Nick Pishak
Title
Nick Pishak
Description
A biography of Nick Pishak, who joined the ULFTA Building Committee and aided in the erection of the Ukrainian Labour Temple.
Subject
Type
Text
Rights
Reproduction may be restricted. Contact AUUC.
Coverage
Vancouver, BC
Language
English
Birth Date
December 15, 1887
Birthplace
Toporivtsyakh, Ukraine
Death Date
October 30, 1974
Biographical Text
Nick Pishak was born in the village of Toporivtsyakh, Horodenkivskiy Rayon, Ivano Frankivska Oblast, Ukraine on December 15th, 1887. In 1905 he immigrate to Canada where he immediately found work on the railroad in Ontario. The work ended in the autumn, so Nick moved to the USA where he worked for three years until the Americans found out that he was there illegally and deported him back to Canada.
Nick then moved to Trail, BC, where he went to work in the smelter. In Trail he met members of the Social-Democratic Party, and he joined in 1912. When the party was disbanded in 1920, part of that group formed a branch of the ULFTA. Nick, with his own money, built a building that he then rented to the ULFTA for ten dollars a month.
In Trail he met and married Mary Haralska, and they moved together to Vancouver in 1928, and Nick got a job in a barber shop. That year the building of the Ukrainian Labour Temple began, and Nick became an active member of the Building Committee. He was a generous contributor to all the organizational campaigns of the ULFTA, serving as secretary of the WBA Vancouver Branch, and attending many of their conventions as well as many others. Although in the last years of his life he had heart trouble, he never gave up but continued to attend every branch meeting and carried out any organizational duties in which he was asked to participate. Nick Pishak died on October 30th, 1974 at the age of 87.
Nick then moved to Trail, BC, where he went to work in the smelter. In Trail he met members of the Social-Democratic Party, and he joined in 1912. When the party was disbanded in 1920, part of that group formed a branch of the ULFTA. Nick, with his own money, built a building that he then rented to the ULFTA for ten dollars a month.
In Trail he met and married Mary Haralska, and they moved together to Vancouver in 1928, and Nick got a job in a barber shop. That year the building of the Ukrainian Labour Temple began, and Nick became an active member of the Building Committee. He was a generous contributor to all the organizational campaigns of the ULFTA, serving as secretary of the WBA Vancouver Branch, and attending many of their conventions as well as many others. Although in the last years of his life he had heart trouble, he never gave up but continued to attend every branch meeting and carried out any organizational duties in which he was asked to participate. Nick Pishak died on October 30th, 1974 at the age of 87.
Collection
Citation
“Nick Pishak,” Association of United Ukrainian Canadians - Vancouver, accessed April 26, 2024, https://auucvancouver.digitalhistoryhub.com/items/show/196.