Late Winter Happenings at UCI / A Doorway to a New World

This is an activity filled winter and it continues just as ambitious into the spring season.
Lenten lunches are served every Friday of lent. On the menu are the pyrohy/varenyky, fish, vegetables and dessert. Prior to Lent, UCI served Thursday lunches whose menu was soup, sandwich and dessert.

Coming up next week-end is the pysanka workshop. This class is open to everyone above the fifth grade and a week before Easter UCI opens its annual Pysanka Show and sale. This show will mark the 30th anniversary or the 30th pysanka show. Wow, what a history! The show began with only 48 pysanky, the artistic work of Betty Sprynczynatyk and Betty Baranko. Over a span of the 30 years, about 2000 new pysanky have been exhibited and many are in the homes throughout the United States including Alaska. Artists exhibiting over this period of time are Angie Chruszch, Betty Baranko, Katie Logosz, Josie Namyniuk, Avalyn Ennen, Ruth Olienuk Radebaugh, Debbie Olienyk Gross, Betty Olienyk Sprynczynatyk, Traci Evoniuk Knopik. The show also exhibited pysanky made by Pearl Basaraba, a collection of Nellie Olienyk, Colleen Rodakowski. The very first show’s exhibit were photographed into slides by Dr. Soper and Dr. Veeder. As for the number of students taking the workshop, we’d estimate 130.The art of the pysanka has been proudly preserved by the Ukrainian Cultural Institute.

Other happenings: the spring issue of the newsletter/journal has gone to press. It carries an Easter Story by Marie Makaruk riding in a buggy with her parents, sisters and brothers to sunrise resurrection service held at Ss Peter & Paul Ukrainian Orthodox Church at Ukraina. This spring issue also introduces the Festival program. We are excited over the visual arts exhibit which will include embroidery in ritual traditions. For example, Martha Namyniuk will bake a korovai, a wedding bread and it will be displayed on an embroidered rushnyk, an embroidered towel. The exhibit will also show how to place rushnyky around icons, how the rushnyky are used in wedding rituals including the wedding ceremony in church and zavytannia. This mentioned just a few.

Doorway to a New World

On a previous radio program, we read you the story of Mary Skoropat’s Hruby’s experience on Ellis Island. That story was told to us by Mary herself.

We received another story written by Russel Roberts Doorway to a New World – The story of Ellis Island. It was sent us to us by Daniel Baranick of Minot.

Mr. Roberts writes- I came to America because I heard the streets were paved with gold. When I got here, I found out Three things: the streets were not paved with gold, they weren’t paved at all and it was expected that I was expected to pave then.

No, the streets were not paved with gold, but that didn’t stop millions from hoping that if they came to the Promised Land across the ocean, they would find something worth far more than money – freedom.

So come they did. Leaving behind the familiar, they packed their belongings, tearfully kissed their relatives and friends goodbye and set out on a journey to a distant land thousands of miles away. They didn’t know what awaited them but were certain it had to be better than what they left behind. Like Columbus before them, they came in search of the New World – America. But before they could find it, they had a stop to make at Ellis Island. This is the place they feared. Mary Hruby told us what it was they feared. We now quote from Mary’s interview:

When we got off the ship we went to a station and there we were all shut into cages like animals. They asked us to identify the people meeting us. Before we got in line, they checked us. Mother had nits pulled out of her hair. There was flu before that. Anything that was black, they said was lice. Mother had to pay money to have the white stuff pulled out of her hair. We, children, cut our hair like boys. When we were coming to New York, the men pat us on the heads and said, “Hello boys, hello boys.

There was a lady Katie and her daughter Annia. Katie had dandruff in her hair. Mother told her to pull her shawl down. But she said, no, no, no one will look. She wouldn’t pull her kerchief down. The inspector did and dandruff was revealed. They placed a big chalk on her front and in back. She cried “Help me”. Mother said I tried to help you. Why didn’t you listen to my words.

We don’t know what became of her.

Let’s go back to Mr. Roberts and hear what he said about the inspection on Ellis Island.

Immigrants were examined by doctors. The eye man was feared the most. He would quickly evert the eyelids of each new arrival. He was looking for trachoma, a contagious incurable disease, that if detected resulted in deportation. Suspected ailments were marked in chalk: H for heart, E for eyes and so on. Anyone identified was detained for further tests.

Those who passed the physical exam were sent to the Great Hall. This Hall was filled with chatter from about a dozen different languages. The fate of thousands of people was decided daily. About 2 per cent of the immigrants were turned away each year.

UCI occasionally receives a letter from someone from here who has toured Ellie Island for on a wall a photo 8 feet by 4 feet of Ukrainian immigrants going to North Dakota. I wonder now how we can obtain a copy of this photograph for our book on Ukrainians in North Dakota.