Deadly six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 sparked by road rage incident
One person was killed in a six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 in Innisfil Friday evening.
Roughly 50 children will gather in a St. John's classroom for the first time on Saturday for unique lessons on Ukrainian language, culture and history.
The weekend program — called a Ridna Shkola — is the first of its kind in Newfoundland and Labrador, but joins a rich history of similar classes across the country.
"For us, it gives us feeling that we are part of this community," said Liubov Hrysiuk, who is teaching one of the program’s three age groups.
"We can talk, we can celebrate our holidays together. Maybe we can help each other."
For Hrysiuk — who trained and worked as a teacher in Ukraine — the Saturday classes bring back familiar and friendly memories.
"It was like, 'I'm back in my past, and I'm in Ukraine with the best students ever,'" she said.
She arrived in Newfoundland and Labrador in 2023, one of the many Ukrainian citizens who’ve moved to St. John’s since her country was invaded by Russia in 2022.
Newfoundland and Labrador's provincial government went to great lengths to attract Ukrainians who were considering leaving their country.
Staff at the provincial immigration office established a support desk in Poland to advertise directly to people seeking asylum, and the province also directly organized four airlifts of Ukranians in 2022.
About 700 people immigrated to Newfoundland and Labrador in those airlifts. Sofia Dubyk, who works with the Ukranian National Federation in the province, now estimates the Ukranian population has grown to about 3,500.
Her group organized the Saturday lessons, pushing to put the classes together after a few weeks of organizing.
"Two years ago… we [were] not ready to come to another country and start from zero," she said, adding Ukrainians like her received many "gifts" from provincial officials and Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
"Now I think a big part of Ukrainians here have a job, have a place to live, and we can start to give something back to the local community."
The program will cement the link between Ukrainian children, some as young as five, to Ukrainian culture. Dubyk said she'd like to expand with a pre-school program in the future.
Similar Ridna Shkolas across the country have served as a crucial link between Canadians with Ukrainian heritage, and new Canadian residents fleeing the war in Ukraine.
Olena Shyian helped create a program in Regina in 2009, re-establishing a class that had gone dormant in the 1970s.
Lately, it's been a place where her children can learn from Ukrainian children, and vice-versa.
"Both are benefiting," she said. "The kids who were born here, or second or third generation, are learning Ukrainian, building friendships, integrating and communicating together."
In St. John's, Hrysiuk is teaching her students about some Canadian icons with Ukrainian roots.
"You have so many talented and famous people," she said. "Like Wayne Gretzky, for example."
With files from NTV
One person was killed in a six-vehicle crash on Highway 400 in Innisfil Friday evening.
The President of Poland says his country would 'of course' be interested in purchasing Canadian liquefied natural gas if it were available, while the Canadian federal government has said it is 'not interested' in subsidizing future projects.
A recent report sheds light on Canadians living abroad--estimated at around four million people in 2016—and the public policies that impact them.
An election-year roast of U.S. President Joe Biden before journalists, celebrities and politicians at the annual White House correspondents' dinner Saturday.
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
Dozens of people raised their arms in the fascist salute and shouted a fascist chant during ceremonies Sunday to honor Italian dictator Benito Mussolini on the 79th anniversary of his execution.
Health Minister Mark Holland says while he is 'deeply appreciative' of the work doctors in Canada do, the federal government has no plans to scrap the proposed capital gains tax changes outlined in the latest budget, despite opposition from the Canadian Medical Association.
It's one thing to say you like Taylor Swift and her music, but don't blame CNN's AJ Willingham's when she says she just 'doesn't get' the global phenomenon.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
As if a 4-0 Edmonton Oilers lead in Game 1 of their playoff series with the Los Angeles Kings wasn't good enough, what was announced at Rogers Place during the next TV timeout nearly blew the roof off the downtown arena.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”