THE UKRAINIAN NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FORUM (04/07/96)

THE UKRAINIAN NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FORUM

The UNA and you
Are you concerned about rising interest rates?

by Stephan Welhasch

Interest rates have hit their cyclical lows and now have moved up by a quarter percent in the last few weeks. Many home owners, who wanted to cash in on the mortgage refinancing boom, are now calling their bankers for new mortgages, because the cost of renting a dollar is slowly edging up.

Weakness in the Treasury bond market threatens to push mortgage rates even higher, economists say. The Federal Reserve has decided not to cut interest rates this month, because it believes that the economy is stronger than expected.

Trading in the Treasury market is important for home owners because banks peg some mortgage rates to the price of government securities, such as long-term Treasury bonds and shorter-term Treasury notes and bills. When Treasury prices fall, interest rates rise.

Higher rates attract more investors in government securities, but they also increase the cost of money for commercial banks. Banks can't move fast enough to pass along higher rates to consumers.

At the beginning of this year, mortgage rates dropped below the psychological barrier of 7 percent, when the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp., also known as Freddie Mac, reported that banks have been willing to commit to an interest rate of 6.94 percent on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages.

Mortgage lenders indicate that 46 percent of mortgage applications in January were to refinance existing loans. That's the highest level since March 1994, the tail end of the last refinance boom.

People who didn't manage to get in on the lower rates of l993, or were waiting for rates to drop even further, are now applying for new mortgages in the fear of rates rising sharply again, as happened in 1994 when interest rates jumped by nearly 2 percent.

If you are in the process of buying a home, or if you are deciding on refinancing your existing mortgage loan, you want to make the right decision. You should do your research on lending institutions and what they have to offer. You should also consider financing your home through the Ukrainian National Association.

We at the UNA realize buying your own home is probably one of the most important financial steps in your life. If you are purchasing a home, moving to a bigger or better one, or looking to refinance your current mortgage loan, the UNA can help you.

The UNA offers its members special financing for owner-occupied one-, two- and three-family homes nationwide. The UNA's First Mortgage Loan Program is specially designed to meet the financial needs of its members and offers an interest rate that is competitive with the prevailing rate in your area. We also provide Jumbo Loans to Ukrainian churches and organizations.

To find out more about the UNA's First Mortgage Program or about becoming a member and sharing in the many benefits the UNA has to offer, call 1(800) 253-9862.

District committee meeting

Jersey City

JERSEY CITY, N.J. - The Jersey City District Committee of the Ukrainian National Association held its annual elections meeting here at the Ukrainian Community Center on Saturday, February 24.

Representatives of Branches 287, 171 and 286 were present at the meeting conducted by Walter Bilyk, district chairman. Halyna Hawryluk recorded the proceedings and read the minutes from the previous district meeting. Also in attendance were UNA Treasurer Alexander Blahitka, Advisor Roma Hadzewycz and Honorary Member of the General Assembly Walter Sochan.

The agenda included officers' reports. Both the chairman's and treasurer's reports were delivered by Mr. Bilyk, the latter since the district treasurer, Dozia Dubej, had passed away. Mr. Bilyk noted that the district is planning a trip to Soyuzivka for Father's Day, and he reported that the district treasury has $1,381.65.

Afterwards, Stella Maciak, speaking on behalf of the district's auditing committee, noted that all the books were in order and proposed a vote of confidence for the district officers, which was unanimously approved.

Elections of officers for 1996 were then held with the following results: Mr. Bilyk, chairman; Myron Siryj and Stefan Krawczeniuk, vice-chairmen; Mrs. Hawryluk, secretary; Halyna Bilyk, treasurer; Mrs. Maciak, Pauline Balutianski and Anna Struk, auditors.

Mr. Blahitka spoke during the meeting about organizing achievements and the financial state of the UNA.

First he noted the Jersey City District's organizing statistics: 16 new members enrolled in 1995 for insurance coverage of $154,900 (an average face value of $9,681). The district met its annual quota by only 21 percent. The following organized new members: Genevieve Kufta, eight members; Dana Jasinsky and Mr. Bilyk, three each; Maria Savchak and Mrs. Balutianski, one each.

