KRAKIW (Krakow) – PROTECTION of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish – Парафія Покрови Матері Божої

The Parish is located 95 km. east of Edmonton and 19 km. north & 5 km. west of Mundare. The first settlers arrived in 1898 from the Brody (35 families) and Chortkiv regions (2 families) in Ukraine. Some lucky ones brought with them $20.00 and others even less. The church building (40’ x 20’) was started in 1918 and the enlargement was done in 1922. The completion of the work was in 1928. The first Divine Liturgy was celebrated in a private home by Fr. Naucratius Kryzanowsky.

In 1913 Nykola Stelmach, Kazymyr Lamash, Myron Koroliuk, Havrylo Prokopchuk, Ksenka Laschuk, Ilia Yakymyshyn and Polko Vicyntowych got together and decided to buy 4 acres of land for the cemetery (Pl. 24-55-17), that was incorporated in 1917. A group of people, organized by a self proclaimed preacher by the name Kudryk, organized their own congregation 3 km. north of the cemetery. Most of the people were originally from the Sniatyn region in Ukraine. A community hall, 6 km. west from the cemetery was acquired, transferred on the cemetery property and adopted to serve as a Ukrainian Catholic church. The approximate cost was $600.00. A well known artist, Petro Lypynsky of Edmonton, painted the outside of the church; the inside was done by P. Matiash. The first choir director was Ivan Stadnyk, who in the summer months was teaching Ukrainian. The Parish also owned a Narodnyi dim (National hall), which was burned down one week before the great gathering of the Ukrainian Catholic Brotherhood of Canada in 1938. But the faithful rebuilt the hall in a very short time.

Among the many Basilian Fathers who served the Parish were: Fr. Naucratius Kryzanowsky, Fr. Basil Ladyka, Fr. George Zydan, Fr. Sozont Dydyk, Fr. Neil Savaryn (1935-1938?), Fr. Athanasius Chimy, Fr. Nicon Swirsky (1952), Fr. Martin Pryma and Fr. Leontij Yakubow (1952-1955), Fr. Eugene Kushko and Fr. Cornelius Pasichny (1955-1957), Fr. Myron Chimy (1963-1964), Fr. Severian Yakymyshyn (1967-1969), Fr. Josaphat Konchak, Fr. Myron Chimy (1970-2003) and Fr. John Sembrat (2003-2010), Deacon Jim Nakonechny (2010- ).