Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the winners of the annual Hetman awards in Edmonton and the excellent work done by the Ukrainian Canadian Congress-Alberta Provincial Council, or UCC-APC.
The Hetman awards acknowledge significant volunteer achievements of outstanding Ukrainian Albertans who have chosen to give their time, effort and expertise in order to keep the Ukrainian Canadian community in Alberta strong, vibrant and active.
Three youth, three adult, three senior and one posthumous awards were given out to very deserving people, one of whom is Eileen Yewchuk, who was the first Alberta woman inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
UCC-APC is celebrating 40 years of community service to the Alberta-Ukrainian Community, and today officially represents over 330,000 Albertans of Ukrainian descent. It addresses the needs of the Ukrainian community and co-ordinates its activities; fosters unity and co-operation; preserves Ukrainian heritage, history, culture and language; and encourages participation of youth and newcomers from Ukraine.
I want to thank the UCC-APC as one of the many such organizations that effectively represent the wonderful cultural mosaic that is Canada.