As regards the UNA's finances, the treasurer reported that UNA assets as of December 31, 1995, stood at $75.5 million. The 1996 budget approved at the November 1995 meeting of the General Assembly envisions income of $13.6 million and expenses of $9.6 million.

Mr. Blahitka also noted that there have been several potential buyers for the UNA's headquarters building in Jersey City, and he added that the UNA has begun to look for new home office facilities in Morris County, New Jersey.

Ms. Hadzewycz, who in addition to her role as a UNA advisor is editor-in-chief of The Ukrainian Weekly, spoke about the paper's Kyiv and Toronto press bureaus. She noted that getting news from Washington has proven to be much more difficult now that the UNA no longer has a presence there due to the closing of the UNA Washington Office.

She informed the district members that a new newsletter for UNA members had been prepared and that it would soon be mailed to members in the United States. Ms. Hadzewycz noted that, in her capacity as a UNA advisor, she is editor of the newsletter; Halyna Kolessa is the Ukrainian language editor. As well she noted that two members of the General Assembly, Advisors Stefko Kuropas and Nick Diakiwsky, are now working on a UNA homepage on the Internet.

Finally, Ms. Hadzewycz distributed copies of a recent Weekly editorial that pointed out the benefits of UNA membership; she noted that this could be used as a selling point with potential members.

Mr. Sochan spoke of his work as a member of the UNA committee that is negotiating mergers with representatives of the Ukrainian Fraternal Association and the Ukrainian National Aid Association of America. Several meetings had already been held to discuss the mergers, he noted.

He also reported that it seems the mergers will take place; the only question is the amount of time it will take to put them into effect due to various legal and administrative questions. He underlined that there is strength in numbers and thus there is no doubt that one more powerful and more efficient organization will be the end product of these mergers.

Mr. Sochan also reported on his participation in the most recent Kyiv meeting of the Ukrainian World Coordinating Council and spoke of preparations for the 10th anniversary commemorations of the Chornobyl nuclear disaster.

In conclusion, he reminded his listeners that the UNA is not only an insurance company, but a fraternal community organization that is highly regarded by both the United States and Canadian governments.

A discussion followed the three presentations, and the major topics were the sale of the UNA building and the fate of the Svoboda print shop. Members of the district expressed their disappointment that the UNA had decided to sell its headquarters building in Jersey City. As well they expressed dismay that the UNA might consider closing down its print shop, which publishes both Svoboda and The Ukrainian Weekly, and opt to print its newspapers somewhere else.

At the conclusion of their discussions, the district members unanimously approved a resolution presented by Mrs. Hawryluk which stated that the UNA should keep its print shop when it moves to new quarters.

Ahafia Olchovy marks 100th birthday

CLEVELAND - Ahafia Olchovy, a member of St. Basil's Lodge, Branch 364 of the Ukrainian National Association, turned 100 on March 24. She is the oldest member of the Cleveland branch and certainly one of the oldest of all UNA'ers.

Mrs. Olchovy was born in Dakhnov, Ukraine, on March 24, 1896. As her branch secretary, Wlademer Wladyka, writes: "Hard work was no stranger to her, as she lived on a farm and had many chores. The family's house had dirt floors; it had no running water. Washing was done in a stream. Food and meat were raised on the farm."

Mrs. Olchovy immigrated to the United States alone at age 16. She settled in Cleveland and married Phillip Olchovy Sr. After struggling through the Depression, Mrs. Olchovy realized her childhood dream of owning a store: it was called Olchovy's Hardware.

At the same time, Mrs. Olchovy raised five children: three girls and two boys. She was active also in the community and was one of the founding members after World War II of St. Mary's Ukrainian Church.

After her husband's death in 1952, Mrs. Olchovy, with the help of her children, continued to run Olchovy's Hardware, which continues as a successful business to this day.

Now at age 100, Mrs. Olchovy is bed-ridden, but she is given gentle and loving care by her family.

Young UNA'er

Patricia E. Marrapese, the daughter of Richard and Marusia Marrapese, is a new member of UNA Branch 317 in Syracuse, N.Y. She was enrolled by her grandmother Anna Zaleski-Burak.

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