During the 19th Perelaz Charitable Folk-Ball, more than 23 million hryvnias were donated in support of talented students and professors of Ukrainian Catholic University.
On Sunday, 28 June, Ukrainian Catholic University gathered friends and partners for Perelaz, not only to spend time together but also to help talented youth who don’t have the finances to pay for their studies at the university.
The theme of this year’s Perelaz was Opishnia pottery. This is a traditional Ukrainian ceramic from the village of Opishnia, Poltava Region, one of the largest centers for the production of pottery ceramics in Ukraine. They prepare these items from a local type of clay. They have a grayish color but during heating they take on a light yellow shade.
Opishnia decorative painting primarily features floral motifs, including flowers, clusters of berries or grapes, ears of wheat, and branches arranged in bouquets and wreaths. Typical features are a light yellow ornamental design, rendered in the natural color of the clay, on a red-brown, white, or green background.
Perelaz featured elements of this painting on the décor. There was also an opportunity to acquire Opishnia pottery at an auction.
The event traditionally features silent and live art auctions which present works given by leading artists, friends, and benefactors of UCU, for which the university expresses its deepest thanks! There is also a charitable lottery with gifts provided by partners.
Perelaz 2026
Near the symbolic perelaz (stile), UCU Rector Taras Dobko and his advisor, a political prisoner and dissident in Soviet times, Myroslav Marynovych, greeted the guests. UCU Vice-President Fr. Bohdan Prach blessed the start of the event and encouraged everyone to get acquainted.
The 19th Perelaz
In his speech, Taras Dobko emphasized that, to rebuild the country, the latest technology is needed but, above all, people with character are also needed.
“A friend of mine noted how special our graduations are. They value relations, which they know how and want to build,” explained Taras Dobko. “To create a country, we need the latest technology but, above all, we need people with character. People are the key to everything, and UCU prepares these people. It is possible in Ukraine, despite the war, to acquire a quality education which gives a competitive advantage on the international market.”
Taras Dobko during Perelaz
The rector thanked all those present for their support: “Our mission is to renew the unappreciated capital of enthusiastic people. We are fortunate that we are not alone in this.”
Archbishop of Philadelphia of the UGCC and President of UCU Metropolitan Borys Gudziak, greeting the guests, emphasized: “Ukraine is in the epicenter of global changes. You are all constantly in our thoughts, your family and relatives on the frontlines.”
The metropolitan said that he has traveled much in recent months: He was in Australia, Europe, Great Britain, and Canada, and everywhere he met students and graduates of UCU: “More than 500 priests are UCU graduates. In 1985, our church had only 300 priests. Now there are 3 000. They are the foundation of our communities from Australia to Paris. Now seven bishops and seven national deputies have graduated from our university. Among our graduates are women theologians. This is a revolution which is changing our church and society.”
Metropolitan Borys Gudziak
Metropolitan Borys Gudziak thanked the benefactors and friends of the university for their ongoing support of UCU and our defenders and asked them to continue.
“At UCU we started to think about what is dignity and what it is worth. This value is part of the mission of our university. Support Ukrainian Catholic University. It is clean. It is not perfect, but there is no deceit here. There is here great love, openness, rigor, concern for out staff, children, and our future,” emphasized Metropolitan Borys Gudziak.
Kateryna Zagoriy, UCU Senator and co-founder of the Zagoriy Foundation, was the keynote speaker at the 19th Perelaz.
“Why earn money? In order to share it, to be free, dignified, to realize your dreams, to do good deeds, You can do all this through UCU. The university answers the question of what people will be like after us, tomorrow. They will use what we have given. What do we want to leave them? Private property, freedom, a government, a country, values, faith, a strong army. And for this, it’s necessary to remember that there are no other adults in the room. The adults are here, some are 16, some 60 or 70. Now absolutely everything depends on us. We must do more. Your contribution to the university is an investment in tomorrow, because we are forming the future today,” stated Kateryna Zagoriy.
Kateryna Zagoriy
She recalled how Perelaz was begun, so that people would be closer to each other.
“Let us build more perelazes [neighborly fences], rather than walls. Let us put our money into universities,” encouraged the senator.
“Perelaz is about unity, gathering together for a common goal. This is not the time for division in education. We need to do everything so that children remain in Ukraine and obtain a quality education,” announced Artur Proidakov, Executive Director of the MriyDiy Educational Foundation, a teacher of Ukrainian language and literature, and a top 10 finalist for the Global Teacher Prize.
Among the guests of Perelaz were representatives of the city and regional government. Lviv Mayor Andriy Sadovyi emphasized that UCU is an institution that serves as a tuning fork not only for Lviv but also for Ukraine.
This year, as part of UCU’s cooperation with the Aurora multi-market chain, there was special collaboration with a graduate of the second group of Stanford Ignite Ukraine, co-founder of the Meetty chocolate company, Oleksiy Kolchanov. They are working together on a new, unique product, a line of chocolates inspired by Ukraine’s cultural regions.
The first bar of this series, dedicated to Opishnia and its pottery tradition, was presented during Perelaz.
Oleksiy Kolchanov stated: “Investment in the future is the most important thing now. The tradition and culture of philanthropy, which UCU is developing in Ukraine, plays an important role in the future development of our country. Thank you.”
“Without education, there will be no future, no intelligentsia, which was wiped out until now. UCU graduates are different. This is very difficult to explain. This university forms personalities through Ukrainian traditions, faith, learning. This gives strength which will later transform them into good workers, managers. Ukraine now is in great need of this,” emphasized emeritus UCU senator Mykola Kmit.
The evening’s emcee was actor, humorist, and TV personality Taras Stadnytskyi.
The group Kozak System performed. During the performance, band leader Ivan Leno called upon those present to support everyone who needs it and, above all, the Armed Forces of Ukraine, without whom this event would not be possible.
We thank the guests who joined us and support Ukrainian education and the talented students of our university.
Ukrainian Catholic University thanks the sponsors of Perelaz 2026: Darnytsia Pharmaceutical Company, the Zagoriy Foundation, visionary partner the Aurora multimarket chain, and the Dreamer sponsor category, TM Truskavetska.
Partners: Pravda breweries, Plandzhyiev Craft Spirits, Gastrobureau, SPROF, Coca-Cola, UCU Art
