush to have the grain safely in before the rains or snow came.
     Mother had friends and neighbours helping her prepare food for the crew well ahead of time. When the threshing outfit arrived at our farm, I was allowed to stay home from school to help my mother.
     My favourite chore was riding in the buggy when she took the morning and afternoon lunches out to the men in the field. here were wash tubs full of sandwiches, and cream cans full of tea, coffee or cold well water. The sandwiches were made from egg salad, jam, and left-over meats from the previous supper. I liked bologna the most – threshing time was the only time we had store-bought cold cuts. I would watch anxiously as the men dug in - hoping that at least one sandwich would be left for me!
     Within our area there were two farmers who owned threshing outfits - a threshing machine (grain separator) and a tractor to power it, as well as men with teams of horses and hay racks to haul the grain from the fields to the machine to be threshed. The grain had been cut earlier and tied into stooks with the grain heads up to stay dry.
     Those farmers who owned threshing outfits contracted with each farm to thresh his crops. The farmer whose grain was being threshed was responsible for feeding the crew and also for supplying food for the teams of horses and a sleeping place for the men. Most often this was the loft of the barn or an empty granary – until it became filled with the freshly threshed grain.
     As with many other aspects of farm life at this time, everyone in the community was dependent on each other to see everyone’s grain harvested and safely stored.
     In later years, much of this camaraderie was lost when the huge combines allowed one farmer to thresh thousands of acres by himself.
     Prairie harvests, as I remember them, have been lost to us.

LANDING IN NORTH AMERICA
by Muryl Andrejciw Geary

A frequently asked question is, "How do I find the date my ancestor first arrived in Canada or USA?"
     You can look for your ancestor’s name on the Passenger List or Landing Record of one of the ships that arrived at a port in Canada or the USA,. It can be a daunting task when you consider the hundreds of ships involved! But it is possible.
     Since there were no commercial trans-Atlantic flights until after the First World War, your early immigrant ancestors would have arrived from Europe by ship.
     They would have sailed from Hamburg, Bremen, Antwerp or Rotterdam and arrived at Halifax, Montreal, Quebec or St. John in Canada, or New York or Baltimore in the USA - some of the commonly used ports from 1891-1900.
     If your ancestor registered a homestead between 1891 and 1900, you might find author Vladimir J. Kaye’s books helpful. The Dictionary of Ukrainian Canadian Biography-Pioneer Settlers, one each for Manitoba and Alberta, are both in the public library system.
     The National Archives in Ottawa also houses an unpublished manuscript of a third collection for Saskatchewan, as well as the Index to Names of Sailing Lists of Ukrainian Settlers Arriving in Canada at the Ports of Quebec and Halifax. I have copies in my personal library and could do a surname check for you.
     Your public library has numerous other resources. Centennial history books written by communities across Canada could have an article written about your family. Be sure to check the book series: Passenger & Immigration Lists Index: A Guide to Published Arrival Records of More than 1,775,000 Passengers Who Came to the New World between the 16th and Early 20th Centuries by William P. Filby.
     You could go to an (LDS) Family History Centre and check the Hamburg Passenger Lists. Your ancestor could be on a Direct List (ships travelling non-stop to Canada/USA) or Indirect List (ships stopping enroute at other ports - generally in Belgium or England) on microfilm. The Cloverdale Genealogy Library also has Passenger Lists on microfilm (604-576-1384).
     The National Archives of Canada in Ottawa (613-995-513) has passenger list and genealogy information at their website www.archives.ca and at the decentralized National Archives Site in the Special Collections section at the UBC library in Vancouver gbrandak@unixq.ubc.ca (604-822-2232).
     Some people sailed into Canada and then crossed the land border into the USA, and vice-versa. You can find individual passenger names from 1895-1954 at the National Archives in Washington DC and on their website www.nara.gov. After 1908, Canada also kept a record of crossings.
     Once your search is done, you may want a photo for your family history. Check the library for Passenger Ships of the World, Past & Present by Eugene W. Smith, or Great Passenger Ships of the World (6 volumes) by Arnold Kludas.
     If your ship is not there, a Maritime Museum could have a photo for a fee (try Mariners Museum, 100 Museum Dr., Newport News, VA 23606 or Mystic Seaport Museum, 50 Greenmanville Ave., Mystic, Conn. 06355).
     Internet aficionados should also check the genealogy page at InfoUkes www.infoukes.com, the Federation of East European Family History Societies www.feefhs.org, and our British Columbia Genealogical Society web page www.npsnet.com/bcgs. There’s great Ukrainian information at the Edmonton Branch of the Alberta Genealogical Society www.compusmart.ab.ca/abgensoc/.
     On a personal note, after 10 years of producing & sponsoring Ukrainian genealogy seminars and workshops in BC, this year I am finally taking my own advice and the year off — to complete my family tree and, at last, to work on my own Family History book. There are many bright sparks who have faithfully attended all the seminars who are welcome to pick up the torch - and who will have my whole-hearted support!
     Meanwhile, keep your eyes Contact, where I will continue to keep you informed on what’s happening in Ukrainian Genealogy.

