All posts by Andrew
Ukrainian Independence Day festivals 2009
See photos from the Toronto festival
Sorry it’s in no particular order and has bad formatting – but I got as many up as I could find. If you know of any I am missing, please leave a comment!
Tom’s River, NJ – St. Stephen Ukrainian Catholic Church, 1344 White Oak Bottom Road, will hold the Annual Ukrainian Festival on August 22 from noon to 7 p.m. There will be Ukrainian food and beverages, live music, dancing, vendors, a 50/50 drawing and a raffle for the Bermuda Cruise. The Ukrainian dancers will perform at 3 p.m. Fun for all ages. All are welcome. For more information, call 732- 505-6053 or visit www.ststephenchurch.us.
Chicago, IL – Friday, August 21, 2009 at 12 PM
CONCERT & FLAG RAISING: “Ukrainian Independence Day Flag Raising at Daley Plazaâ€
Daley Plaza Civic Center at 50 W. Washington Street in Chicago, IL
UCCA-IL invites you to the annual Ukrainian Independence Day Flag Raising program at Daley Plaza Civic Center in downtown Chicago. Free Shuttle buses will pick up at 10:30 AM in front of the Ukrainian Cultural Center (Chicago & Oakley) in the Ukrainian Village. Cultural program to run from 12-1 PM
URL http://www.uccaillinois.orgSaturday, August 22 & Sunday, August 23, 2009 from noon-10 PM
“UCCA-IL presents ‘Ukrainian Days Festival 2009’â€
Smith Park located at the 2526 West Grand Avenue and Campbell in Chicago, IL
The Ukrainian Congress Committee of America, Illinois Division presents “Ukrainian Days Festival 2009†from noon to 10 pm on Saturday and Sunday. This is the largest Ukrainian Festival in the Mid-West. Festivities include Ukrainian food, crafts, music, dancing and much more. Pony rides and children’s attractions add to the entertainment for the whole family, plus local performers and performers from abroad. Performances by Chicago’s Hromovytsia and CYM’s Ukrainia dance groups will take place.
Please check the www.uccaillinois.org website in August for the full schedule of events and musical, dance and comedy performances for the weekend.
Celebration of Ukraine’s Declaration of Independence will begin on Sunday at 1:30 pm. For more information call 773-772-4500. Suggested minimum entrance donation is $5 per person.
URL http://www.uccaillinois.org
Ukrainian news round-up – August 18, 2009
Politics
Russian President Launches Flame War vs. Ukraine Wired News • Medvedev attacks Ukraine leadership Financial Times • Glowering at Ukraine Globe and Mail • Russia and Ukraine Trade Barbs New York Times • Putin’s Reset Button: Pressing Ukraine American Thinker • Is the Mayor Fit for Office? Some Say Yes, Some Say No New York Times • Europe´s Share in the Ukrainian Malaise American Chronicle
Russian Relations
Kirill’s Visit Exposes Dangers in Moscow-Kiev Ties New York Times • For Ukrainians, ‘Ukraine is Ukraine;’ for Russians, ‘Russia is Russia plus Ukraine†Georgiandaily • Ukraine Has Nearly 3000 Russian-Language Schools, but Russia has None of Ukrainian language schools Georgiandaily • Ukraine says Russian navy pollutes Black Sea: report AFP • Eight Reasons to Become Ukrainian The Moscow Times
Ukrainian Festival wraps up final day
Photo:Larissa Petruk, right, and the Barvinok dance troupe from Mississauga, Ontario, perform during the Ukrainian Festival in Irondequoit on Sunday.
From RocNow:
IRONDEQUOIT — Hundreds of festival-goers stopped what they were doing to watch as dancers took the stage Sunday in red boots, black heels and swirling costumes.
The fourth and final day of the Ukrainian Festival at St. Josaphat’s Ukrainian Catholic Church in Irondequoit drew large crowds even as temperatures soared into the upper 80s. All day, the kitchen pumped out varenyky (Ukrainian-style pierogi in melted butter), kovbasa (Ukrainian sausage) and holubtsi (cabbage rolls), among other traditional favorites.
…
The festival, in its 37th year, is the church’s biggest fundraiser, said festival Chairman Richard Pucher. About 20,000 people attend each year.
Pucher says the festival keeps Ukrainian traditions alive, shares these traditions with people who are not Ukrainian, and allows older parishioners to show off their expertise in such things as cooking and crafts.
Remembering the victims of genocide in Ukraine
From The Province:
In the 2006 census, more than 129,000 Saskatchewan residents (13.6 per cent) reported Ukrainian ancestry, the sixth-largest ethnic group in the province.
Though now firmly rooted in Saskatchewan, Ukrainian Canadians have never forgotten their homeland, in particular the terrible famine of 1932-33, in which as many as 10 million Ukrainians — a quarter of the population — starved to death.
…
Though long overshadowed by the Nazi Holocaust, in which as many as six million Jews were systematically murdered between 1939-45, the Holodomor has gained international recognition in recent years as a comparable crime against humanity.
Among those spreading the word is Saskatchewan’s deputy premier Ken Krawetz, who last year introduced legislation that remembers the victims of the Holodomor on the fourth Saturday of each November. Saskatchewan was the first province to pass such a law. The Canadian Parliament passed similar legislation in 2008.
Krawetz’s efforts have been recognized by the Ukrainian government, which will next month award him the highest honour that a non-citizen of Ukraine can receive. And at the weekend, Krawetz received an "Award of Excellence" from the Ukrainian Self-Reliance League of Canada for spreading the word about the Holodomor.
Of Ukrainian descent himself, Krawetz makes the point that "the world doesn’t know" about the Holodomor — and it should.