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The centerfold of this issue of Our Life is an Award Certificate for Humanitarian Aid, presented to our or ganization by Ukraine's President Leonid Kuchma on behalf of the Ukrainian people. I hope you will remove it, keep it, and display it proudly, for it belongs to each and every one of you, dear UNWLA members, for all the things that you made possible by volunteering your time and your talents, by fundraising, and in countless other ways. It was only with your generous donations and your tireless efforts that the UNWLA was able to accomplish our various missions in Ukraine, providing help to those most in need of help. During my recent trip to Kyiv, I had the pleasure of seeing Vice Minister Koval once again. The Vice Min ister was a gracious host and provided our small group with free visas with a promise that free visas would also be issued to the Social Welfare and Scholarship Chairs when they arrived in Ukraine. Upon arriving in Kyiv, we were invited to participate in the Board of Directors Meeting of Soyuz Ukrai- nok of Ukraine. At the meeting, we listened attentively to the reports of several Branch presidents and Regional presidents about their activities. We were extremely saddened to hear one Regional President report on the difficul ties she encountered in being and speaking Ukrainian. She and others like her, she commented, sometimes feel that they are in a Diaspora in their own country. Other memories of the trip to Ukraine are more cheerful, and I am pleased to share the joyful moments with you. Social Welfare Chair Barbara Bachynsky and I were in Ukraine from November 19th through the 25th. The purpose for our visit was to distribute gifts to children in Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, children who had lost their fathers in the recent mining accidents, and to children who were had been injured during the air show disaster in Lviv. St. Nicolas came early to these children, and it was very moving to see them. We were also touched by the young widows who were trying to comfort these children and whose anxiety about the children's future was painful to see. They quietly asked, "Who are we supposed to vote for?" When we told them that we had come only to bring gifts for the children and had not come to influence their politics, they were surprised. They asked how it was pos sible that people across the ocean knew about them and cared about them. In Dnipropetrovsk we met with the Regional president of Souz Ukrainok, Orysia Skulska. Returning to Donetsk, we were met by Regional President Lyudmyla Ohneva and by Father Roman Vovk of the Greek Catholic Church, who kindly arranged for our transportation. Father Vovk informed us that there are two Catholic churches in this eastern Ukrainian city; in the evening, we visited the construction site of a new Catholic church that is now being built. Since Social Welfare Chair Barbara Bachynsky will write in detail of our trip, I will describe other activi ties that we were involved with only briefly. A very controversial issue in Donetsk centers on a mosaic created by dissident artist Alla Horska. The mo saic, Woman Bird, currently adorns one wall of a building occupied by the Donetsk franchise of the fast food giant McDonalds. Just before I left for Ukraine, I received an e-mail from Regional President Lyudmyla Ohneva, inform ing me that McDonalds wanted to remove Ms. Horska's exquisite mosaic from the wall. After protests from con cerned Ukrainians, McDonalds suggested a compromise, one that many Ukrainians feel is unacceptable. The fast- food corporation is planning to preserve a portion of the mosaic, but not on the original wall. The only thing that can save the mosaic is to have it declared a "culturally significant artwork." This is currently being considered by the Ukrainian government. During our stay in Donetsk, Ms. Ohneva showed us other beautiful mosaics on the walls of school build ings. These are not threatened by corporate insensitivity; they are threatened by time and neglect and the effects of pollution. They are slowly deteriorating and nothing is being done to preserve them. Back in Kyiv I tried to get in touch with Les Taniuk to see if the process of putting Alla Horska's artwork on the list of culturally significant artworks could be speeded up. Then the mosaic would be protected by law. Un fortunately, I was unable to reach Mr. Taniuk or anyone at the Ministry who could provide any additional informa tion or assistance. An official letter from the UNWLA on this matter was sent to the Ministry as soon as I returned from Ukraine. In ending the year, I would like to thank all the women from Soyuz Ukrainok Ukrainy, who helped make our stay in Ukraine so productive and pleasant. Special personal thanks go to Lillia Hryhorovych and her husband for their hospitality and for providing the opportunity to see first hand the work of the Verkhovna Rada. For their kind hospitality, I would also like to thank Honorary President Atena Pashko, Dr. Martha Bohachevsky-Chomiak and her husband, and Vice Minister Anatoliy Koval. Sincere thanks also go to Orysia Skulska of Dnipropetrovsk, Lyudmyla Ohneva of Donestsk, Ally Debeluk, Zoriana Bilnk president of Lviv region, and to the performers and organizers of the lovely concert that was given before we distributed the gifts to the children. We must also thank 8 “НАШЕ ЖИТТЯ”, ГРУДЕНЬ 2002 Видання C оюзу Українок A мерики - перевидано в електронному форматі в 2012 році . A рхів C У A - Ню Йорк , Н . Й . C Ш A.
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