June 30, 2023

  Fiesta 2023 – Thank You

Fiesta returned in 2023 after skipping 3 years due to CoVID, and the Odesa pavilion was back in the mix again.  We were 1 of 11 eleven pavilions this year.  We participated in the opening concert at Memorial Park, we setup a booth for the street festival, we opened for 3 days during the week, and our Miss Odesa won Miss Congeniality and was 2nd runner-up for Miss Fiesta.  Our pavilion offered live shows performed by the Odesa Ukrainian Dancers with guest singers, great Ukrainian food, and several vendor tables selling traditional Ukrainian items and keepsakes.  Odesa pavilion donated half of our proceeds to the Canada-Ukraine Foundation.

Over 1,000 guests visited our pavilion and enjoyed the experience immensely.  Just some comments heard from the guests were:

• Odesa is the best pavilion in Fiesta!
• It’s so good to see kids who perform so well and keep their traditions alive.
• The atmosphere at Odesa is so welcoming, and shows the Ukrainian culture so well.
• More barabolianyky.

Overall, Fiesta was a resounding success for the Odesa pavilion.

It goes without saying that detailed planning paid off for Odesa, and the dedicated volunteers helped to bring the planning to life for Odesa.  This year our volunteers included recent immigrants from Ukraine, and together we stood to show Oshawa how we support our beloved Ukraine.  We would like to thank everyone who offered their time before, during and after Fiesta:

• Miss Odesa (Sophia Slavchenko)
• Odesa Dancer instructors (Christine Stezik, Anastasiia Galiuk, Dmytro Krylenko, Olha Zaiets, John Stezik), Odesa Dancer parent volunteers
• ‘Head’ cook (Dobr. Nataliya Tsenova), food helpers in the kitchen, dishwashers, kitchen runners, food line servers, cashiers
• Bar ticket sellers, Passport sellers, Greeter, show MC
• Odesa pavilion planning committee (Val Barbarik, Ievgeniia Mangones, Kateryna Navrotska, John Stezik)

We would especially like to thank the young people who make up the Odesa Ukrainian Dancers.  Your dedication through the year clearly showed in your performances, and you delighted the crowds with every step.

It was truly a blessing to see everyone work together harmoniously and make Odesa pavilion the best place to visit during Fiesta.  We hope next year, the 50th anniversary of Fiesta, will be even better.

Слава Україні – Героям Слава! / Glory to Ukraine – To Heroes Glory!

Val Barbarik and John Stezik, Odesa Pavilion Co-Chairs