Erast Huculak Explained

Erast R. Huculak
Birth Date:3 December 1930
Birth Place:Rivne, Second Polish Republic
Death Place:Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Nationality:Canadian
Occupation:entrepreneur, pharmacist

Erast R. Huculak, (December 3, 1930 – March 2, 2013) was a Canadian businessman, public figure and philanthropist of Ukrainian descent. President of Medical Pharmacies Group. He was the founder of the Canadian Children of Chornobyl Foundation and head of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress in Oshawa (1966; 1973–1974). In 1993 he served as an adviser to the Prime Minister of Ukraine. From 2004 to 2013 he was the Honorary Consul of Ukraine in Canada.

Biography

Huculak was born in Rivne, Second Polish Republic (nowadays  - Ukraine). He was the son of the historian and geographer Mykhailo Hutsulyak.

In the summer of 1948 he emigrated with his family to Vancouver, British Columbia.[1] Erast graduated from King Edward High School and then studied at the Faculty of Pharmacy at the University of British Columbia. After graduating from university in 1955, he opened a small pharmacy in Oshawa, which later grew into the "Medical Pharmacies Group". At the age of 35, Huculak became a millionaire.[2]

He was one of co-founders of Canadian Children of Chornobyl Foundation. In 1966 and from 1973 to 1974 he served as a head of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress in Oshawa. In 1989, he established the Huculak Chair of Ukrainian Culture and Ethnography at the University of Alberta.[3]

In 1993 he was appointed as an Adviser to the Prime Minister of Ukraine. From 2004 to 2013 he was the Honorary Consul of Ukraine in Canada.

Erast Huculak died on March 2, 2013, in Toronto, Ontario.[4]

Awards

In 2001 Huculak received an honorary degree from the University of Alberta.[5]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Embassy of Ukraine to Canada - Film Screening - Erast Huculak Story. 2022-01-11. canada.mfa.gov.ua. en.
  2. Web site: "Я поставил себе цель — стать в 40 лет миллионером. Стал им в 35". 2022-01-11. Зеркало недели Дзеркало тижня Mirror Weekly.
  3. Web site: Гуцуляк Ераст — Енциклопедія Сучасної України. 2022-01-11. esu.com.ua.
  4. Web site: Staff. 2013: Our community mourns their passing. 2022-01-11. The Ukrainian Weekly. en-US.
  5. Web site: News. Community. 2013-03-04. UCC Expresses Condolences for Loss of Erast Huculak - The Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC) official website. 2022-01-11. en-US.
  6. Web site: УКАЗ ПРЕЗИДЕНТА УКРАЇНИ №639/2001. 2022-01-11. Офіційне інтернет-представництво Президента України. uk.
  7. Web site: General. Office of the Secretary to the Governor. Mr. Erast R. Huculak. 2022-01-11. The Governor General of Canada.