The Ukrainian community was built by volunteers – people who willingly gave of their time and finances to build the community we have today. Donations were freely given – there are entire walls of honour boards in the foyer of Ukrainian House in Essendon dedicated to the men and women who donated money so that the Ukrainian community could grow.
However things have changed since the 1950’s and 60’s and volunteers are harder to come by. People are busy with their work, families and social activities. The halls are already built. The churches are here. There seems to be less importance placed on these things.
But what if one day all of this disappeared? What if there were no varenyky after mass on a Sunday? Or no hall to host a Ukrainian concert?
In the last 18 months the AUV Board has been encouraging people to start cherishing their heritage again and maintaining what we have. We have seen a resurgence in new volunteers, new members and people interacting with the community.
Everything from maintenance works to cooking and cleaning is often covered by unpaid volunteers who do what they do because it means something to them. We are planning a working bee at the AUV Ukrainian House in Essendon soon – stay tuned for details. However if you want to be of service in the meantime please get in touch with us – email Vice President, Liana Slipetsky – communications@auv.org.au
Here are some photos of our volunteers in action. To them we say DIAKUYU – Thank you
