The weekend of February 13-15 2009 was a time of celebration, reminiscence and looking forward for the Edmonton Branch of the Ukrainian Youth Association (CYM). The oseredok celebrated its 60th Anniversary with a busy weekend of activities that started on Friday evening. Concurrently with these celebrations, the Edmonton Oseredok welcomed 56 sumivtsi from throughout Canada whose representatives attended the 2009 Annual General Meeting (Plenum) of the Ukrainian Youth Association. It was the first Plenum held in Edmonton since 1999. Delegates and guests hailed from ten Oseredky across Canada: Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg, Etobicoke, Toronto, Mississauga, St. Catherine’s, Hamilton, Ottawa, and Montreal.

Plenums are held annually, however due to the preponderance of sumivtsi in Eastern Canada and the Greater Toronto Area in particular, these meetings occur infrequently in one of the Western Oseredky. Therefore, it was a special privilege for us to welcome our friends from all across Canada to our great city.

Our Oseredok was honoured to welcome members of the National and World Executives. A wide range of issues and administrative matters were discussed at the Plenum. Financial updates were provided by all the oseredky. Besides discussing the development of the Sumivska Oselia “Veselka” in Acton, Ontario, members were also informed about upcoming conferences taking place in St. Catherine’s and Ancaster, Ontario. The Oseredok in St. Catherine’s also celebrates its 60th anniversary this year, and will host the CYM Worldwide Conference of Vykhovnyky from May 1st to 3rd, 2009. Ancaster will play host on August 13th – 16th to the Unity 2009 conference, sponsored by the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Toronto and Eastern Canada.

A constant challenge for any organization is the maintenance and growth of its membership rolls. At this most recent plenum, delegates attended working sessions designed to tackle this, and other urgent issues. Many excellent ideas were put forth, and we hope to implement some of these by the end of the year. It was eye-opening to learn of the diverse budgetary requirements faced by the National Executive. Fundraising activities to benefit the National Executive were also discussed, and each oseredok shared what educational activities it was engaged in over the past year.

Saturday was highlighted by the evening banquet celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the Edmonton Oseredok and the 50th Anniversary of the Verkhovyna Ukrainian Song and Dance Ensemble of the Ukrainian Youth Association. A sold out crowd that included our visiting delegates, CYM families as well as many members of the greater Ukrainian community in Edmonton, attended the banquet at the Ukrainian Youth Unity Complex, the building we lovingly refer to as our ‘domivka’. Local broadcast personality and sumivets Roman Brytan served as Master of Ceremonies for the evening.

We were privileged to have many honoured guests present. Among them, the recently enthroned Bishop of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, Edmonton Eparchy, his Excellency Bishop Ilarion (Rudnyk) who hails from Lviv, The Honorable Peter Goldring, MP for Edmonton East representing the Federal government, and the Honourable Gene Zwozdesky, Deputy House Leader and Minister of Aboriginal Affairs representing the Provincial government along with his Conservative Party colleague the Hon. Janice Sarich, MLA Edmonton Decore. It is noteworthy that these representatives of both the Federal and Provincial governments actively support the Ukrainian Community and frequently attend various political and cultural functions in our community.

Conservative party MP Peter Goldring praised the work of the Ukrainian Youth Association and stated that CYM “absolutely epitomizes what Canada, what multiculturalism is all about.” Minister Zwozdesky, who spoke in English and Ukrainian, commended CYM for providing leadership in the community, educating youth with a ‘formula for success’ and for “60 years of steady dedication to our Ukrainian culture.” Certificates of recognition were presented by these representatives of the Federal and Provincial governments to the President of the Edmonton Oseredok, Taras Podilsky, to Verkhovyna Ensemble President Sonia Iszenko and the Choir’s two long time conductors, Irene Szmihelsky and Halyna Lazurko.

A number of other greetings were delivered from various community organizations including the National President of CYM Canada, Irene Jendzjowsky who is an Edmonton Oseredok native.

The high point of the evening was the cultural program presented by the yunatstvo of the Edmonton oseredok. A camp vatra was recreated with the singing of a number of favourite Ukrainian camp songs. Representing the yunatstvo were Olya Bodnar and Serhij Adamyk who spoke about life in CYM and at tabir. All present joined in the singing of such favorites as “Zapalala Nasha Vatra,” “De Zhoda V Rodyni” and finally, “Nich Vzhe Ide.” For a brief moment everyone present was transported back to tabir and relieved the carefree pleasure of singing around a vatra, surrounded by friends.

The Verkhovyna Song and Dance Ensemble captivated all present with a number of passionately performed songs and joyfully executed dances. It was easy to see why this excellent amateur ensemble has attracted so many talented people during the last 50 years of its cultural endeavours. To top off the evening, a zabava featuring Edmonton’s Barvinok Band lasted well into the night.

Sviatoho Yuriya Peremozhtsya Ukrainian Catholic Church was overflowing on Sunday morning for a special Liturgy attended by all the Plenum delegates and local CYM families. The Verkhovyna Choir sang a majestic liturgy that was celebrated by our Oseredok Chaplain, o. Antin Tarasenko.

The concluding session of the Plenum on Sunday featured a video report of the 2008 Mandrivny Tabir organized by CYM Canada that took sumivtsi to the Canadian Maritime Provinces. This was followed by a report of the organizing committee for the VIII CYM Worldwide Zlet. This worldwide gathering of Druzhynnyky will take place from February 12th to 21st, 2010 to coincide with the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Attendees will have the opportunity to not only attend a variety of Olympic events such as men’s hockey, skeleton and skiing aerials, but also to tour some of the scenic areas of the greater Vancouver, British Columbia region. The delegation size is limited and spots are filling up quickly! Organizers are planning for 100 participants with delegations from around the world to be in attendance at this event, including CYM members from Canada, Ukraine, the U.S.A., Australia, Great Britain, Argentina, and hopefully, our newest national addition, Estonia!

The sense of family and camaraderie among the delegates and guests was palpable. The attendance of representatives from so many oseredky was an excellent reminder that we are all part of the CYM family. It was heartwarming to feel so comfortable with new friends and to share our passion for CYM with likeminded individuals from across the country. All participants returned to their oseredky physically exhausted by the busy weekend but also energized in sprit to continue working in CYM.