“In Baba's Trunk”

Karen Pidskalny, SUHS Project Coordinator

The Saskatchewan Ukrainian Historical society invites you to come and share the treasures found “In Baba’s Trunk.”

We will spend the day discovering, sharing and preserving our Ukrainian history both in Saskatchewan and Canada. Our sessions are:

• “It Started With a Plough”: first wave of Ukrainian emigration and settlement patterns
• “Organizations, Committees & Memberships, Oh My!”: the reality of establishing a community in a new country
• “Your Family Tree”: where and how to begin the family research process
• "Ukrainian People Places": placenames in Saskatchewan with a Ukrainian connection

The conference takes place on Saturday, May 8th, from 8:30 am – 4:30 pm. For more information, please contact Karen Pidskalny at 664-0045 or at 652-5850.

Our Ukrainian ancestors came to Canada in hopes of a better life for themselves and the generations to come. They packed what they could in a trunk -- clothes, seeds, implements, books and their dreams -- to travel half way around the world to the wilderness of Canada. From the possessions in their trunk to the little money they had in their pocket, they built a new life and new communities. Their dedication, hard work, and their faith in God have brought us to where we are today.

The Saskatchewan Ukrainian Historical Society has been established under the direction of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress - Saskatchewan Provincial Council to begin the necessary work of collecting and preserving the Ukrainian history of this province and our country. SUHS plays a vital role in acknowledging the vast contributions of Ukrainian settlers in the building history of our nation.

SUHS will be a vehicle for research as well as an avenue to share research. It will be an opportunity for non-academic and amateur historians to share their expertise. On the eve of Saskatchewan’s Centennial, the historical society is a wonderful way in which to honour our Ukrainian ancestors and the legacy we have today.

SUHS invites you to its founding conference, named appropriately “In Baba’s Trunk.” The conference is being held on Saturday, May 8th, from 8:30 am – 4:30 pm, in the lower level of the Dormition of the Blessed Mother of God (120 105th Street W), Saskatoon, SK. Registration is $20 and youth/students $10 with ID.

During your visit with Baba’s Trunk, you will reminisce over four pieces of treasure:

It Started With a Plough
A love of the land flows through the blood of Ukrainians. It was the reason they first came to Canada and why many still farm today. We will discuss the first immigration wave of Ukrainians and where they settled in Saskatchewan. Why and how they settled where they did.
Presenter: Dr. Alan Anderson, Department of Sociology, U of S

Organizations, Committees and Memberships, Oh My!
Here is the opportunity to explore the realities of Canada’s Ukrainian Nation Builders. The arrival of Ukrainian immigrants at the turn of the last century saw new communities being built and all that goes with them to meet the needs of Canada’s newest citizens. Whether it was the necessity of a church, school, social, cultural, or labour organizations, those early leaders dedicated themselves to building our communities.
Presenter: Andrij Makuch, Research Coordinator, Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies, U of T

Your Family Tree
Your family history begins with you. We will share how and where to begin the research process. You will have the opportunity to view how one genealogist compiled and began the preservation of his family history here in Saskatchewan. Come and discover how fascinating genealogy is.
Presenters: Michelle & Cliff Rusk, and Bohdan Bayda, Saskatoon Branch Genealogical Society

Ukrainian People Places
You will have the chance to discover more about some of the placenames in Saskatchewan with a Ukrainian connection.
Presenter: Bill Barry, Author

The Saskatchewan Ukrainian Historical Society and you can spend the day discovering, sharing and preserving our Ukrainian history both in Saskatchewan and in Canada. You can contact Karen at 306-652-5850 or 306-664-0045 to register for “In Baba’s Trunk.” The presenters and I are eager to share an exciting day in the historical society’s own history. Looking forward to visiting with you at “In Baba’s Trunk”!

Details (PDF) | Conference registration form (PDF)

The presenters

Dr. Alan Anderson

Alan Anderson is Professor of Sociology and Chair of the International Studies Program at the University of Saskatchewan (which has just inaugurated a new program in Slavic and East European Studies). His interest in ethnic settlements in Saskatchewan dates back to 1972, when he completed his PhD on this subject. Most recently he contributed the ethnic settlements section to the Atlas of Saskatchewan, and currently is the editorial board member for the population and ethnic settlements entries in the forthcoming Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan. He is a former President of the Canadian Ethnic Studies Association.

