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Pidruchney Introduction
When I arrived in Edmonton in the spring of 2000, Bill Pidruchney
had already retired from an illustrious legal career. However, he
remained very active in the Ukrainian community and his other
charitable interests. He was especially interested in Canadian
citizenship and the d&d process. His main thesis was that
"citizenship is a status that is not revocable" -- like motherhood,
once granted it cannot be revoked. On the MoZeus page of WillZuzak.ca,
his contributions appear in the Wasyl Odynsky (Oberlander), C-18
Hearings and CIMM 2005 links, which I have condensed into 4 categories
in this righteous/pidruchney subdirectory:
[1] Marco Levytsky reported to UCC-APC on the 25May2001 meeting of Bill
Pidruchney and Eugene Harasymiw with Joe Clark on the d&d issue
positively. (Eugene Harasymiw confided in me that he was less
optimistic, since Joe Clark appeared to still have illusions of making
a political comeback.)
[2] Following the introduction of a new Citizenship Act of Canada (Bill
C-18) on 01Oct2002 and 07Nov2002 by Denis Coderre, the Standing
Committee on Citizenship and Immigration made a cross-Canada tour to
accept views and submissions from interested Canadians. Meetings 33 and
35 were held in Edmonton on 14Feb2003. Various individuals and
organizations of the Ukrainian community participated, including Bill
Pidruchney, who was very critical of many aspects of the proposed
legislation and maintained "CITIZENSHIP is a STATUS, and not just a
licence".
[3] In mid-April 2003 Bill Pidruchney sent out a brochure on Bill C-18
to over 400 Canadian newspapers and organizations. In the week of
28Apr2003, he sent an open letter to all MPs and Senators asking them
to rescind the whole of Part 2 of Bill C-18 and, secondly, to
rescind Section 10 (revocation) and the deportation sections in the
current Citizenship Act (just in case the current Act stays in place).
Next, he prepared a postcard on the issue for Canadians to fill out and
send to Denis Coderre or their local MP.
[On Canada Day, 01Jul2003, Bill Pidruchney and I slipped hundreds of
these brochures under the windshield wipers of cars parked near the
Legislature buildings in Edmonton. Unfortunately, an hour or so later
city police started removing these brochures, which prompted Bill to
complain to the authorities.]
[4] Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Judy Sgro, made another
attempt to legislate a new Citizenship Act in the fall of 2004.
(Unfortunately on 14Dec2004, Judy Sgro surreptitiously signed a
directive to revoke the citizenship of Wasyl Odynsky, which resulted in
her resignation on the evening of 13Jan2005 to be immediately replaced
by Joe Volpe.) Another set of public hearings were held from
08Feb2005 to 03May2005. Bill Pidruchney participated on 08Feb2005 in
Ottawa (Mtg. 18) and on 07Apr2005 in Edmonton (Mtg. 34).
[I know that politicians took Bill Pidruchney's proposition that
"citizenship is a status, which is not revocable" very seriously. In
2006, when I was lobbying Edmonton MPs on the d&d issue, Rahim
Jaffer specifically asked how his campaign on this issue was
progressing.]
An evening "Celebrating the Life of Bill Pidruchney" was
held on "16Sep2010, 7:00 pm" at "Coast Edmonton East Hotel,
2100 Premier Way, Sherwood Park, AB T8H 2G4". The program speakers were
Gene Zwozdesky, Ihor Broda, Horst Schmidt, Krishan Joshee, Roman
Petryshyn and a family representative. Although the speakers
highlighted the impressive life accomplishments of Bill Pidruchney,
none of them referred to his efforts in the citizenship and d&d
areas. Links to some relevant results of an
Internet search are appended below.
We conclude that the life of Bill Pidruchney was a credit to
humanity.
Will Zuzak; 2013.05.27
Obituary
PIDRUCHNEY, William T. (Bill) LLB., Q.C. Shevchenko Medal Alberta
Centennial Medal December 17, 1932 - June 3, 2010 Bill died peacefully
after having a stroke two months ago. He had many highlights in his
life. The greatest of these: the stimulating company of friends and
family; community service; and the beauty of the outdoors. Bill was a U
of A Economics and Law graduate, then a Lawyer in Edmonton practice. He
was also previously a Scoutmaster, a Pilot Officer in the RCAF
University Reserve Training Program, a writer for "Edmontonians"
magazine, a proponent of multiculturalism, and a founder of Skateboard
Edmonton Club. He was involved with the Provincial Museum, the
Ukrainian community, and the Gandhi Foundation, among other worthy
organizations. He loved cruising around the countryside in his station
wagon, kayaking a little and taking photographs; and of course, arguing
politics. He was married for 30 years to Florence (nee Cerezke). Bill
is survived by his children Cornell (and family), Janine, Marina (and
family), and Lisa; sisters Lillian, Avreillia, and Myroslawa, and their
families. He is also survived by his loving companion and sweetheart
Peggy Hutchison Louis. Predeceased by his parents William and Anna
Pidruchney of Vegreville and sister Zenovia Irvine. In keeping with
Dad's wishes, there will be no memorial service. Cremation has taken
place. "Place no headstone; my monument shall be your memory of me. I
need no grave, for I belong to the elements. The happiness that filled
our lives leaves no room for grieving. To honour me, do an act of
kindness to another in need." Letters of Remembrance may be sent to the
family at 2337-85 Street, Edmonton. T6K 3H1. South Side Memorial
Chapel. Patterson, Mittelstadt & Justik. (780) 432-1601. To
send condolences visit, www.southsidememorial.com
http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/edmontonjournal/obituary.aspx?n=william-pidruchney&pid=143457402
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