Over one million hryvnias raised during fifth charity banquet in Kyiv to support UCU

Guests of the banquet were welcomed by Archbishop Emeritus Lubomyr Husar, “The Ukrainian Catholic University is a unique institution: each school cares about how to give the opportunity to obtain knowledge, UCU enables its students to mature. The University cares about the education of the elite, which will serve the church and the state. So we thank everyone who helps us understand and care about the development of the Ukrainian Catholic University.”

During the press briefing, the first rector of UCU Taras Dobko said that the University is a non-governmental institution of higher education and its activity is based on the trust of the people for whom the formation of values is important. “We are open to dialogue with the church, the state, the academic community, media and business. Today, our University is in an interesting and exciting phase of its development – we are building an academic campus (in August 2012 in Lviv the collegium opened, the opening of the academic building is planned). Therefore, we are grateful to those people who are willing to support us.”

During a charity banquet the traditional “silent auction” was held, where those willing to purchase a work of art could put their own price on a “price tag.” Whoever offered the largest amount became the owner of the work. At the “silent auction” were presented works by various Ukrainian artists, including Anton Kashshay, Yakiv Hnizdovsky, Mykhailo Demtsiu, Borys Buriak, Mykola Malyshko, Serhiy Yakutovych, Tiberii Silvashi, Ihor Yanovych, Anna Kryvolap. The exciting completion to the auction was the announcement of a gift to UCU’s museum collection of a painting by an honorary committee member of the charity banquet Anatolii Kryvolap.

The banquet also included a lottery, prizes which were provided by both private individuals and various embassies in Ukraine. The exclusive prize was a Saturn Sky car, bought by one of the guests of the evening for 270,000 hryvnias.

Writer Oskana Zabuzhko, who is part of the honorary committee of the charity banquet, in particular, said: “What has gathered here is more than just respect for education and faith in a good university. The crisis of modern democracies, both old and new, has deeper reasons than the corruption of certain political forces. Our whole civilization today needs a moral reboot. From the perspective of a believer, these things are obvious. Therefore, UCU for me is perhaps the only university in Ukraine that understands that quality education is not the transfer of knowledge but of values, of love and truth. There is no elite without morality, no matter how many books they may read.”