Many of us are in shock and our hearts are heavy, with what is happening right now in Ukraine.

There’s a strong Ukrainian heritage and presence in Roblin and the Parkland area as a whole.

Many families that reside here once emigrated from Ukraine either by choice or by force. Alia Marcinkow lives in Grandview, and like many in the area, she has strong ties to Ukraine.

Her grandmother and mother were forced to leave their native country due to war.

“My baba, Stefania Pankewycz, was born in Ukraine and my mother, Mary Marcinkow, was actually born in Poland, after my grandparents were displaced from Ukraine in 1947, after WWII,” noted Marcinkow. “The Polish government enacted an ethnic cleansing of Ukrainians and forced them out of western Ukraine to Poland to segregate them. My grandparents then immigrated to Canada in April of 1966 and took up residence in Winnipeg. “Unfortunately my grandfather died not long after the family had immigrated, so my baba had to raise her five kids in a place where she didn’t know the language. She somehow managed and went on to travel the world. It’s where I get my love of travel. She always said that no one could take away your education or experiences. I think her philosophy on that stemmed from her living through World War Two.”

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