The family thanks each of you for coming here today, some from very far away, to help us all say goodbye to a wonderful young 94 year old woman Zoriana Sokolsky. Zoriana, what a beautiful name. her short name in Ukrainian is "Zirka" which means a star in heaven.
Pani Zirka came down from heaven and was born in 1931 (Sept 12, 1931). In her 94 years here on earth Zoriana lived through history that few of us has seen. Her father an advocat and a member of parliament and a soldier in the Austrian Army lived through being thrown in jai and shot in war. LIke many Ukraininans he wanted a better safer life for his two children. They left Ukraine and went to Germany where for four years zoriane learned fluent German where she went to school. Then in 1948 when Zoriana was 17 years old she boarded a ship with her 9 year old younger sister Zdana and their father (Alexandr) and mother (Stefania) and they came to start a new life in Edmonton, Alberta. The family was split up and many on her mother's side went to New York.
Although they left everything, they were happy to be in Canada. They learned to speak english while they still kept their Ukrainian customs and attended Ukrainian church. Here in Canada Zoriana met her husband and she gave birth to two children, Rostyslav and then four years later, Roxana. As many Ukrainians and immigrants to Ca