THE UKRAINIAN NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FORUM (01/12/97)

THE UKRAINIAN NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FORUM

Ukrainian National Foundation board holds its first meeting

by Martha Lysko

In the report about the November 6, 1996, meeting of the Executive Committee that was published in The Ukrainian Weekly, it was noted that the UNA had activated a foundation, called the Ukrainian National Foundation Inc., and received an exemption from federal income tax under section 501 (c) of the IRS Code. This foundation has been in the planning stages for some time. As early as January 1995 the UNA Executive Committee had authorized Stefan Kaczaraj, CPA, to file all necessary papers for the creation of a not-for-profit foundation.

The foundation was established exclusively for charitable, educational, religious, scientific and cultural purposes. The primary aim of the foundation is to grant scholarships to needy students from the U.S., Ukraine and other countries to study banking, business and journalism. The foundation will continue to sponsor the English Teachers for Ukraine program and the Summer Institute for Teachers in Ukraine. It will support orphanages and the elderly, and aid in printing school texts on subjects of Ukrainian heritage and culture.

The board of directors of the UN Foundation met on November 10, after the close of the annual meeting of the UNA General Assembly.

The board of directors of the Ukrainian National Foundation comprises: President Ulana Diachuk, Vice-President Nestor Olesnycky, Secretary Martha Lysko, Treasurer Alexander Blahitka, Anya Dydyk-Petrenko, Anatole Doroshenko, Roma Hadzewycz, Eugene Iwanciw and Walter Sochan.

The first order of business, after the opening of the November 10 meeting was to establish a financial basis for the foundation. Each member of the General Assembly of the Ukrainian National Association had donated $25 to the foundation for a total of $625 collected at the annual meeting. The foundation expects to receive at least $10,000 from the sale of UNA Christmas cards.

There will also be a fund-raising drive to collect donations from the UNA membership in support of the UNA's foundation. Letters will be sent to all UNA branch secretaries and its 60,000 members requesting donations; an appeal for donations will be published in both official publications, Svoboda and The Ukrainian Weekly. The foundation will have various projects in progress, and anyone may opt to donate to the project of his choice.

At its first meeting, the UN Foundation decided to allocate $19,000 for the printing in Ukraine of the popular children's tale "Ivasyk Telesyk." The foundation will sponsor the UNA projects English Teachers for Ukraine and the Summer Institute on Current Methods and Practices of TESOL (Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages).

The Ukrainian National Foundation will soon be mailing a booklet describing in greater detail its projects, aims and activities.

The UNA and you
Good counsel: hire an attorney

by Stephan Welhasch

In some states, like Pennsylvania, California and New Jersey, the state supreme courts have changed requirements on real estate closings. They permit home buyers to go through closings without legal representation.

Attorneys, title companies, escrow companies and, in some cases, real estate companies are allowed to act as closing agents. One should not treat a closing lightly.

Attorneys should be involved with the buyer right from the time of signing the sales agreement because all home purchases involve some negotiations. Attorneys can show you legal loopholes and advise you on how to avoid legal problems.

In most cases sellers have an attorney representing his or her interests. Home buyers should do the same; at the very least they should have an attorney go over the contract to be ensured that their interests are fully protected. Since the sellers' attorneys usually draw up the sales contract, buyers who are trying to save themselves money by not having an attorney may be setting themselves up for all kinds of difficulties.

Closing attorneys perform various necessary and useful services to the home buyer, including "riding herd" on the title company and sellers' attorneys. "Any number of unforeseen problems can arise prior to and at a closing - so don't take a chance at not being represented by legal counsel," says Myroslaw Smorodsky, of the law firm Smorodsky & Stawnychy, based in Rutherford, N.J.

"Whatever the case may be," says Frank Wilson, a retired loan officer from the New York City area, "the handling of closings by counsel can save both the buyer and the seller much time and unnecessary aggravation." In New Jersey, for example, real estate attorneys have traditionally represented not only the buyers, but also the title company and the mortgage lender in most transactions. Therefore, attorneys always tried to do the job as quickly and efficiently as was possible.

Among the most common problems that have occurred with not having legal counsel is that more deals are being renegotiated after the traditional "home inspection" is completed. Quite often this results in delayed closings and sometimes financial loss for the buyer.

If you decide to hire an attorney, look for one who specializes in real estate. They can guide you through inevitable obstacles and will give you invaluable tax and other advice. A successful closing requires a lot of preparation on your part. Be a wise consumer, take good counsel. Ask your lender to provide you with any literature they may have about closings, buying or selling a home, etc. Ask them to answer all of your questions about completing a closing successfully. They will be more than happy to oblige you. Ask your real estate agent all the same questions that you asked your lender and attorney. Between the three, you will have a pretty good picture of what home buying is all about.

We at the Ukrainian National Association realize buying your own home is probably one of the most important financial steps in your life. If you are thinking of purchasing a new home or are looking to refinance your existing 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 First Mortgage Loan Program is specially designed to meet the financial needs of its members and offers an interest rate that is competitive with prevailing rates in your area. We also provide Jumbo Loans to Ukrainian churches and organizations.

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

Young UNA'ers

Katarina Jovanovic, daughter of Shezana and Radf Jovanovic, is a new member of UNA Branch 888 in Etobicoke, Ontario. She was enrolled by Bianca Hrnjak.

Stefan Jovanovic, son of Shezana and Radf Jovanovic, is a new member of UNA Branch 888 in Etobicoke, Ontario. He was enrolled by Bianca Hrnjak.

Nemania Jovanovic, son of Shezana and Radf Jovanovic, is a new member of UNA Branch 888 in Etobicoke, Ontario. He was enrolled by Bianca Hrnjak.

Lucas Edward C. Fedyk is a new member of UNA Branch 171 in Jersey City, N.J. He was enrolled by his parents, Roman and Larissa Fedyk.

Daniel Alexander Korduba, son of Elizabeth and Roman Korduba, is a new member of UNA Branch 234 in Elizabeth, N.J. He was enrolled by his uncle Marc G. Pogoda.

Roman Yaroslaw Sperkacz, son of Yaroslaw and Lesia Sperkacz, is the youngest new member of UNA Branch 388 in Bay Harbor, Fla. He was enrolled by his parents.

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