Malanka celebrations commemorate 125 years of Ukrainian culture in Canada
Prince Albert’s Veselka Club has a lot to celebrate this New Year. 2016 marks 125 years since the first Ukrainian immigrants arrived in Canada.
The heritage club will be ringing in the Ukrainian New Year with an official Malanka celebration at the Prince Albert Travelodge on Jan. 16.
Iris Smisko, second vice president for the Prince Albert Veselka Club, said the celebration, which traditionally celebrates the coming of spring, will also acknowledge the first Ukrainian pioneers that worked so hard to build a better life for their families.
“They left their home land and all their families. A lot of them coming here knew absolutely nobody and started a brand new life,” said Smisko. “And they had to go through many physical hardships and surrounding hardships to do that.