Remembering the Edge
By Vladimir Dubisskiy

Vladimir Dubisskiy is the winner of the 1998-1999 Anna Pidruchney Award for New Writers. The Award was established in 1989 in recognition of Alberta homesteader, community activist, artist and author Anna Pidruchney, and her lifelong commitment to encouraging and promoting the works of young writers. The following is an excerpt from Vladimir’s winning submission.

Soviet officials and media kept total silence, secretly cutting public long-distance telephone calls to Kyiv and telegraph communication as well. I hurried to the Adler airport (near the city of Sochi on the Black Sea) hoping to get information there.
     When the flight from Kyiv landed, Arrivals filled with sobbing women, many with quiet kids and no luggage. Although the registration for the return flight to Kyiv was already opened, there were no passengers. Nobody could tell anything worthwhile.
     The same occurred when I decided to break my vacation off and return back to Kyiv, worried about my family and parents. The airplane was nearly empty-I could occupy any seat, chat with flight attendants and even pilots. There were four passengers on board.
     Borispil International Airport was morose and hollow. We (eight passengers) silently boarded the empty shuttle outside and headed to Kyiv. On the way, servicemen wearing plastic overalls and gas masks douched the lower part of our bus with pressurized water before we could proceed. There were several such posts on the way to Kyiv. An uneasy silence reigned everywhere.
     Kyiv was unusually clean. From time to time, water trucks passed by, pouring water over already wet pavements and roadways. People crowded near the liquor stores-vodka and cheap red wine were bought by the box. The shops got a tardy order to limit the number of bottles sold per person-but customers accustomed to the total unpredictability of Soviet commerce came with friends, grandparents, and neighbors buying as much lekarstvo (medicine) as they could carry away or drink. People happily believed that alcohol, especially red wine and vodka, could protect them from radiation.
     There were no proper medications in the drugstores, and a local radio backed the alcohol protection crap, broadcasting numerous recommendations of famous specialists (who claimed of no such later on).
     At that time I was working as a customs officer at Borispil International Airport. In the daytime, despite a peak tourist season, we had no passengers at all. The international sector looked like it was permanently closed-any foreigners in Kyiv had already left. Only representatives of foreign airlines (Polish Lot, Bulgarian Balkan, Hungarian Malev) had to stay. Being properly instructed by the Big Moscow Brother, their bosses secretly banned all personnel (including families) from leaving Kyiv in order to prevent panicky rumors.
     The young Malev representative, intelligent and extremely courteous Dury, suffered most. His bosses did not permit him to evacuate his wife and two kids, who came from Budapest days before the catastrophe to enjoy the warm and beautiful Kyiv spring. Later his youngest daughter, who got an overdose of radioactivity, was forced to undergo special medical treatment at a Budapest hospital. Ukrainian children were not so lucky. In most cases they had neither means nor places to go.
     During every night shift we observed a long line of black Volgas with tinted windows that passed one by one through special airport service gates and headed for destined airplanes directly onto the airfield without any check-in, tickets or baggage control. The big shots were rescuing their kinsmen and themselves, while telling the no-danger lie to people in the daytime. They ran away every night for several weeks, moving slowly onto the airfield like big silent black bugs, usually guarded by a couple of watchful KGB agents with trite and ordinary faces.
I am looking forward to writing a true book about living on and escaping the deadly Edge. In the name of those who had already perished in the flame of Chornobyl - like my uncle and millions of others touched by death.

