Helen Michaluk (, Marcinkevich; 15 May 1930 – 16 October 2022) was a prominent figure of the

Belarusian diaspora The Belarusian diaspora refers to emigrants from the territory of Belarus as well as to their descendants. According to different researchers, there are between 2.5 and 3.5 million Belarusian descendants living outside the territory of the Rep ...

, a long-standing (and the only female) head of the

Association of Belarusians in Great Britain The Association of Belarusians in Great Britain ( be, Згуртаваньне беларусаў у Вялікай Брытаніі, ''Zhurtavańnie bielarusaŭ u Vialikaj Brytanii'') is the oldest Belarusian organisation in the United Kingdom un ...

Life and work

Michaluk was born in the village of , in the north-east part of the

Second Polish Republic The Second Polish Republic, at the time officially known as the Republic of Poland, was a country in Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe that existed between 1918 and 1939. The state was established on 6 November 1918, before the end of ...

(now

Sharkawshchyna District Sharkawshchyna District ( be, Шаркаўшчынскі раён; russian: Шарковщинский район) is a district (raion) of Vitebsk Region in Belarus. The administrative center of the district is the town of Sharkawshchyna. Nota ...

of Vicebsk Region,

Republic of Belarus A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...

). She went to a Polish and then – Belarusian school. In 1947, she settled in the United Kingdom and, two years later, married . She became a member of the

and the

Anglo-Belarusian Society The Anglo-Belarusian Society () is one of the oldest Belarus-related organisations in the UK with an object of “diffusion, interchange and publication of knowledge relating to the Belarusian people, their land, history and culture”. History ...

; she was also actively involved with St Cyril of Turaŭ Belarusian school in London and the

Belarusian Autocephalous Orthodox Church The Belarusian Autocephalous Orthodox Church ( be, Беларуская аўтакефальная праваслаўная царква, ''Bielaruskaja aŭtakiefaĺnaja pravaslaŭnaja carkva'' BAPC; russian: Белорусская автокеф ...

. In 1982, Michaluk became a member of the

Rada of the Belarusian Democratic Republic The Rada of the Belarusian Democratic Republic ( be, Рада Беларускай Народнай Рэспублікі, Рада БНР, Rada BNR) was the governing body of the Belarusian Democratic Republic. Since 1919, the Rada BNR has bee ...

. In 1997 she was elected the chair of the

– the position she held until 2013. Michaluk died on 16 October 2022, at the age of 92.

Awards

In 2019, Michaluk was awarded a

Belarusian Democratic Republic 100th Jubilee Medal The Belarusian Democratic Republic 100th Jubilee Medal ( be, Мэдаль да стагодзьдзя Беларускае Народнае Рэспублікі) is a medal awarded in 2018 by the Rada of the Belarusian Democratic Republic (the gov ...

for her contribution to Belarusian public life in the diaspora.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Michaluk, Helen 1930 births 2022 deaths Members of the Rada of the Belarusian Democratic Republic British people of Belarusian descent People from Sharkowshchyna District