August 18, 2008 -- Theresa Sokyrka, now of Toronto, ON, will return to Ukraine Day in the Park as a performer on August 23, 2008. Theresa, 2004 Canadian Idol runner-up, last appeared at Ukraine Day in 2007 when she was still a Canadian Idol contestant. A Ukraine Day record crowd came to see and support Theresa on that day.

Ms. Sokyrka has established a repertoire of Ukrainian songs and has recently been a headliner at both Dauphin and Vegreville Ukrainian festivals.

A special feature at Ukraine Day in the Park this year will be a special tribute to the City of Chernivtsi, Saskatoon’s twin city in Ukraine, on the occasion of its 600th anniversary this year. Greetings to Chernivtsi will be expressed by festival stage dignitaries which are expected to include Mayor Don Atchison of Saskatoon. Chernivtsi is the major city of the ethnographic region of Bukovyna. To conclude the Chernivtsi commemoration the Pavlychenko Folklorique Ensemble will perform a special tributary Bukovynian dance.

Mayor Atchison is planning to attend the celebrations in Chernivtsi during the prime celebratory days of October 4/5, 2008. He will join many other dignitaries from Chernivtsi’s twin cities around the world.

Of interest to readers will be that Chernivtsi was recently named the best city in Ukraine to live in. An analysts’ group named Focus Ukraine analyzed life conditions in 55 of Ukraine’s largest cities using more than 10 characteristics.

Another new feature this year at Ukraine Day in the Park will be the “Village of Origin” display manned by Ludvik Marianych of Edmonton, AB. Marianych, a school teacher, has already spent 10 years assisting people to research their family origins in Ukraine. He is also compiling lists of family surnames and villages of origin in Ukraine. This list along with maps and various histories will be on display. People are encouraged to come with their villages of origin and then find and mark them on Marianych’s map.

Ukraine Day activities will begin with breakfast and live entertainment at the Ukrainian Museum of Canada from 8:30 to 11:00 am. There will be free admission to the Museum’s galleries all day, where the feature exhibit is entitled “Traditional Icons” by Vera Senchuk, iconographer of Winnipeg.

Activities on the south side of the Delta Bessborough Hotel, from 11:00 am to 9:00 pm, include an interdenominational prayer service, children’s activities, delicious Ukrainian food, souvenir vendors and a beer garden. The main cultural display will feature an historical exhibit on the Ukrainian Kozaks. All of this will be complemented with a continuous stage show, with more than 15 performing groups, to provide an enjoyable family experience.

Admission is free and the public is invited to bring their own lawn chairs. www.ucc.sk.ca/udip

For more information contact: Al Kachkowski 306-374-7675