Ukrainian National Association holds 36th Convention (06/04/06)

Ukrainian National Association holds 36th Convention

by Roma Hadzewycz

KERHONKSON, N.Y. - The Ukrainian National Association held its 36th Regular Convention here at its mountaintop estate, Soyuzivka, on May 26-29, with 96 delegates and 17 members and honorary members of the General Assembly participating.

The convention re-elected the three full-time executive officers of the Ukrainian National Association: President Stefan Kaczaraj (Budd Lake, N.J.), National Secretary Christine E. Kozak (Rutherford, N.J.) and Treasurer Roma Lisovich (Union, N.J.).

Elected to fill the other three posts of the UNA Executive Committee, which are volunteer positions, were: First Vice-President Zenon Holubec (Parma, Ohio), Second Vice-President Michael Koziupa (Cedar Knolls, N.J.) and Director for Canada Myron Groch (Founthill, Ontario). Dr. Holubec and Mr. Groch had previously served as auditor and advisor, respectively; Mr. Koziupa is a neophyte member of the General Assembly.

Delegates also elected three new members of the UNA Auditing Committee: Slavko Tysiak (West Sand Lake, N.Y.), Wasyl Szeremeta (Huntingdon Valley, Pa.) and Vasyl Luchkiw (New City, N.Y.). Drs. Szeremeta and Luchkiw had previously served on the UNA General Assembly as advisors. Mr. Tysiak is a newcomer to the General Assembly, though not to the UNA or its conventions.

Elected to serve as advisors on the General Assembly were (in order of votes received): Maya Lew (New York), Gloria Horbaty (Wallingford, Conn.), Nicholas Fil (Latham, N.Y.), Eugene Oscislawski (Flemington, N.J.), Myron Pylypiak (Kent, Wash.), Olya Czerkas (St. Petersburg, Fla.), Al Kachkowski (Saskatoon), Paul Prinko (Philadelphia), Bohdan Kukurudza (Chicago), Eugene Serba (Mount Laurel, N.J.) and Serguei Djoula (Montreal). Five of the 11 advisors are new to the General Assembly: Ms. Lew, Mr. Fil, Ms. Czerkas, Mr. Kukurudza and Mr. Djoula.

The new General Assembly officially begins its term of office on July 1.

The convention was opened on Friday morning, May 26, with a brief ceremony at the foot of Soyuzivka's monument to Taras Shevchenko, bard of Ukraine and patron of the UNA.

Business sessions began immediately thereafter, with President Kaczaraj encouraging all "to openly and responsibly discuss our most acute problems" in the firm belief that "through our joint efforts we will be able to successfully resolve these problems." He added, "Unity and collegiality were always cornerstones in the leadership of our fraternal insurance association."

The convention was conducted by its elected chairman, Taras Szmagala Sr. (Brecksville, Ohio), and two vice-chairmen, Vasyl Kolodchin (Warren, Mich.) and Michael Sawkiw Jr. (Washington). Attorney Andrij V.R. Szul served as parliamentarian.

On the first day of deliberations delegates heard addenda to the written reports of General Assembly members, with President Kaczaraj reporting last. Reports were delivered also by the editors-in-chief of Svoboda and The Ukrainian Weekly, respectively, Irene Jarosewich and Roma Hadzewycz.

The morning session that day was addressed by Frederick Grubbe, president of the National Fraternal Congress of America, who spoke on the state of the fraternal benefit system.

A question-and-answer session and discussion of the reports filled out the day and continued into Saturday, May 27 - a busy day as the agenda also included discussions of proposed changes to the UNA By-Laws and Manuals, as well as a presentation by Treasurer Lisovich on "Development Plans for Soyuzivka" and the recently created Soyuzivka Heritage Foundation.

Also discussed that day was "The Status of the UNA in Canada," with the end result being that the majority of delegates saw the potential for the UNA's growth in that country, home to more than 1 million Ukrainians.

Perhaps most importantly, Saturday was the day of the primary vote for members of the General Assembly, that is, six executive officers, three auditors and 11 advisors. Since the primary is conducted as a write-in ballot, the votes were counted that evening and the results announced only the next day, Sunday, May 28, during an afternoon session held between the convention concert and the traditional convention banquet. (See chart on page 4 for the complete voting results, both in the primary and the final election.)

Greetings to the Ukrainian National Association and its members were offered on Sunday at the concert by Ukraine's consul general in New York, Mykola Kyrychenko, and at the banquet by Dr. Viktor O. Nikitiuk, minister-counselor of the Embassy of Ukraine, who spoke in place of Ambassador Oleh Shamshur. Dr. Shamshur, who was to have been the keynote speaker at the banquet, was unable to attend due to the arrival in the U.S. of First Lady Kateryna Yushchenko of Ukraine.

The final day of the convention, Monday, May 29, was devoted to convention committee reports, a discussion on "UNA: Shaping the Future," announcement of the final election results and the swearing-in of the new General Assembly.

The 36th Regular Convention was adjourned after final remarks by President Kaczaraj, who thanked the delegates for their support and called for "unity and joint efforts in the name of common goals and common interests."

"Let us be together for the next four years - I with you, and you with me," he concluded.

Editor's note: Detailed information about all aspects of the UNA's 36th Convention will appear in next week's issue.

2002 UNA Convention minutes available

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