Victims of Ukrainian genocide remembered during Holodomor Awareness Week

One candle gently touched the wick of the next, and that candle then lit the flame of the candle beside it. And on the flame travelled.

Soon, a solemn, flickering light was seen all around the STM Chapel as attendees at a vigil for the Holodomor remembered the agony of starvation that took the lives of millions of innocent children, mothers, and fathers.

The University of Saskatchewan Ukrainian Students’ Association (USUSA) marked National Holodomor Awareness Week with two public events this past week.

On Nov. 18, USUSA hosted a screening of Mr. Jones at the Mohyla Institute. The 2019 film is based on the true story of Welsh journalist Gareth Jones, who uncovered the truth of the devastating man-made famine in 1932-1933 in which millions died.

On Thursday, Nov. 20, the student group held a Holodomor Vigil in the Chapel of St. Thomas More College (STM).

The group said the events were held to honour the memory of the victims of the Holodomor and reaffirm its commitment to preserving the truth.

At the vigil, USUSA president Taisa Rudy said it has been many years since the Holodomor atrocity occurred, yet today we still see parallels in the actions of the Russian government trying to once again attempt to gain control of Ukraine.

“In 1932 to 1933, approximately 28,000 people were dying daily, 1,168 people every hour and 20 every minute to starvation, famine, and disease, all at the hands of the Soviet regime,” she said. “It is estimated that seven million Ukrainian lives were lost in the span of this one single year.”

“However, as many records were destroyed, the numbers could not be exactly confirmed, and are suspected to have reached 10 million, if not more.”

“After the service this afternoon, we encourage you to be vocal and public about your support for Ukraine,” Rudy said. “We promised that such devastation would never happen again on Ukrainian soil, yet the current actions of (Russian President Vladimir) Putin and Russia are showing that ‘Never Again’ is happening now. Please find a way to support Ukraine, whether it's by the donations, prayers or by posts on social media. We can no longer continue to say ‘Never Again’, if we do not take action to enforce that statement.”

The vigil included testimony from Nikita Sereda, a USUSA member and descendant of a family that survived the famine, and whose members still recount stories passed down of the suffering at the hands of the Communist government of the day.

“May the legacy of those who came before us inspire us to never forget, to never surrender, and to continue building a future where Ukrainian identity and freedom endure,” Sereda said. “Let us carry forward the stories of those who survived, the lessons of those who perished, and the courage of those who acted with compassion in the darkest times”

The vigil was attended by students, faculty and staff of STM College, as well as special guests. It included prayers and the lighting of commemorative candles, as well as the sharing of memorial bread from traditional Ukrainian round loaves.

The service was overseen by Fr. Andre Lalach, STM Campus Minister and Ukrainian Catholic priest of the Dormition Parish in Saskatoon, and the Very Rev. Archpriest Taras Makowsky, from Holy Trinity Cathedral in Saskatoon of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Canada, with assistance from Sereda, who is seminary student in Saskatoon.

Sereda included words of resolve in his testimony, and alluded to the current war with Russia that has raged in Ukraine since 2014 and became a full-scale invasion in 2022.

“Though generations have faced oppression, starvation, and attempts to erase our identity, we remain. Today we honor the memory not only by remembering the past, but by standing strong in the present, preserving our culture, speaking our truth, and supporting our homeland.”