On a rainy night in February, 1975, a small group of people met at the YWCA to discuss the possibility of organizing a Ukrainian Club. They were there in response to an advertisement in the local newspaper asking if there were any Ukrainians in the Moncton area, and if so, would they be interested in meeting to form a Club. Among the first callers was Anne Leslie, a reporter for the local newspaper, whose husband Ed was a CBC broadcaster. They were both Ukrainian! With their expertise, it was not long before the Ukrainian Club of Moncton was founded and the first Executive Committee was installed. Activities were planned, and the work to educate ourselves and the public about Ukrainian culture began. It was a daunting task, because this was the Soviet era and many local people would ask "What is a Ukrainian?" The Moncton City Library had nothing to offer on Ukrainian subjects, so a government grant was applied for by the Club, and received, and over $500 was spent to stock the library with books of varied Ukrainian subjects.

Another source of help in the success of the Club was the willingness of Ukrainians from Cape Breton, Nova Scotia to come to Moncton to help with anything we asked, whether mall festivals, dance classes or entertainment.

With such strong support and the sincere interest of Monctonians that has continued through 40 years, the Ukrainian Club of Moncton members are not asked "what is a Ukrainian?" Hundreds of local people are creating beautiful pysanky. The local media call us to ask for an interview, and the library and universities, English and French have the Encyclopedia of Ukraine and other donated publications. We are also forever indebted to two ladies, Rose Lutes and Anne Lahanky, who placed that important advertisement and took the calls that ultimately led to the founding of the Ukrainian Club of Moncton.