Andrij Makuch

Education
M.A., Department of History, University of Alberta (Edmonton), 1983 (thesis title: "In the Populist Tradition: Organizing the Ukrainian Fanner in Alberta, 1909-35")

B.A. Honours, Department of History, University of Alberta (Edmonton), 1978

Work Experience
Senior Manuscript Editor, Encyclopedia of Ukraine, Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies, 1988-present (including work on the 5-volume published Encyclopedia [1984-93], preparation of an index and errata list [published in 2001], and gathering and writing materials for an Internet version of the Encyclopedia

Research Co-ordinator, Ukrainian Canadian Programme, Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies, 2000-present (with work focusing on the interwar period of Ukrainian-Canadian history)

Contract Researcher, Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village (Edmonton), Alberta Historic Sites Service, 1982-3 and 1986-7, (with responsibility for providing materials for historical restoration and cultural interpretation)

Sessional Lecturer, Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, University of Saskatchewan (Saskatoon), 1984-6

Publications
Encyclopedia of Ukraine: Index and Errata (Edmonton-Toronto: Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies Press, 2001)

"Ukrainians in Canada," (with Wsevolod Isajiw), in Ann Lencyk Pawliczko (ed), Ukraine and Ukrainians throughout the World (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1994)

Hlus' Church: A Narrative History of the Ukrainian Catholic Church at Buczacz, Alberta (Edmonton: Alberta Historic Sites Service Occasional Paper No. 19, 1989)

"Narodni Domy in East Central Alberta," in M. Lupul (ed), Continuity and Change: The Cultural Life of Alberta's First Ukrainians (Edmonton: CIUS, 1988)

Michelle Rusk

• Born and raised in Saskatoon, and I have also lived in Ft. McMurray, Calgary, and Australia.
• First started asking questions about my own family history in grade school, but
  only seriously began genealogy research in 1996 after my father passed away. Her paternal line (Cochrane) is Scots-Irish and her maternal line (Rayson) is English. Her fathers line can be traced back to North Carolina in the early 1800's before they immigrated to the Hemingford, Quebec area in the mid 1800's.
• She is an amateur artist, gardener, historian; and maintains her own website for genealogy and other interests.
• She has been working with individuals across Canada and England on Canadian War Brides projects, including the War Bride Exhibit on the new Queen Mary II
• President of the Board of the Heritage Festival of Saskatoon for 2004
• Past President of the Saskatoon Branch of the Saskatchewan Genealogical Society

Cliff Rusk

• Born in Arborfield, Saskatchewan and has managed to live in a number of cities and towns all over Saskatchewan.
• President and Newsletter Editor of the Saskatoon Branch of the Saskatchewan Genealogical Society
• First started into genealogy research about 9 years ago after a family conversation around his parents' kitchen table. His paternal line (Rusk) is Scots-Irish, who emigrated from Ireland around 1840 to Ontario and then onto Saskatchewan by 1901; and, his maternal line (Friske) "Germans from Russia", they first settled in Neche, North Dakota around 1900 before heading north into Canada and homesteading near Aberdeen around 1903. That original homestead is still farmed by members of the Friske family.

Beverly Gutenberg

• I started researching my family in 1994 when the contract I had to write two annotated bibliographies was completed and I had this expensive computer sitting around. I copied a family history book into my computer. Always been interested in genealogy because of my surname 'Gutenberg'. My family is German from Russia. All of my ancestors came from the Kutschurgan area of Russia, which is in the present Ukraine. My family moved there in the early 1800's from Alsace-Lorraine region of France/Germany.
• I have taken numerous SGS classes and received certificates for the following: Instructor of Basic Saskatchewan Genealogy, Saskatchewan Record Searcher and Saskatchewan Researcher. I am presently enrolled in the Aboriginal and Metis Researcher Class.
• In my real life I work as a counselor at Carlton Trail Regional College. I have my bachelor of Social Work and Bachelor of Education.