Ottawa Tribute for Archivist Myron Momryk

By Andrij Makuch

The Chair of Ukrainian Studies at the University of Ottawa honoured retiring archivist Myron Momryk at a tribute evening held on May 2 in Ottawa. Mr. Momryk will be leaving Library and Archives Canada (the overall structure that incorporates the former National Archives of Canada) later this summer after 25 years of service in its multicultural archives department. He had previously worked in the History Office of the Secretary of State’s Multiculturalism Program.

Dr. Dominique Arel, holder of the Ottawa Chair, greeted the crowd assembled at the Univerity of Ottawa’s University Centre and then called on Andrij Makuch from the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies’ Ukrainian Canadian Programme to introduce the star of the evening. Mr. Makuch provided a biographical sketch of Mr. Momryk and discussed the important role that archival resources have played in the development of the writing on Ukrainian-Canadian history since the 1970s. Describing the National Archives as “the jewel in the crown” in terms of its Ukrainian holdings, Mr. Makuch noted that Mr. Momryk had played a critical role in obtaining and organizing many of LAC’s major Ukrainian collections.

Mr. Momryk then took the floor. He began by talking about his earliest days at the Secretary of State and his transfer to the secretariat’s Ethnic History Project. He also noted his frequent meetings with fellow civil servant Stephen Jaworsky and Carleton University professor Bohdan Bociurkiw, which helped instill in him a “life-long interest in all aspects of multiculturalism.”

He went on to relate some of his more memorable moments in the Archives. One involved his eventually successful quest to ensure that the Archives’ Ukrainian collection also included the papers of left-wing Ukrainian-Canadian organizations. He also described the difficulties posed for the Archives by the opposing parties represented at the Deschnes Commission [of Inquiry on War Criminals] in the mid-1980s. Finally, he noted the decline of interest in multiculturalism among federal government departments and its limiting effect on the Ukrainian archives programme.

Mr. Momryk ended by saying that during his retirement he plans to work on projects related to some of his long-term research interests, including the history of the Ukrainian community in Val D’Or, Quebec (the place where he grew up), a political biography of former federal MP and Cabinet Minister Michael Starr, and the story of Canadian volunteers in the Spanish Civil War.

At this point, the master of ceremonies duties were assumed by Borys Gengalo of the Ukrainian Canadian Professional and Business Association (UCPBA) of Ottawa. He called upon a number of Mr. Momryk’s colleagues from Library and Archives Canada to speak, including Peter DeLottinville (Acting Director, Political and Social Heritage Division), Dr. Authur Grenke (Social and Cultural Archives), and Lawrence Tapper (recently retired). Mr. DeLottinville led off with a description of the qualities that had made Mr. Momryk an inspiration to his fellow workers. These included the fact that he was a very decent and level-headed person– just the sort of person needed to keep things on an even keel; that he liked to get things done and would even take on tasks others shied away from; and that he had remained curious and intellectually active throughout his career. Those themes certainly resonated throughout the evening.

Next, Dr. Grenke provided a personal look at Mr. Momryk and his work, adding that in his estimation, Mr. Momryk had been a key figure in helping the multicultural archives survive. Finally, Mr. Tapper, who could not be present, provided a written account in which he noted that the archives could no longer serve just as a repository, but had to engage people at a personal level, to mentor them—much like Mr. Momryk had done with many individuals over the years.

Subsequently, Dr. Rhonda Hinther, Curator of the Western Canada Collection at the Canadian Museum of Civilization, spoke very appreciatively of the assistance offered by Mr. Momryk in the course of her thesis research. She then announced that that plans for publishing a collection of essays in honour of Mr. Momryk–to be edited by herself and Dr. James Mochoruk of the University of North Dakota–were going very well, with an enthusiastic response from scholars to a call for papers and strong interest on the part of the University of Toronto Press toward printing the festschrift. This was the first public announcement about the project.

Remarks by Dr. Mark Stolarik, holder of the Chair of Slovak History and Culture at the University of Ottawa, followed. He had some appreciative words for Mr. Momryk’s work on other multicultural collections, including LAC’s large Slovak collection. At the same time, he noted the key role Ukrainians had played in developing multiculturalism and inspiring other groups to follow their example in community and institutional development (in this case, Slovak-Canadians, with specific reference to the creation of the Slovak Chair).

Greetings from a number of Mr. Momryk’s colleagues throughout Canada were then read.

This left Mr. Gengalo with the final word. He reflected upon the fact that “everyone” had a point of view and, with that, a desire to see history written to reflect their perspective. Accordingly, it is fortunate that a balance on the entire matter is maintained by level-headed record-keepers. He concluded with a quote from the citation, which accompanied the Filip Konowal, VC, Award for Lifetime Achievement that Mr. Momryk received from the Ottawa UCPBA in December 2004: “It is difficult to pick a book on Ukrainian-Canadian history and not find a ‘thank you’ to Myron in the Introduction. Without his patient efforts, we would have become a much-diminished community, lacking the evidence that defines our place in Canadian society.”

A reception, complete with a cold buffet, followed, allowing people to mingle and to pass on their own best wishes to Mr. Momryk privately.