
The first Coffee and Conversation of 2025 at the Prince Albert Historical Museum featured a talk by Dennis Ogrodnick on Sunday.
Ogrodnick combines two of his passions in life—being Ukrainian and education—in his presentations. The topic of the Coffee and Conversation was the six waves of Ukrainian Immigration to Canada.
Ogrodnick said he developed the talk in September at the request of the Veselka Club, who were hosting a day to celebrate Ukrainian immigration to Saskatchewan
“(They) asked me if I could speak as a history teacher on immigration to Canada,” Ogrodnick recalled. “I began the research and I put together a PowerPoint presentation that explains the six different waves of the Ukrainians coming to Canada and I focus a little bit on Saskatchewan.”
The six waves came from the late 1800s to the most recent wave, which was caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Included in the audience was a recent immigrant who came to Canada 2022.
There were also waves after Ukraine became independent with the fall of the USSR in 1991.
“The waves after Ukrainian independence were more professionals—young professionals–wanting an adventure or to do something different,” Ogrodnick explained. “They kept their ties to Ukraine. They kept visiting family, what have you, but they just sought employment in Canada.”
Ogrodnick said he fine tunes each presentation and creates them for specific audiences. For example, he did a presentation in late November focusing specifically on Holodmor, the Soviet-caused famine that killed millions of Ukrainians.
Despite temperatures dropping below –20 C on Sunday, there was a sizable crowd who also took part in a lively question and answer following the talk.
“It’s a very cold day and I have no idea how many are coming,” Orgnodnick said before his presentation. “It’s all new people who haven’t been to the Veselka one, so I can spread the message and let people know.”
Ogrodnick said he was invited to speak by Historical Society member Connie Gerwing.
“She wanted me to do it last fall, and I was still on City Council. I said, ‘wait until I am done council,’” he explained.
This talk is not the only one Ogrodnick has planned. He is working on three more for the future.
“I’m working on two more right now like I have the Holodomor and again I’ll fine tune that one. I just got another book that I’m reading on it and so I’ll fine tune some things there,” he said.
His second research project is on the internment of Ukrainian Canadians during the First World War.
“Ukrainians, were seen as being enemies of the British Empire, and so 8,000 people in Canada were interned and about 6,000 were young Ukrainian men,” Ogrodnick said.
“I’m working on that and where the camps were and all that cross Canada, we had one in Saskatchewan in Eaton (southwest of Saskatoon),” he said.
The third project is on Famous Ukrainian Canadians and their contributions to Canadian society.
“It’s unbelievable the number of Ukrainians,” he said. “You can’t talk about every person, but I’ll highlight one in the arts and one in science and politics and sport.”
He explained that doing something like a Coffee and Conversation and other talks is an extension of his love of teaching history
The next Coffee and Conversation is on Sunday, Feb. 16 with Lyle Karasiuk of Parkland Ambulance on the history of Ambulance services in Prince Albert and the 50th Anniversary of Parkland.
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