Vinkopletennia returns

Ten years after its premiere showing in June of 1989, the award-winning folk musical Vinkopletennia is back, and will be presented to the Okanagan community at the Kelowna Community Theatre on Sunday, October 3.
     Some of the original cast will be appearing, as well as new members drawn from Svitanok Chorus of Vancouver and a gifted youth orchestra. The production plans to tour the Lower Mainland in early 2000.
     Vinkopletennia recalls the enduring customs of Ukrainian weddings throughout the ages, and is regaining popularity with modern brides-to-be.
     It first appeared in Vancouver in 1971, when under the sponsorship of the Ukrainian Women’s Association, Dr. M. Huculak organized the first staging of Vinkopletennia in Vancouver under the directorship of Maria Bedzyk. She, Anna Trach and Brownislawa Bodnarchuk provided the lyrics and melodies. It was so well-received that in the years following, many local brides requested it at their own bridal showers.
     By 1988, this growing popularity of vinkopletennia rituals inspired another stage production intended to share our ancestors’ traditions with an even wider audience.
Valentyna Kaspryk, who sings with Svitanok Chorus of Vancouver, and musical director Ann Kvitka Kozak, took the original 1971 production, added a small instrumental ensemble, new folk melodies, a larger cast, sets, dancers, and the Voloshky Singers. Vinkopletennia toured BC in the early 1990s and was also preserved on video, and won the 1991 William and Mary Kostash Award for Video and Film Arts. An audio cassette and booklet were also published.
     At a vinkopletennia, matrons and maidens gather at the bride’s home to weave wedding wreaths from barvinkok and myrt (periwinkle and myrtle - plants symbolizing fertility), for the bridal couple to wear during the wedding ceremony.
     As they weave, the women sing ritual songs, gossip, give and receive advice, and present gifts to the bride. Men add to the festivities – if not the actual wreath-braiding.
For more information on this delightful production, call Kvitka Kozak at (604) 929-2581.

THE ART OF UKRAINIAN CUISINE
by Sylvia Molnar

Mom used to say, "There’s a time for everything." Now, it’s time for me to say: Thank You, Contact, for giving me the honour and privilege of writing the food column since 1991. As well, a special Thank You to all my faithful readers and supporters, and also to my editor, Paulette MacQuarrie - we certainly have had a lot of fun working together over the years!
     This will be my last column in Contact. Look for me on CBC TV in October, on the new program In the Company of Women, filmed in Vancouver. You can also find me at the Cook School at City Square in downtown Vancouver, teaching cooking classes two to three times a month. (I always sneak Ukrainian recipes into the International Flavours series!)
     It is with great sadness to say goodbye, but remember – there is "a time for everything".
Sylvia

Recipes this issue:

• Hrechanyky (Buckwheat pancakes)
• Kapusnyak (Sauerkraut soup)
• Nachynka (Cornmeal casserole)
• Medivnyk (Traditional Honey Bread)

UCC-BC sincerely thanks the following donors. Your generosity helps support our newsletter Contact and the television program Echoes of Ukraine.
Peter Bihun ($50), Dr. Walter Katschor ($50), Nick Lywak ($50), Michael Sofiak ($50 USD), Paul Stelmaschuk ($50), Rose Strilchuk ($50), Dianna Weber ($50)).

 Special thanks to Myrna Arychuk of Cascade Travel, Ltd. for covering the costs of colour for the cover of this issue.