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HORSHAM — Eugene Luciw has kept count of the days since Russia invaded Ukraine.
He somberly marked the 500th day of fighting earlier this month in an interview with MediaNews Group. It’s a thought never far from his mind as he puts the final touches on planning for the annual Ukrainian Folk Festival.
“Obviously we as Ukrainians are very, very nervous about this,” he said. “We believe we are angry, we experience all manner of negative emotions, we are worried, we are concerned about friends and relatives. We’re concerned about our brothers and sisters in Ukraine.”
Given the state of events taking place thousands of miles away, Luciw stressed the importance of standing united here in Montgomery County. The Delaware Valley region is home to 70,000 Ukrainians and Ukrainian Americans.
“We intend to make this a very festive event and a fun event,” he said. “But we’ll also use this as an opportunity to teach people a little bit about Ukraine.”
The Ukrainian Folk Festival 2023 will take place from noon to 8 p.m. on Aug. 27 at the Ukrainian American Sport Center at the intersection of County Line and Lower State roads in Horsham. The event will run rain or shine. Admission costs $15 per person, of which $2 will be donated to humanitarian relief for the victims of war in Ukraine.
“People know what we are doing,” he said. “We are celebrating that very independence, freedom, democracy that the Ukrainians are defending for themselves and for all of us.”
Luciw said between 40 and 50 volunteers will work to put on the late August event. Luciw said he’s anticipating crowds of more than 3,000 people.
The Ukrainian Folk Festival is a longstanding tradition spanning three decades, and it’s something Luciw said he looks forward to each year. Specifically, by “setting off our cultural fireworks,” showcasing the country’s signature dishes of pierogies, kielbasa and stuffed cabbage, as well as performances of traditional music and dancing.
Along with food, attendees can enjoy the vendors’ grove, which will host booths for between 20 to 30 vendors to display their arts and crafts, embroidered fabrics and jewelry.
Additionally, several dance troupes will be featured at the festival including the Voloshky Ukrainian Dance Ensemble, Efsane Crimean Tatar Ensemble and Carpathia Folk Dance Ensemble.
Singer-Songwriter Iryna Lonchyna and Singer Yuliya Stupen will perform. Violinist Innesa Tymochko Dekajlo, as well as the Ferko Mummers String Band, the Ariana Lem Joy Trio and the Vox Ethnic Band will play during the event’s concert portion.
While Luciw emphasized the fun that will be had at the upcoming festival, he strived to leave attendees with the theme of Ukrainian independence.
“One of the principal messages that we deliver is Ukraine is something that Russia does not want it to be,” Luciw said. “It’s a separate and distinct nation with its own language, with its own culture, its own history, its own geography, its own territory and it has nothing to do with Russia whatsoever.”
“We are not some kind of little Russians that have gone astray,” he continued. “We are Ukrainians who have always had a Ukraine, and the right to have a free and independent Ukraine that is free of genocidal attacks, and other threats to its security.”
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