UMA Welcomes Delegation from Zhytomyr
|
On September 27th, the
International Visitors Council in Columbus, Ohio brought
a group from Zhytomyr in West Central Ukraine to tour
the UMA. Five men and five women were in the United
States as part of the Community Connections Group to
observe and learn about nonprofit development in this
country. After a series of meetings in Cleveland, the visitors from Zhytomyr came to the UMA where they enjoyed a tour of our exhibits and collections and then joined representatives of Cleveland's Ukrainian Community in a reception with tasty food prepared by caterer Taras Kowcz. During the formal portion of the reception, each of the ten guests introduced himself or herself and spoke about their activities in Zhytomyr. Guests included Iryna Babenko, Director of Zhytomyr's Woman for Woman Information and Consultation Center which helps women in distress particularly those vulnerable to the international sex trade. Yevhenia Doncheva works with Victims of the Chornobyl Catastrophe. Valery Prokopchuk and Arkadiy Sherstobayev are engaged in youth organization and political activism. Iryna Novozhylova is a journalist who participates in the Regional Women's Council. Each of the guests was dynamic and energetic. In welcoming the guests to Cleveland, United Ukrainian Organizations President Vasyl Liscynesky spoke for many when he saluted the optimism and dedication of the ten visitors. This is what the Diaspora expected and hoped for when we worked for Ukraine's independence over so many long years, he said. Steve Baker, the Director of the Community Connection Program at the International Visitors Council, thanked the UMA for opening its doors to the Ukrainian visitors. It was a very warm and friendly reception that gave everyone hope for a brighter future in Ukraine.
|
webmaster@umacleveland.org