FACES AND PLACES: (11/03/02)

FACES AND PLACES

by Myron B. Kuropas

Soyuzivka ... then and now

Soyuzivka! What a wonderful sound. What memories for thousands of Ukrainians from the United States, Canada, Ukraine and, indeed, the world.

Dancing under the stars. Romance. Weddings. Miss Soyuzivka. Archipenko's Shevchenko. Concerts. Campfires. Steak nights. Children's camp. Mountains. Cultural courses. Hiking. Tennis camp. Swimming. Lounging by the pool. Friends. Home-cooked Ukrainian food. Danny. Kwas. Chemnyi. Who can ever forget any of that?

Soyuzivka. Nowhere else in the world could one find the same kind of ambience, spirit, splendor. This is where one met friends as well as one's future wife. This is where one got married. This is where one went to relax and enjoy the grandeur of the mountains of upstate New York. This is where one returned, year after year, to recapture the Soyuzivka mystique.

It all began at the 1950 UNA convention in Cleveland, where a recommendation was passed to purchase property for a UNA seniors' center within two years. Responding to the convention recommendation, the UNA Supreme Executive visited various sites in New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. In 1952 the Supreme Executive purchased a former sanitarium owned by the estate of Dr. Foord in the Catskill Mountain region, or more precisely the Shawangunks. Located near the town of Kerhonkson, N.Y., the property was purchased by the UNA for $72,000. Later, the building today known as Kyiv was purchased for an additional $25,000. According to Daniel Slobodian, a former manager and Soyuzivka historian, "all executives were impressed with the possibilities of this site, not only as a place for the aged to stay, but as a resort from which all UNA members could benefit." From the beginning, then, UNA executives were interested in providing a vacation retreat for members, as well as a refuge for the elderly.

Major renovations had to be made in order to transform the property into an attractive resort. A new kitchen and dining room were built, and steel beams and girders were installed in the Main House. New roads were constructed, new water lines installed, and a parking lot constructed. A grand opening ceremony in 1953 attracted thousands of UNA members to the new Ukrainian National Association estate, affectionately named "Soyuzivka."

Expansion and improvement continued. The home of Mrs. Foord was purchased soon after her death. Later, the property next door, which included a ranch-style house, was acquired for $32,000. The home was transformed into a dormitory; a kitchen and swimming pool were added, and "Lviv" came into existence. The new facility was used as a children's camp during July and the site of Ukrainian cultural courses in August.

Under the initial management of Daniel Slobodian, an American-born Ukrainian and Walter Kwas, a new Ukrainian immigrant, Soyuzivka struggled to survive. The post-World War II immigrants were just establishing themselves in America and couldn't afford summer vacations at a resort; older immigrants were not accustomed to vacations far from home. It was the younger generation who came for the weekend who helped sustain Soyuzivka during the early years.

Thanks to leadership provided by UNA executives such as Dmytro Halychyn, Joseph Lesawyer, Jaroslaw Padoch and Walter Sochan, who realized that Soyuzivka needed to be constantly upgraded to remain viable, the resort eventually turned the corner. A new, Olympic-sized pool was built, a dance hall was constructed and more tennis courts were added. By the middle of the 1960s, the UNA resort was so popular that reservations needed to be made a year in advance. To work at Soyuzivka during the summer months, young people had to be recommended by their UNA branch secretary as people of good character. There were always more applicants than vacant positions. The best way to become employed was to attend the cultural courses one year and apply for a position the next.

All during the 1970s and much of the 1980s, Soyuzivka was the mecca of the Ukrainian American community. The food was good, the management reliable, and the accommodations comfortable if not luxurious.

As the UNA adopted a business first, fraternalism second, approach in UNA affairs, things began to change. In time, the glamor queen that was once Soyuzivka began to look like a tired, dowdy, old lady. The grounds were neglected. Service was mediocre. Accommodations were substandard. Soyuzivka failed to compete, to move with the times. I was present when Soyuzivka management pleaded, nay, begged, for additional improvements only to be rebuffed by the UNA executive or General Assembly. The UNA just can't afford it became the mantra. It was a vicious circle. Improvements weren't initiated, guests didn't come. Fewer guests, less money.

This year we are celebrating the 50th anniversary of Soyuzivka. The new UNA executives seem to be truly interested in revitalizing the grand old lady. To do so requires additional money, lots of additional money. The penny-wise, dollar-foolish philosophy of the past has brought us to our present crisis and it will take a prodigious effort, a monumental commitment on the part of not just UNA members but the entire North American Ukrainian community to save Soyuzivka. Is Soyuzivka worth saving? Absolutely. With its demise will go a community treasure that can never be replicated.

Having worked at Soyuzivka; having met and married Lesia (Miss Soyuzivka, 1957) at Soyuzivka; knowing that Stefko met and married his Lesia at Soyuzivka; having attended many an annual session of the Supreme and General Assembly since 1962 at Soyuzivka, and blessed with memories of countless evenings in warm, convivial fellowship with Ukrainians from all over the world at Soyuzivka, her demise would be a personal tragedy for me.

I am elated that the newly constituted UNA executive is moving ahead with plans to keep Soyuzivka within the warm bosom of our community. Mnohaya Lita to a cultural institution that has earned and deserves the best that our community has to offer.

Myron Kuropas' e-mail address is: mbkuropas@compuserve.com.

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