Obituary of Ludmila Pavliuk)

Ludmila Onufrijchuk (nee Pavliuk) Passed away peacefully of advanced stages of Parkinson's at 4:30 AM, Sunday, March 26, 2010 at Holy Family Nursing Home, Winnipeg MB. Born in 1928 in Zawiercie Poland, only child of judge Anton Pavliuk (originally of Kholm), and Anna (nee Kaminski), daughter of a Ukrainian Orthodox deacon of Polissia. Ludmila finished her secondary education in the Ukrainian Gymnasium in Kholm, where the family had moved in the 1930s. Her ambitions to pursue medical studies in Vienna were dashed by the beginning to World War II and the German invasion of Poland. During the early years of the war, Ludmila married Fedir Onufrijchuk, an agricultural engineer and author, originally of Olyka, Volyn' province of Ukraine, and left her homeland with him and her parents and just ahead of the Soviet invasion of German-occupied Poland. Ludmila studied medicine in Frankfurt am Main during the remaining years of the war and early post-war years, having to give them up in 1949 to immigrate to Canada. On arrival in Canada, Ludmila and Fedir first lived in Benito MB, and then Winnipeg, where the couple were blessed with a son, Roman. In 1960 Ludmila and family relocated to Yorkton SK, where her husband assumed responsibilities as City Horticulturist. In Yorkton Ludmila worked as a laboratory technician in the Yorkton Regional Hospital and then with the offices of Dr's Peter and Stephanie Potoski. In the 1980s, Ludmila and Fedir moved back to Winnipeg. Ludmila, deeply religious and possessing a beautiful natural soprano, dedicated it gladly, often as a soloist, in praise of the Lord in church choirs in Kholm, and every city and town where she lived in Germany and then Canada. Until her debilitation by Parkinson's, Ludmila was particularly active at the Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral (Sobor) of St. Mary The Protectress in Winnipeg, where she was a member of the Ukrainian Women's Association (SUK) and an avid chorister. Meticulous in her handiwork and deeply committed to her faith and heritage, she was proud of her accomplished embroidery, and participation in many events in her church and Ukrainian community. Of a sunny and cheerful disposition, generous of heart and attentive to the needs of others, she was much loved by all who knew her. Predeceased by her husband Fedir in 1986, she is survived by her son Dr. Roman Onufrijchuk, senior lecturer in communication at Simon Fraser University and his wife Margaryta Arhipov, both of Vancouver BC, and many friends and relatives in Winnipeg, Yorkton, Edmonton, Regina and Saskatoon. Prayers will be celebrated at Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral (Sobor) of St. Mary The Protectress, 820 Burrows Ave, on Monday, (April 5) evening at 7:00 with the funeral, also at the Sobor, on Tuesday (April 6) at 12:00, with interment at All Saints Cemetery following the Service. In accordance with Ludmila's wishes, donations in her memory may be made to the Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral of St. Mary the Protectress in lieu of flowers. Vichnaia Iij Pamiat'