‘Thank you for your trust and solidarity’ – UCU friends donate 17 million hryvnias at Perelaz

Friends of UCU donated approximately 17 million hryvnias for the support of students and professors of the university during the Perelaz Charity Folk-Ball, which has gathered benefactors of UCU for the 17th year in a row.

The charitable event was held on 29 June and, as is traditional, began with a prayer for Ukraine’s soldiers, who at the cost of their lives defend our country on the front. “Every opportunity to be together is now a gift, especially during the challenges of war. We thank our defenders for the opportunity to meet with friends of our university, on behalf of the talented youth who study at UCU.” So said UCU Vice-President Fr. Bohdan Prach at the start of Perelaz, and then he led a prayer.

UCU Rector Taras Dobko thanked all the benefactors: “We are blessed to have you as friends and benefactors of our university. Thank you for your trust, friendship, support, and solidarity. Many of your share with UCU that which is dearest – you allow the university to teach and form your children. And for us there is no greater joy than to see how these children flourish, mature, graduate, and become aware not only of their rights but of their responsibilities before God and Ukraine. As the father of two UCU graduates, I feel great gratitude to our university. It’s a real blessing to work here. We are so glad that you are part of the great UCU community. We thank God for you. Glory to Ukraine!”

UCU Rector Taras Dobko and UCU Vice-President Fr. Bohdan Prach

This day a number of speakers addressed our friends and benefactors. One was Metropolitan Borys Gudziak, President of UCU: “With God’s strength there are great possibilities. And this is happening before our eyes. Let us tend to our hearts. Let us fill them with gratitude, hope, and clear guidelines. Where something is lacking, let us build!

Metropolitan Borys Gudziak, President of UCU

“In Ukraine, my heart is healed. Here I receive hope. Nowhere in the world will you find such attention to the most important things. We have something of value. The Lord blesses us. Let us continue forward, with this university, with these youth. I am certain that the Lord will continue to bless us.”

The Metropolitan of Philadelphia also added that philanthropy is a seed which needs to grow, and that support for education in wartime is key to Ukraine’s victory. “We have the opportunity to study, to be together now, because our soldiers are defending us. We thank our defenders: sons, daughters, brothers, sisters. You are in our prayers many times a day. We will study, because it will be necessary to build our country, not to re-build but to build anew.”

From the establishment of Perelaz, it was a family celebration, and, despite today’s challenges, it remains so. Though the event’s format has became more subdued because of the war, its meaning – a family gathering which honors education, culture, and traditions – has not changed.

The evening’s star emcee was Oleksiy Hnatkovskyi, theater and film actor, Ukrainian theatrical producer, famous for playing the role of Ivan Dovbush in the film “Dovbush.”

Oleksiy Hnatkovskyi

“We are fighting to be called Ukrainians, to live on our land, to keep our identity. What does this identity give? It’s the language we speak, the traditions we follow, the customs we have, and it’s also our culture. What does culture give us? Education, our foundation. Investment in education is investment in our future. I always tell the pupils and students to whom I speak: ‘The war is happening for your sake. You are our dearest ones, for whom great sacrifices are made’… For me, UCU is a great example of good spiritual education. When I see how students interact, the dignity with which they behave, I see the true Ukraine. I am glad that the quality of education here is high, but even gladder that there is a great spirit here. I would like my children to study at UCU,” admitted Oleksiy Hnatkovskyi.

Irma Vitovska, honored artist of Ukraine and an UCU benefactor, also spoke at Perelaz: “Fleeing the country is fleeing your dreams, graves, streets… I am grateful that you remain in Ukraine and with Ukraine. The fact that you are helping education means that we definitely have a future. This will help us survive, provide help, and flourish.”

Irma Vitovska

Irma Vitovska has supported UCU’s development for many years. She thus explains her motivation to invest in education: “My love began while talking with students. When I came to UCU, I saw this institution, professors, youth… UCU stimulates me to look for any way possible to find resources to carry out the mission I have chosen. When you give, it is good to feel that you are part of the integrated creation of something great. May this inspire you to give even more!” So emphasized the honored artist of Ukraine.

Traditionally, during the celebration both silent and live auctions are conducted, at which are presented works donated by leading artists, friends and benefactors of UCU, for which the university expresses sincere thanks! There was also a charitable lottery with gifts from partners.

The guests at Perelaz also heard colorful musical performances of artists of Lviv, the lyrical duet Marta Malska and Vadym Voytovych and the refined Medorchestra.

We thank our benefactors for many years of supporting students, professors, and development projects of the university.

We asked our benefactors why it’s important to support education in wartime:

Mariya Karpinska, Executive Director of the Karpinskyy Foundation:

“We want our children and youth to grow and develop in Ukraine. Very alert children are growing up around us. Unfortunately, the cost of this is great, the anxiety and worry that they experience. But I think that this will make them much stronger.”

Yaroslav Lyubinets, co-founder of the company SoftServe:

“UCU is an innovative educational institution. Here they have the correct combination of education, ethics, innovation, and business. Education is the country’s future. If we are now building a country which is fairly young, it is education which will allow Ukraine to be successful in 10 years, 50 years, and longer. And what is very important is that Ukrainian Catholic University is a symbol for the absence of corruption in educational institutions. In addition, UCU is a symbol of the correct use of donations. UCU was the first in Ukraine to show that it is possible to use donations for good works.”

Annetta Hewko, CEO of the UCU Foundation in the USA:

“UCU’s graduates are Ukraine’s future. The war is terrible and our soldiers need support on the front. But we also need to think about the future, because after victory, rebuilding will happen. We see that UCU graduates are actively involved with philanthropy, building up organizations, and volunteering. We recently visited SuperHumans, and the co-founder said that the best physical therapists working with them are from UCU. She asked for more of them, because Ukraine now very much needs these specialists. This confirms that our mission is correct. It’s also necessary to support UCU and education, because this is important for Ukraine’s future. I thank our benefactors, both in Ukraine and in the USA, who continue to support Ukrainian Catholic University and understand how important this is.”

Olesia Yedynak-Khoma, founder and СЕО of Yedynka DGTL:

“Our future is impossible without education. We are fighting for the future of our children and our country, and so, accordingly, we should already invest in this now. A few years ago, I started the Viktor Hurnyak scholarship. Investment in education is also an opportunity to perpetuate the memory of our heroes, who gave their lives for us. You don’t have to be rich to put money into Ukrainian education, invest in our future right now. Anyone can do this, even by making a small donation.”

Olesia Yedynak-Khoma

Mykhaylo Hanchuk, CEO of the company Promautomatica Vinnytsya and graduate of the program for entrepreneurs Stanford Ignite Ukraine:

“The war is going on and we need to help everyone. Ideally, you should help in what you’re best at. We as a company, Promautomatica, are best at developing products, so we are preparing various products for Ukrainian soldiers, such as Bandera Power [a dependable, multi-channel, fast-charging bloc which provides an independent power supply for various equipment, for the military and others – editor]. Ukrainian Catholic University is best at preparing great specialists. This is the university’s contribution because, as Archbishop Borys said, we don’t need to re-build but to build anew. And those students who are now studying here will do this. It’s important that they’re at a high level, so they can build a truly strong Ukraine.”

The charitable event was possible thanks to the support of sponsors: