SUSK

By Walter Kish

I was reminded this past week that the Ukrainian Canadian Student's Union, better known as SUSK, is having their annual congress the weekend of Feb. 20^th in Toronto. It seems like a long time ago in a universe far away that I used to belong to SUSK, and for a time was even the President of the University of Waterloo Ukrainian Students’ Club in the early 1970s.  Although I can’t say that we had a particularly dynamic club at the time, I still nonetheless have pleasant memories, since those were formative university years particularly, in my coming to terms with my Ukrainian self.

Of course, like the offspring of many Ukrainians who had immigrated to Canada in the aftermath of the Second World War, I had been subjected by my parents to having to learn their language and culture without any particular desire to do so.  In fact, growing up in a Canadian environment that was not particularly kind to ethnics, being Ukrainian seemed more of a hardship than a benefit.  Having to sacrifice a good chunk of prime Saturday playing time to attend “Ridna Shkola” seemed to me at the time to be cruel and unusual punishment.  I considered it a stroke of good fortune when at the age of twelve, my parents moved to a farm in a rural area, and I was no longer required to endure this Saturday purgatory.

It was only when I moved away from home and started University that I began to look at my Ukrainian background in a different light.  The university environment was a rich and almost exotic mix of students of different races, creeds, colours and origins.  It was also the first time in my life when, exposed to a rich discourse of philosophical, ethical and social ideas, that I first really began to think seriously about my life, my values, my understanding of the universe, my future and inevitably, my past. 

Part of this focus on self-awareness and understanding encompassed the fact that I was Ukrainian.  I took some courses in Ukrainian language and literature that was offered at University, did some delving into its Ukrainian book collection and got to know some of the Ukrainian “profs” who patiently shared their knowledge and insights into all things Ukrainian.  At the time, one of University of Waterloo’s teachers and librarians, Dr. Wasyl Sirskyj, became a surrogate parent and mentor and his house became a second home to many Ukrainian students such as me. At his encouragement, I joined the Ukrainian Students' Club on campus and became exposed to others with a similar background.  It soon became clear to me that there was more to Ukrainian culture than pyrohy, the hopak and Taras Shevchenko.

That college era re-awakening became the basis of a life-long involvement with various Ukrainian organizations and the Ukrainian community that culminated with my eventual living and working for some five years in Ukraine after it became independent.  What I had considered in my youth to be cultural “baggage” became an important and valuable part of my identity and character.

I have no doubt as to the importance of those years in university to shape much of what we do later in life, and it is therefore important that Ukrainian organizations pay far more attention and invest far more of their efforts and finances in supporting an organization such as SUSK than they have to date.  I can remember from my days of running USC in Waterloo that we were constantly limited in what we could do by our meagre finances.  In addition, we had little support or contact with the broader Ukrainian community around us.

Considering that college graduates become the primary source for leadership in all aspects of society – business, arts, culture, politics and academia, we should view this as an indispensible opportunity to invest in the development of the future leaders of the Ukrainian community.  I know of only  a few Ukrainian organizations throughout Canada, the Ukrainian Canadian Professional & Business Federation being one, that are actively involved in working with and supporting SUSK to any extent.  In an era when most of the traditional large Ukrainian organizations in Canada are having difficulties attracting and keeping the younger generations involved, it would make a lot of sense to build stronger ties and invest in the activities of an organization such as SUSK. 

If the Ukrainian community is to remain at all relevant and dynamic within Canada, we need to appreciate that the community’s future is with these Ukrainian students making their way through colleges and universities today, who deserve far more consideration than we have given them in the past.  It is an opportunity we cannot afford to let slip by.