Vancouver and Odesa celebrate 80 years of sister city relationship

Vancouver has celebrated the 80th anniversary of its sister city relationship with Odesa, reported the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC), British Columbia Provincial Council. During the event, leaders of the Ukrainian community took the opportunity to draw attention to the Russian attacks on the city and call for increased support for Ukraine, reports the local publication Vancouver is Awesome.

“Odesa is under strong missile attacks, and under bombing from Russia as we speak. Many schools are being destroyed beyond repair. So we are appealing not only to the whole world, but at least to the sister city – Vancouver – for significant support. There was a reason why Vancouver is a sister city,” said Iryna Shyroka, President of the UCC in B.C.

The community also reminded the Vancouver City Hall of two previously made requests: to use a local theater for fundraising events for Ukrainian children affected by the war and to identify a location in Vancouver for a memorial dedicated to the Holodomor of the 1930s.

“Ukraine is going through a terrible time. It needs all the help it can get, and especially Odesa, our sister city,” said Mir Huculak, Honourary Consul General for Ukraine in B.C.

Vancouver and Odesa established their sister city relationship in 1944. The collaboration was based on humanitarian grounds, and Vancouver community members who had family ties to the Ukrainian city actively supported it.

However, the active relationship between the cities has faded over time, according to Huculak. “Vancouver, in the last 20 years, has done nothing about the sister city relationship,” he said. “Actually, it’s probably longer than 20 years. But nothing has happened until recently when they heard that it was going to be 80 years of a sister city relationship.”