Obituary of Eileen Mary Hawryliw

When Eileen Mary Bandurka (October 21, 1926-January 29, 2018) married Bohdan Hawryliw in Wolia, Saskatchewan in 1953, she did so not only because of their similar ancestral roots in Western Ukraine, but because of their shared, unadvertised passion for an open road, an open mind and a house with an open door. Her parents, Frederick & Katie (Kay, nee Feduniak) Bandurka, raised their five children (Eileen, Margaret, Don, Dorothy, Ruth) on the family farm in Canyon District, central Saskatchewan, a sweeping landscape of countless rural villages and hamlets shaped by the broad community of Ukrainian immigrants. These new families toiled indefatigably and productively, their success reflecting old-world tradition and heritage experience. The Bandurkas were no exception, and their farming and financial achievements stood as proof that hard-work and teamwork were a child’s best education. It was education that nurtured and developed Eileen; she had an enquiring and nimble mind whose appetite for challenge and accomplishment never occluded her unpretentious nature. Curious, compassionate and capable, she was a veritable life-long learner who could master flamboyant French desserts, coach woman's softball, critique the Hawaii Opera Theater, sell real estate and open her home to foster children. The readiness to help was a Bandurka family value, and young Eileen with sister Margaret would often stay overnight in the teacherage, providing reassurance to the single Miss responsible for the local children’s academic success. By grade 8 and barely an adolescent, Eileen was already “apprenticing” as a teacher, instinctively noting that the successful trick to running a one-room schoolhouse was to connect eye-to-eye and heart-to-heart with the children and their parents; and by 1945, after attending Normal School, she began doing her remarkable teaching of Grades 1 and 2 in what might seem like unremarkable places in Saskatchewan as Blaine Lake, Fielding, and, her adored Maymont. Yet the perception that these outposts and whistle-stops lacked significance or value belonged to outsiders and bureaucrats alone for Eileen loved these communities and the people loved her back. Teaching wasn’t just a job; it was a calling and she gave as much interest, help and energy as was needed. Field trips, spontaneous learning tangents, and, a friendly disregard for authority characterized her inimitable, enriched teaching style, one that both enamoured and dismayed her colleagues and University of Saskatchewan professors. She loved to recall her elementary-class trip to a Japanese restaurant to watch and then sample the quick-frying of succulent chicken livers; or the rehearsing and travelling with her young students to Prince Albert for the local TV station’s Amateur Hour. Eileen often took her own sons through the open doors of opportunity, and she treasured these shared experiences more dearly than any purchased keepsake. Her sincere interest in the minutiae of people’s lives, in local and world events, and in provocative art forms made her a welcome guest, for she brought warmth and energy to any gathering, informal or formal. Eileen’s tireless, exuberant nature complemented and contrasted with the quiet, steady demeanour of her beloved Bohdan. She gave freedom and space to his own personality, and to those of her sons Fred of Toronto and Neil (Joni and son Nigel) of Muskegon, Michigan. Her steadfast encouragement to sense new opportunities, to accomplish meaningful and rewarding goals applied to them and to herself: her transition in 1985 from rural teaching to urban landlording was seamless. While Bohdan managed maintenance and repairs, Eileen blossomed as the friendly face on the grapevine, always ready with a sympathetic ear and foolproof advice. Her fondness for conversation was irrepressible and she eagerly opened the Hawryliw home offering their myriad tenants coffee, cookies and a good catch-up in exchange for next month’s rent. No matter the location or duration, whether dressed in her favourite black suit from Paris or wearing a plastic necklace from a holiday souvenir shop, she never failed to put others at ease with her affable nature and pleasant countenance. Her sincerity was rewarded with life-long relationships and spontaneous connections that, despite their brevity, left rich impressions on both partakers. Tastefully and strikingly attired for some picture-taking in EILEEN HOUSE, a property project to honour her, Eileen stood with an open innocence and humility, astounding the practiced photographer. Moved by her natural openness and candour, he placed her and this experience above many of his international photo shoots. Their memory of this magical connection lasted a lifetime.