Sept. 7 marks the first day that Ukrainian immigrants arrived in Canada, and Veselka, and the Ukrainian Canadian Congress of Saskatchewan (UCC Saskatchewan) will celebrate that feat with the first Ukrainian Heritage Day.
The festivities will run on Saturday at St. George’s Ukrainian Catholic Parish. This is the first time this event will be commemorated in Saskatchewan.
Veselka president Charlene Tebbutt said a few other provinces recognize Ukrainian Heritage Day on Sept. 7, and they’re excited to do the same thing in Prince Albert.
“It’s a significant day,” she said. “Ukrainians, for generations, have been coming to Canada, making Canada their home, and contributing in many ways to the fabric of our country. (They’ve) excelled in many areas in the arts and culture, and many traditions have been brought from Ukraine,” Tebbutt said.
She explained that the UCC Saskatchewan and Veselka were excited to take a lead on the celebration.
The Province of Saskatchewan and the City of Prince Albert have declared Sept. 7 as Ukrainian Heritage Day.
Tebbutt said the commemoration event will feature many celebrations of Ukrainian culture.
“We’re going to have the Veselka Choir is coming to sing. We’re going to talk a little bit about Ukrainian movement and contributions to our province and to our community, so we’ll have a bit of a history lesson almost,” Tebbutt said.
Coun. Dennis Ogrodnick will speak about the history of settlement in the province along with other speakers such as Mayor Greg Dionne.
“It’s just a chance to kind of gather and celebrate our Ukrainian heritage and then we’ll have some Ukrainian dainties that we can share,” she said.
People will be greeted at the door with the traditional bread and salt.
According to the UCC, the first Ukrainian settlers to Canada, Ivan Pylypiw and Vasyl Eleniak, arrived on September 7, 1891. Both 33 years of age, these men were the first of thousands to settle in Canada as part of the first wave of Ukrainian immigration to our country. Between 1891 and 1914, approximately 150,000 Ukrainians arrived in Canada, with the majority settling in the prairie regions of Saskatchewan, Alberta, and Manitoba.
“It will be it’ll be just kind of an afternoon, really, of fellowship. It’s the first time we’re doing this, so hopefully it’ll kind of grow and build. Our Ukrainian Club is very active, very energetic and we were excited to kind of plan a celebration around this day.
Today, more than 1.3 million Canadians identify as being of Ukrainian descent with more than 250,000 newcomers from Ukraine arriving since the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022 as part of emergency support measures through the federal government.
Tebbutt said that the struggles in Ukraine remain in people’s minds.
“We’re very aware that there’s a lot of devastation and there’s a lot of trauma and sadness and fear around what’s happening in Ukraine, and so we want to celebrate our heritage,” Tebbutt said.
“As always, (we’re) just trying to support those who are coming to Prince Albert and trying to build a new life here in Canada. (We’re) trying to be there for them and recognizing that in many ways, we all have this shared sense of loss and sadness around the war in Ukraine and the invasion by Russia,” she added.
Ukrainian Heritage Day will be celebrated at St. George’s Ukrainian Catholic Church and begin at 2:30 p.m.
