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would collect and decorate boxes and baskets, some would cook and some would shop, and others would pack or drive the boxes and baskets to their destina tions. The costs for the project were shared equally: one half from the Philadelphia Regional Council's Social Welfare Fund and one half from the Ukrain ian American Senior Citizens Association (UA- SCA). Coordinating the activities were representa tives of both organizations: Irena Stercho (vice president of UASCA), Maria Zachariasewycz (treasurer of UASCA and vice president of the Philadelphia Regional Council), and Eugenia Gardezky and Vera Sawchyn (the Philadelphia Re gional Council's Social Welfare Committee co chairs). In mid-December, the volunteers gathered at Philadelphia's Ukrainian Educational and Cultural Center, rolled up their sleeves, and began packing. Forty-four boxes, each covered with festive holiday paper were filled with containers of borshch, vushka, varenyky, holubtsi, mushroom sauce, uzvar, and kutya. Each box also included a small sprig of evergreen and several stalks of wheat tied together with orange ribbon, a beautiful kolach, fruits, and cookies. Six baskets, destined for nursing home resi dents, were lined with small, embroidered cloths and also carefully filled with small portions of tradi tional Sviat Vechir fare. Once filled, the baskets and boxes were loaded into cars by a dozen or so volunteer drivers, each of whom traveled familiar and sometimes un familiar routes to deliver them to rowhouses in the city or far-flung suburban homes. For those participating in this project, giving to others at this time of year means receiving a bounty immeasurably greater. As Philadelphia Re gional Council President Christine Chomyn Izak noted, "It happens at a busy time for all of us, but it is something that gives all of us great satisfaction and the desire to continue." For Christine Shwed, the Regional Council's membership chair and the UNWLA National Board's educational chair, it is a way to "honor those who taught us who we are and where we came from." And for Irena Stercho, vice president of the Ukrainian American Senior Citizens Association, it is fulfilling a "human and Christian Sviat Vechir Baskets Drivers prepare to deliver packages responsibility to ensure that others do not feel aban doned at this time of year. By doing this, we give to others warmth and the comfort of knowing that they are remembered." Article by Tamara Stadnychenko Photos by Oksana Smolynets, Press chair of Philadelphia Regional Council
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