A traditional event was held in the Memorial Square of Ivano-Frankivsk – the action “Light a candle of remembrance”, organized by the Faculty of Tourism of the Vasyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University.
This event is dedicated to the Day of Remembrance of the Holodomor Victims. It was attended by representatives of the University, teachers, and students, employees of the PNU and caring residents of the city.
The event began with a memorial procession from the monument to Ivan Franko to the chapel in the Memorial Square. Near the chapel, the priest served a memorial service for the innocently killed and starved Ukrainians.
The Holodomor of 1932–1933, organized by the Soviet authorities, became one of the most brutal crimes against humanity in the 20th century. As a carefully planned genocide of the Ukrainian people, it claimed thousands of lives every day. As a result, millions of people died, and even more were not born. This was a terrible price that Ukrainians “paid” for their attempt to restore national independence in 1917–1920.
As part of the action, the Dean of the Faculty of Tourism, Volodymyr Velykochy, made a speech. He emphasized that it was the students of the Faculty of Tourism who initiated the action “Light a Candle of Memory”, which has been held for over fifteen years. “The event to which our action is dedicated is central in the pantheon of events of national memory. It still evokes deep emotions associated with the feeling of personal grief of every person who considers himself Ukrainian,” emphasized Volodymyr Velykochy.
At the end of the action, the participants lit candles near the symbolic cross and the grave of the student of the Precarpathian University, Hero of the Heavenly Hundred, Hero of Ukraine Roman Huryk.