Hartford Ukrainian community activist receives Connecticut's Outstanding Achievement Award

by Alex Kuzma

HARTFORD, Conn. - The Connecticut Immigrant Coalition and Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz on April 14 honored Ukrainian American Ihor Rudko for his outstanding efforts promoting economic development and service to the Ukrainian community. The Outstanding Achievement Award was presented in the ornate Judiciary Hall of the Connecticut State Capitol Building.

In a ceremony attended by many state dignitaries, including Gov. Jodi Rell, Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, and State Senate President Kevin Sullivan, Mr. Rudko was honored for his many years of service as chairman of the Ukrainian Self Reliance New England Federal Credit Union, as president of the Council of Ukrainian-American Organizations of Greater Hartford, and executive secretary of the Ukrainian National Credit Union Association.

In recent years, Mr. Rudko has been especially active as a member of the executive board of the World Council of Ukrainian Cooperatives, which has pioneered the creation of credit unions in Ukraine.

Mr. Rudko was born in Germany, where his parents had been forcibly deported by German soldiers during World War II. He received a bachelor's degree in business from the University of Connecticut, and has been a consultant and engineer on many projects for major corporations in Connecticut. As the president of the Council of Ukrainian American Organizations of Greater Hartford, he played a leading role in last year's community demonstrations in support of the Orange Revolution.

Mr. Rudko is also an active member of Plast Ukrainian Scouting Organization and its Khmelnychenky Fraternity.

A long-time resident of the small town of Colchester, Mr. Rudko has been married for 33 years to his wife Natalia, a current president of the Hartford chapter of the Ukrainian National Women's League of America. The Rudkos have three children; Taras, Andrij and Motria, and recently became grandparents.

Among the other honorees at the April ceremony were the highly respected superintendent of schools for the city of Hartford, Robert Henry, a native of Costa Rica, and Nicholas Paindiris, the chairman of the Connecticut Democratic Party.

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, June 5, 2005, No. 23, Vol. LXXIII

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