July 8, 2021

Contributing to the UNF

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A story on page 4 of this week’s issue of The Weekly highlighted the contributions made over the years by Peter Jarosewycz, a retired attorney who lives in Kansas City, Mo., to the Ukrainian National Foundation, a 501 (c) (3) organization that performs charitable activities on behalf of the Ukrainian National Association, which is the parent company of this newspaper.

Mr. Jarosewycz first began supporting the UNF with financial donations more than two decades ago because, living in the American heartland far removed from the Ukrainian American diaspora, he wanted to find some way to support Ukrainian cultural institutions that he believed were irreplaceable parts of the community. More importantly, he wanted to spread the message that everyone in the Ukrainian diaspora can, in their own way, support different projects that they believe are vitally important.
Speaking with The Weekly for a story that first ran on December 10, 2000, Mr. Jarosewycz said, “Everyone has something to offer, in terms of volunteering their time or talents or skills, or making monetary contributions, according to the degree of their individual commitment and resources.” Though more than two decades have passed, Mr. Jarosewycz said during a conversation with The Weekly on July 7 that his thoughts on the issue have not changed, and he hoped his story might encourage others to find their own way to support Ukrainian organizations that they care about.

Mr. Jarosewycz chose to support various projects under the umbrella of the UNF. And while all of the UNF projects are important to him, two in particular stand out. The UNA Publications Endowment Fund and the fund that supports the Soyuzivka Heritage Center are of particular importance to him because, he said, if Svoboda, The Ukrainian Weekly and Soyuzivka disappeared, it would be difficult, if not impossible, to replace them. We couldn’t agree more and we hope Mr. Jarosewycz’s story will spur others to, in their own way, do what they can to help ensure that these cultural institutions not only survive, but thrive. There are too many successful individuals of Ukrainian descent throughout both the United States and Canada for us to talk about survival. There are millions of self-identified Ukrainians in North America, most of whom could bring a wealth of professional knowledge, industry experience or financial resources to our diaspora organizations. With their support, these organizations would be thriving. Sadly, many truly are only surviving.

We would like to express our utmost gratitude to Mr. Jarosewycz for his support throughout the past two decades of the UNF, Soyuzivka and the UNA Publications Endowment Fund. Such generous support ensures that Soyuzivka, Svoboda and The Ukrainian Weekly will continue to be part of our community for many years to come.
Readers who would like to contribute to the UNF may call the UNA at 973-292-9800.

Staff are available to answer questions and provide assistance for individuals who would like to contribute. Your continued support, financial or otherwise, is greatly needed and appreciated.

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