UGCC Youth in Perth Amboy (USA) Raise $14,000 for Ukraine’s Defenders Thanks to Christmas Vertep
The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church in Perth Amboy, New Jersey (USA), for the fourth year in a row, combined the traditional Christmas Vertep with a charitable caroling initiative in support of Ukraine’s defenders. This year, the youth raised $14,000, which will be directed to aid Ukraine’s defenders.
This was reported by the Perth Amboy UGCC parish.
For two months, teenagers and young parishioners, under the guidance of Fr. Ivan Turyk and the Sisters of the Incarnate Word, prepared a unique script, rehearsed twice a week, hand-sewed costumes, and combined preparations with communal prayer. The Vertep not only proclaimed the joy of Christ’s Nativity through carols, poetry, and theatrical performance but also became a powerful tool of solidarity with Ukraine.
The first Vertep performance took place in the parish church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, after which the Infant Jesus symbolically set out on a journey to the homes of the faithful in Perth Amboy. The carolers visited dozens of families and later extended to neighboring parishes, including St. John the Baptist Parish in Newark, St. Nicholas Parish in Passaic, and St. John the Baptist Parish in Whippany. For many hosts, the visits recalled Christmas celebrations from their childhood, while some children saw the Vertep for the first time. A special highlight was participation in the annual “Dnes rodylsya” (“Today Is Born”) Christmas carol festival at the cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Philadelphia, where the Vertep group presented the Infant Jesus to Metropolitan Borys Gudziak and donated $2,000 to his “Healing the Wounds of War in Ukraine” fund.
“While the central mission of the Vertep was to revive the true meaning of Christmas and proclaim the coming of the Savior, the carolers were also united by a strong desire to support Ukraine and contribute to victory through concrete action,” noted Fr. Ivan Turyk.
The organizers express sincere gratitude to all parishioners of the New Jersey Deanery who opened the doors of their homes, as well as to all donors whose generosity made it possible to raise such a significant amount.
The UGCC Department for Information
