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Review by Lalita Arogyaswamy

The May 10, 2007 meeting of the Multinational Liaison Club concentrated on Ukraine from the perspective of its traditional culture, music and dance. The monthly meeting appropriately was held at the Ukrainian National Home located at 1317 West Fayette Street, Syracuse. The Ukrainian National Home was an excellent venue for the event. The seating arrangement in a large, well-appointed hall was indeed pleasing. The members of the Ukrainian National Home were extremely hospitable and solicitous towards the members of the club. The very place evoked "olde worlde' Europe (lace curtains et al) albeit with all the necessary and attractive features that life in the USA provides.

The meeting began with the President, Ms Mariam Atri , warmly welcoming all the members (old and new) to the event. She also thanked the members of the Ukrainian National Home for hosting the meeting under their auspices. Soon after, the members of the MLC Club took the opportunity to introduce themselves to the gathering.

Shortly, while the members were enjoying the beverages generously provided, the Cultural Speaker of the evening, Dr. Patricia Burak, director of the Lillian and Emanuel Stutzker Center for International Services and Asst Professor of Literature at Syracuse University introduced herself and then spoke eloquently to the interested audience on the many aspects of Ukraine and the beginning of the Ukrainian presence in the USA and especially in Syracuse.

Dr Burak has served on the Board of the International Center of Syracuse, the board of Inter-Faith Works of Central New York, she presently serves on the Pastoral Council of St. John the Baptist Ukrainian Catholic Church and is very active in the cultural life of Syracuse. She has traveled at the request of the State Department to both Russia and Ukraine to train educational advisers. Her work involves the translation of one culture to another. In this capacity she strives to create opportunities for students of all ages and from all parts of the world to demonstrate their cultural traditions through music and dance.

Dr. Burak’s lecture topic intriguingly used Thomas Friedman’s 2005 book title “The World is Flat….. And So We Dance !” to engagingly draw our attention to the culture of the Ukraine. Using Thomas Friedman’s premise that ‘Cultures are not wired into our human DNA. They are a product of the context – geography, education level, leadership and historical experience – of any society”, Dr.Burak fascinated her audience through the medium of some beautiful traditional dances to explain the culture, music and especially the importance of dance in the lives of Ukrainians both in Ukraine and for those who emigrated to the USA from the 1890s and especially in the aftermath of the Second World War.

She stressed that it was through dance that so much of the cultural traditions of her people were kept alive. This concept was marvelously demonstrated by the Odessa Ukrainian Dance Ensemble. These scintillating dances deftly illustrated Ukrainian culture through the magic of the four wonderful folk dances the group performed that evening. Dr. Burak, the dancers and their teacher received warm applause.

Undoubtedly, the members of the Club were now much more knowledgeable of Ukraine and its culture. A spirited question and answer session followed.

Soon after, the Business Speaker of the evening, Ms.Laurel J. Eveleigh, attorney at law, spoke most knowledgeably on the particularly important legal aspects of business organizations i.e. legal business entities. Ms. Eveleigh earned her J.D summa cum laude from the Syracuse University College of Law. She is a sole practitioner with particular interest in litigation, land use and zoning, environmental review, intellectual property, employment issues and other administrative matters.

Ms Eveleigh clarified the types of legal business entities available to those in the business world with especial emphasis on Sole Proprietors, Partnerships, Corporations and Limited Liability entities.

The dinner, an authentic Ukrainian culinary delight was impeccably served. The Pyrohy, Kobasa and Kraut were especially delicious. The intrinsically Ukrainian baked desserts were equally mouth-watering. This sumptuous feast was further complimented with suitable beverages.

Finally, the meeting was a splendid opportunity for members to both appreciate and learn about the Ukraine and also to increase their knowledge of the legal aspects involved in the business world. The meeting ended with the President, Ms. Atri thanking the members of the Ukrainian National Home for their hospitality. It was apparent by the relaxed atmosphere that it had been a very successful meeting.        Top