At the Church of Saints Volodymyr and Olha in Chicago’s Ukrainian Village, a “Christmas Concert” was held, bringing together numerous parishioners, worshippers, and guests of the church. The event took place in a spirit of family unity, love, praise of the Lord, and a shared prayer for peace in Ukraine.
This was reported by Radio UA Chicago.
After the blessing of Father Roman Artymowych, a festive celebration unfolded in the hall, combining music, sacred singing, poetry, and Christmas carols. Both adult and very young performers took the stage, united by a sincere desire to glorify the great Christmas holidays, to bring people the light of the Star of Bethlehem, which “has risen and shines for all of us, showing the way to God,” and to warmly greet those present with heartfelt wishes for the New Year and for many years to come.
The concert program featured the church choir “Blahovist,” including its male and female ensembles, the parish altar boys’ group, and a women’s trio composed of Oksana Oleksyn, Nataliia Taylor, and Olena Balaban. Solo performances were given by Halyna Heryavenko, Olena Balaban, and young performers Oksana Dychka and Sofia Liubenko. Stefania Yavorska recited her own poetry. Through every word and gesture, the participants created a “prayer of love” expressed through carols and poetic lines.
A special delight for the audience was the traditional Christmas melody The Bells Are Ringing” performed by a violin ensemble, as well as “Ukrainian Dance,” a solo violin performance by Yuliia Perehozhuk. Particularly touching was the appearance on stage of the youngest participants with the children’s carol “Little Angels Flew In, Like Birds from the Sky”. The story of Christ’s birth was retold by the children’s nativity play participants in the form of a mini performance.
Family ensembles, the Rybak and Liutyi families, performed a Christmas song with the blessing “May Jesus, the little Child, bless your life.” The concert concluded with a joint carol sung by the performers on stage together with the audience, accompanied by the lively sounds of the traditional instrumental trio of the band “Vodohrai.”
The organization of the celebration was led primarily by Olha Karabinovych, head of the cultural and educational committee at the parish of Saints Volodymyr and Olha. She expressed gratitude for the support and assistance of Father Roman Artymowych, first parish councilor Volodymyr Ilchyshyn, second councilor Mariia Shcherbiuk, all parish organizations, as well as sound engineers Taras and Mykhailo Demberetskyi. The preparation of ensembles and soloists was overseen by artistic directors Olena Balaban, Bohdan Heryavenko, and Mariia Hevalo.
The concert was hosted by Honored Artist of Variety Arts of Ukraine Tetiana Baryliak. She performed her original song “Our Family Is Caroling” and concluded her participation with the popular song “Merry Christmas!” by Honored Journalist of Ukraine Bohdan Kucher from the Prykarpattia region. The song included the lines:
“From the Christmas of Christ, we all begin anew, as from a clean page,” as well as verses expressing faith in the future — “we will still plow the field and sow the future.”
Other songs performed from the stage included: “There Is Hope in the Lord That Our Dreams Will Come True” and “We Sow Generously with Rye So That We May Always Live in Peace.”
During the event, donations were collected, part of which will be transferred to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The organizers emphasized that this is already the fourth Christmas that Ukraine is celebrating amid war, and that even while living across the ocean, Ukrainians strive to help their defenders secure peace on their native land.
Photo: Radio UA Chicago
Author: Danylo Pievchev