Matechak,Stepanovna, Biszko

[PSlivinski]

I am looking for info on the surnames, Matechak, Stepanovna, Biszko, or other spellings of these names, from the Galicia area of Austria. I have some old letters, written in russian, which I had 3 translated. They were to my grandmother, Melania Biszko (Biscoe) Peregrim, in Olyphant, Pa. They seem to have come from a place in the Donbass area of the Ukraine. The letters are from 1958, 1959. These letters were hard to translate, as I am told they are not a true russian, and a mix of russian, polish, ukrainian and maybe Lemko. Does anyone know of a place called "Village Peremoguoye" or the "Usepeuskiy" region. The letters were written by a Kseniya Matychack Stepanovna. Would like to know how hard it would be to send a letter there, to the Ukraine. If anyone has any suggestions, I would love to hear from you. I did look at the American Red Cross for lost relatives, but don't know if I need to write a letter to them in Ukrainian or what language. Does anyone know??? Thanks, PSlivinski

[Hannia]

Kseniya Matychack Stepanovna
Matychak is the surname
Stepanovna is the patronymic / father's given name =Stepan

It is not difficult to send a letter, as long as the address is correct and the
letter is litewgt.

I would like to look at the an envelope. Some districts & village names have
changed since 1958. Please scan and send it to me. mitehelp@aol.com
_______________________________________________________

I have seen articles re the isolation of the Lemko's in Donbas. Notwithstanding the
devastation of the resettlements, somehow they manage to hold on, if only by the
skin of their teeth.

It's very important that you do reconnect to any Lemko family you have in Donbas!

I am not of Lemko heritage, but find Lemko culture especially fascinating. It is
an anthropological pearl, that needs to be treasured by all of us.

[Hannia]

Biszko using Rusyn is Бишко.

Bare in mind that Rusyn is Ruthene, not Russian.

[PSlivinski]

Thanks for any help you can give me. I had a scanned copy of the envelop already on my computer and have sent it to you at the e-mail address you provided. Please let me know if you can make anything out of it.

[Hannia]

Envelope transliterated into English from Russian:

Luhanska oblast /region
Uspenskij raion/district TODAY Lutyhynskij raion
selo/village Peremozhnoye TODAY selo Peremozhne (means VICTORY in Ukr)
Ukraine - latest zip code for village 92028

Ksenia Matechak

Postal stamp has former name of Luhansk = Voroshilograd from 1935-1958.
____________________________________________________________

Looks like there is a COMMUNITY of LEMKO in Peremozhne.

Lemkos are an amazing group of people. Their roots are so
incredibly strong. You should be very proud of such a lineage.

Picture of Bishop Vsevolod commemorating the resettlement of Lemkos in village Peremozhne > Luhanska oblast.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...x-Vsevolod.jpg

Article in Lviv Newspaper re ceremony commemorating 60 yrs since
resettlement of the Lemko to Peremozhne. According to article,
Peremozhne is considered a Rusyn (Lemko) village.
кэб╡бяэйю цюгерю | бЮРПЮ Б ЯРЕОС

Following link is worth having translated. It tells the story of Lemkos in Luhansk. Link called Hajdamaka.
кЕЛЙХ МЮ кСЦЮМЫХМЁ

Another link re Lemko in Luhansk. Although they speak Ukrainian,
among themselves they still speak Lemko. The Matechak family is mentioned in this article!!!!
╩ кСЦЮМЯЭЙЁ КЕЛЙХ Ё ЙСПДХ ╚ кСЦЮМЯЙ Х кСЦЮМЫХМЮ

We have several members here that share your heritage. I will see if
we can get someone to translate sites above???
___________________________________________________________

Pat, I think you should write the Village Administrator and ask about any surviving family
still residing in Peremozhne. What do you think?

[Hannia]

Can be found in Lutynskij, Novoajdarskij and Milovskij raions >
Luhanska oblast > Eastern Ukraine.

[PSlivinski]

I am so thankful for your help. If you think there is anyone else online here who could translate the links you sent me that would be great. I have not had much luck doing the genealogy on this side of my family. One cousin had done some research and said she believes we are of Lemko descent. When I asked my father, he was unsure, but said his father did belong to a Lemko Society for a time. I have read some articles about the Lemko people on English sites.
I would certainly love to write the Village Administrator and ask about any living family that may still be in Peremozhne. That was my original intent when I first came into possession of the letters. I still have some that have not been translated. Any suggestions on the language I should use to send a letter to the Village Administrator and what exactly should I write in the letter. I assume it should be kept brief, but really do not know.
Also meant to thank you for setting me straight on the name Stepanovna. I had assumed it to be a married surname, never thought about it being a patronymic.
So would I address the letter:
Village Administrator
Luhanska
Lutyhynkij raion
selo Peremozhne
Ukraine 92028.

And would I put Ksenia Matechak on the outside of the envelope??

Sorry to be so dumb about this, but have never done this before and would really like to connect with someone on this side of my family while my father is still alive. Thanks for all your help. You are truly amazing.