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OLENA KISILEVSKA The Ukrainian women all over the Free World sorrow for the lois’s- of their spiritual leader. On March 29 died Olena Kisilevska, president of the World Federa tion of Ukrainian Women’s Or ganizations, at tihe age of 87. The representatives of various Ukra inian organizations of Canada and United States attended her fu neral at Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, paying their homage to the late pilot of Urainian feminist m ove ment during the stormy years of the first half of the 20th century. Ever since that sad day .memorial evenings are being held through out the Free World, wherever there are larger Ukrainian com munities, in honor of her long, tedious and distinguished work. Olena Kisilevska was the daugh ter of Reverend and Mrs Simino- vich who lived in a small town in W est Ukraine. In her time the girls had not been studying in the universities, thus after complet ing the high school she married in her teens an official in the town of Kolomeya. Soon she had to take -care of her children which duty as weld- as her ill health kept her the first married years at home. Still she never failed to pay attention to patriotic -endeavors of her -people, to literature, and particularly to the feminist move ment. Already prior to the World War I she had started to write for Ukrainian magazines and newspapers, and since she was much traveled, her writings often pictured her impressions during these journeys. After the war she founded and was editing a period ical for women titled “Woman’s Destiny” which she devoted to education of the women of W est Ukraine, notably those off thfe peasantry. Her popularity having enhanced, she was elected in 1928 by the Ukrainian voters a mem ber of the Senate at Warsaw, as a candidate of Ukrainian national- democratic party. Afterwards she utilized her position as a senator for wide traveling all over W est Ukraine visiting most of the towns and villages of the country, making speeches which touched on political situation as weld as patriotic upbringing and general education. Although 60 years old, she embarked in 1929 on a distant journey to North America. She then visited Ukrainian commu nities in Canada and United States. The Ukrainians in both these countries still remember her addresses and lectures, her patri otic appeals to them not to forget the Old Country which has been in need o,f their support. She met prominent personages of American women’s organizations and ’be came acquainted with Jane Ad- damis, the renowned social worker and author, the first president of tihe W omen’s International League for Peace and Freedom, as well as with Mrs Williams, wife of the then governor of Ma nitoba, Canada. 'Olena Kisilevska had always been an eminent participant in all Ukrainian women’s congresses in W est Ukraine, and subsequently in Canada and United States. In 1884 she took part in the first U k rainian women’s congress at Sta- nislaviv, W est Ukraine, in 1931 she addressed the Ukrainian women’s congress at Czernowitz, Bukovina, and in 1934 again in Stanislaviv, and in Uzhorod, Car- patho-Ukraine. In 1948 she was dionorary chairman of the world congress of Ukrainian women, held in Philadelphia, Pa. The women of W est Ukraine will well remember her work for it was through her efforts, and primarily through her publica tions, that the women of the U k rainian villeges have been ever more interes'ted in the public a f fairs. She likewise strove to ad vance their professionali knowl edge having become the chair woman of the peasant women’s organization affiliated with the central farmers’ institute known as Village Agriculturist. All villages of W est Ukraine had then formed its local subdivisions and had been, busily working toward the vocational training of the peasant women. Her fruitful activities were suddenly interrupted by World War II, followed by Soviet oc cupation of W est Ukraine and bolshevik policy of extermination of all national institutions of all subjugated peoples. As a consequence of these events Olena Kisilevska had to leave her homeland, together with hundreds of thousands of Ukrain ians, and to escape to the W est. As a memlber of large community of Ukrainian D P’s in Bavaria she again undertook to lead the U k rainian women escapees in the camjpis. This arduous work lasted for several years untid she left for Canada where she joined her family in Ottawa. At that time she was an old lady of 80 years, however she did not hesitate to participate in the world congress of Ukrainian women and to accept the pre sidency of the newly created or ganization, the World Federation of the Ukrainian Women’s Orga nizations (W FUW O), over which she presided until her demise. As the President of WFUWO she was active in formulating its ob jectives as well as in maintaining wide correspondence with its Olena Kisilevska, the late first president of W'FUWO
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