A three-person delegation from Chortkiv, Ukraine, has arrived in Whitehorse for a seven-day visit.
The delegation arrived on Oct. 10 at the Erik Nielsen Whitehorse International Airport and was received by members of the RCMP, First Nation leaders and the Ukrainian Canadian Association of the Yukon (UCAY), the group that organized the trip.
The team includes Chortkiv Mayor Volodymyr Shmatko; Dr. Serhii Budenkyvych, chair of Chortkiv’s medical branch; and Marta Hlubish, chair of Chortkiv’s department of International Relations, Innovations and Energy Management.
During their visit, the delegates will work to establish relationships of mutual economic and cultural benefit with First Nations, businesses and governments while in the territory.
At a press conference at the airport, Shmatko said it feels good to be in the territory after dreaming of visiting Canada for a very long time.
“I have good feelings being here. Canada is a beautiful country with [a] rich culture,” he said. “We thank the Canadian government for the support we have received during the ongoing war. The support has kept us going.”
Shmatko said he would meet the Ukrainian community during their stay in the territory while also forging new relationships with other partners and supporters of Ukraine’s cause.
UCAY president Jeff Sloychuk told the News the visit is symbolic and important in building new relationships and supporting Ukraine amid the ongoing war.
“It’s like a dream, and I feel great to have them here,” he said. “We want to be able to show them the Yukon and to give them a break from the realities of war back in Ukraine and show them love.”
Sloychuk has organized two separate trips to Ukraine in less than a year, delivering supplies and relief materials to victims of the war.
On Oct. 12, the association will host a fundraising gala from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Mount McIntyre Recreation Centre in Whitehorse. The event, sponsored by Gray Management Services, will feature Ukrainian hip-hop dancers, live music, silent and live auctions and a special taste-testing borsht bar.
Representatives of the City of Whitehorse, the City of Chortkiv and the Yukon government will be attending.
Sloychuk said they will be looking at raising funds for the delegation to procure relief supplies and future deliveries of medicines during their trip back to Ukraine through the showcase of Ukrainian materials and intangible culture.
Kwanlin Dün First Nation Chief Sean Smith and Ta’an Kwäch’än Council Chief Amanda Leas, who were at the airport to receive the delegates, said their visit is an opportunity to share First Nations culture and traditions with them.
“This is an important visit, and we are happy to have them in our territory, spending time with us and learning our way of life,” Smith said. “We look forward to building lasting cooperation and friendships.”
“It’s important to share those stories so they can bring it back to their families and communities in Ukraine,” Leas said. “We have carried our culture and traditions for generations, and we are still passing it on to our children.”
Sloychuk said it’s important that the First Nations leaders could come and welcome the delegation.
“Of course, in Ukraine, especially in the east, we are dealing with what is essentially colonization when Russia comes in and tries to take away the language, culture and heritage of the Ukrainian people,” he said. “So, I just think it’s important for us to make those connections with the First Nations because of what they have been through themselves and how stronger they are able to come back after generations of trauma and oppression.”
Contact Patrick Egwu at patrick.egwu@yukon-news.com
