OHIO REGIONAL COUNCIL OF THE UKRAINIAN NATIONAL WOMEN'S LEAGUE OF AMERICA, INC., was established in Cleveland in 1957. In 1995 it united 5 branches (8, 12, 33, Cleveland; 69, Lorain; and 116, Erie, PA) under the leadership of Iwanna Skarupa, president. The council has 160 members. Its purpose is to promote Ukrainian national consciousness, organize educational programs, participate in the wider women's movement, and provide aid to Ukraine or Ukrainians in need.
The Ohio Regional Council assisted in publishing several books, among them the History of Ukrainian Church, by S. Senyk. For the vision-impaired, 446 books by Ukrainian authors were recorded on tapes and are available at local libraries. The council has compiled a sizeable collection of folk art which is periodically displayed at ethnic exhibits, in universities, and art galleries. The council is a member of the UKRAINIAN MUSEUM-ARCHIVES in Cleveland and a member-patron of the Ukrainian Museum in New York City, which the national UNWLA established in 1967 in association with the Ukrainian Institute of America. The UNWLA recorded testimonies of the survivors of the 1932-33 famine in Ukraine, which was artificially created by the Soviet government. To commemorate the famine, UNWLA members collected food and distributed it to the needy in Cleveland through the Nationalities Services Center (see INTL. SERVICES CENTER). The UNWLA is a member of the FEDERATION OF WOMEN'S CLUBS OF GREATER CLEVELAND, the LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF CLEVELAND, the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America, and the National Council of Women in the U.S.