Church Halls

Because of Canadian demographics and settlement patterns that put each family on its own quarter section rather than close to other families in a village, the dwelling pattern typical of Ukraine, Ukrainian Canadians built church halls near or beneath their churches. The church halls provide a venue for a range of social activities. Banquets following weddings and meals held after baptisms and funerals can be held in church halls. Church halls were the location for social and entertainment activities such as plays and dances. Plays were extremely popular prior to the wide-spread availability of television. Few of the people interviewed remember church plays, although Norman Harris did give the Sanctuary team a set of booklets used as scripts in Endeavour, Saskatchewan. Many halls still had the backdrops used for plays on their hall stages.