Gladys Andreas with her tsymbaly at Festival 2014. Photo by Gord Yakimow
Festival founder Gladys Andreas dies at age 86
Gord Yakimow for NP-UN, Vancouver.
The BC Ukrainian-Canadian community is mourning the loss of a cultural icon.
Gladys Andreas, the founder of the BC Ukrainian Cultural Festival, passed away on September 19. She was 86.
This past May featured 300 performers at the 28th annual Festival, with troupes converging from all corners of the province, along with groups from Alberta and the US.
At Festival 2025, Andreas was set up in the main lobby playing her tsymbaly as attendees arrived, and she was on stage for the opening ceremony.
The festival takes place in the central Fraser Valley city of Mission.
An overflowing crowd packed the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of St. Mary in Surrey for the funeral. The reception took place in the neighbouring hall, site of the first BC Ukrainian Cultural Festival.
Gladys Andreas has been recognized by many entities for her tireless efforts at “keeping Ukrainian culture alive,” the mission statement for the annual festival.
They include the Government of Ukraine, the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, and the City of Surrey, which declared her a “Civic Treasure” in 2012.
In a moving eulogy, her eldest grandson, Cory Russell, read out a long list of the organizations to which Andreas had contributed as she promoted Ukrainian culture. These included the Surrey Fusion Festival and the Ukrainian pavilion at the Vancouver Olympics in 2010.
Russell also recalled a conversation between his grandparents in their motorhome at the Pysanka Festival in Vegreville 30 years ago.
“‘Why can’t we have a festival like this in BC?’ asked Baba.”
“Dido didn’t say a word,” explained Russell. “He knew she was unstoppable. And he knew how much work lay ahead.”
Juana (Korol) Veters, a former president of the Fraser Valley Ukrainian Cultural Society and former vice-president of the BCUCF, spoke of the impact Andreas had both on her family, and on the larger world.
“She taught some of my children to play the tsymbaly. And the Festival’s scholarship has enabled many performers to attend summertime culture camps.”
“And since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, 20% of the Festival’s gate receipts have been donated to the Canada-Ukraine Foundation, a charity which does important work with humanitarian efforts in Ukraine.”
In an announcement to the BCUCF membership, president Nathan Nychyporuk wrote of Andreas’s vision and dedication in helping shape and strengthen the Ukrainian community in British Columbia.
“Her lifelong commitment to preserving our culture, traditions, and community spirit has left a legacy that will continue to inspire us for generations,” he stated.
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