Helen MichalukHelen Michaluk (Belarusian: Алена (Лёля) Міхалюк, née Marcinkevich; 15 May 1930 – 16 October 2022) was a prominent figure of the Belarusian diaspora, a long-standing (and the only female) head of the Association of Belarusians in Great Britain. Life and workMichaluk was born in the village of Lonskija , Braslaŭ County in the north-east part of the Second Polish Republic (now Sharkawshchyna District of Vicebsk Region, Republic of Belarus). She went to a Polish and then – Belarusian school. In 1947, she settled in the United Kingdom and, two years later, married Janka Michaluk . She became a member of the Association of Belarusians in Great Britain and the Anglo-Belarusian Society; she was also actively involved with St Cyril of Turaŭ Belarusian school in London and the Belarusian Autocephalous Orthodox Church. In 1982, Michaluk became a member of the Rada of the Belarusian Democratic Republic. In 1997, she was elected the chair of the Association of Belarusians in Great Britain – the position she held until 2013.[1] Michaluk died on 16 October 2022, at the age of 92, and is buried in Manchester Southern Cemetery.[2][3] AwardsIn 2019, Michaluk was awarded a Belarusian Democratic Republic 100th Jubilee Medal for her contribution to Belarusian public life in the diaspora.[4][5] References
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