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Heritage thrives at Ukrainian festival
By: GARY WECKSELBLATT
Aug 23, 2010
Americans celebrate the Fourth of July holiday with food and fireworks.
For Ukrainian-Americans, their independence is highlighted by food, colorful costumes and fast-paced acrobatic dancing.
And that was on display, though somewhat muted by the rain, during Sunday's 19th annual Ukrainian Folk Festival at the Tryzub Ukrainian American Sport Center in Horsham.
"It's part of the strength of the United States that we're able to celebrate our heritage," said event organizer Gene Luciw, who emceed the event speaking both English and Ukrainian. "We're one of the more colorful parts of this country's mosaic. The dances are vibrant and colorful and the folk music is uplifting." The event was filled with folk dancing and singing, the aroma of traditional foods like pierogies, kielbasa (Ukrainian sausage) and holuptsi, the cooked cabbage bundles stuffed with ground beef and rice, and lots of costumes.
The crowd cheers a dance performance during the event.
Steve
Gengler / Intelligencer Record Staff Photo.
The Fralinger String Band of Philadelphia performs Ukrainian
folk music as they walk through the crowd en route to the stage.
Steve
Gengler / Intelligencer Record Staff Photo
The Syzokryli Ukrainian Folk Dance Ensemble performs for
the crowd during the festival.
Steve Gengler / Staff Photo
The Voloshky Ukrainian Dance Ensemble of Jenkintown performs “Broken
Promises”
Steve Gengler / Intelligencer Record Staff Photo
Click
here to view all Ukrainian festival 2010 photos
"That's what we come to see, the costumes," said Ihor Vasylyna, who attended the festival with his wife, Pauline, and was halfway through a sausage. "We need the weather to cooperate."
The rain didn't perturb Tanya Husar. "We're a resilient people. This will be fine."
Ukraine became an independent nation on Aug. 24, 1991, after about 70 years of rule by the former Soviet Union.
There are about 1 million Americans of Ukrainian descent in the U.S.
The Keystone state ranks behind New York as having the second largest Ukrainian-American population.
Taras Lewycki, a first generation American, is artistic director for the Voloshky Ukrainian Dance Ensemble, which performed at Sunday's festival.
He travels to Ukraine almost annually and said the people there are shocked at how "the culture was sustained in America."
"We existed in exhile on our own," he said. "We were able to maintain our language and culture. When you don't have access to the country, it is very hard."
Now, he said, "Ukraine is learning to grow as a multicultural society. America is the only place this has happened in history, where so many cultures thrive under one government."
On Sunday, the Ukranian culture was thriving in Horsham, despite the weather.
Gary Weckselblatt can be reached at 215-345-3169 or gweckselblatt@phillyBurbs.com
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Festival 2010 photos:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7421005@N06/sets/72157624660669439/with/4917823475/
Festival 2009 photos:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7421005@N06/sets/72157622141049328/
Festival 2008 photos:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7421005@N06/sets/72157606951982441/
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