Cardinal Mykola Bychok Visits Participants of the Pidhorodne Community’s mini—MBA Program

The meeting with representatives of the business, government, and civil society of the Pidhorodne community from the Dnipropetrovsk region took place after a lecture on clusters. The Cardinal was accompanied on his trip by Fr. Lyubomyr Yavorskyy, UGCC Patriarchal Econome and coordinator of the “Dіya v Nadii” program, and Fr. Ihor Yatsiv, Head of the UGCC Information Department and one of the program’s lecturers.

In his speech, His Eminence Mykola noted that this was his second time visiting participants of the educational program from the Mudra Sprava Patriarchal Foundation. The first time was in June of the previous year, 2024, when he met with representatives of the Tsyrkuniv community in the Kharkiv region, who were participating in the “Healing Communities” program.

“At that time, I received a gingerbread cookie as a gift. And we agreed with the program participants that I would take it to Australia and take a photo with it in front of the Sydney Opera House. I managed to do it and immediately sent them the photo,” said His Eminence Cardinal Bychok. He added that this gesture might seem trivial. Nevertheless, “I am a Ukrainian, and I am constantly drawn to my native lands. I enjoy traveling across Ukraine and meeting new people.”

“Today I am here, in your seemingly small community. But something great is being created here: something new is being created, a community is being created, and even a new Ukraine is being created,” the archbishop added.

Afterward, the participants of the “Dіya v Nadii” educational program had the opportunity to talk with the bishop and share gifts with him.

The family of Ivan Rudenko and Tetiana Osmolovska, and the “Nasinniachko” (“Seedlet”) project, gifted His Eminence Mykola a kit for growing greens and a symbolic Ukraine made of epoxy resin. A local artisan, Iryna, gave him a Ukrainian lialka-berehynia (guardian doll), and Maksym Mishustin presented a hand-painted notebook. The team of the Mudra Sprava Patriarchal Foundation also contributed gifts with the program’s merchandise.

In turn, Vitaliy Ryzhkov, presenting a painting of Dnipro waves, said that when he first saw it, he thought it depicted Australia. So, when handing it to the cardinal from Australia, he emphasized this symbolism. “May this painting remind you of Ukraine and its artisans who continue to create here,” he added.

“In my youth, I read ‘The Three Musketeers’ and also ‘The Thorn Birds.’ Later, I read Dan Brown’s books. Those books told stories about cardinals. For me, it’s about a mystery, so I find it interesting. They are intelligent and respected people. They are highly revered to me. And I could not even imagine that I would have a conversation with a cardinal. So, for me, today’s visit of the bishop to our community is very valuable. Thank you, Mudra Sprava! My emotions are still overwhelming,” Natalia Rublevska shared her feelings after the meeting.

It is worth adding that from June 13–15, representatives of the Pidhorodne community, within the fifth training module of the mini-MBA “Diya v Nadii” program, had the opportunity to explore the phenomenon of clusters and their effective formation, particularly based on cross-sectoral cooperation. With Fr. Ihor Yatsiv, they learned how to communicate effectively and build public relations as part of the topic on PR. They also learned what qualities a true leader should possess so that their idea, business, and own venture are not only realized and profitable but also unite people into a single team. This was explained by another lecturer and expert in his field—Andriy Rozhdestvenskyi.

Press Service of the Mudra Sprava Patriarchal Foundation