User:Vpawlowsky

My name is William (Vasyl - in Ukrainian) Pawlowsky. I was born in Montreal, Canada of mixed Ukrainian and Irish/Scottish ancestry. From childhood I was involved in the Ukrainian diaspora community at various levels, though I often joke with friends that I was a Ukrainian School dropout.

When I was 16 my father died very suddenly and that ethnic part of me would have been lost had I not made an conscientious decision to pursue a better understanding of my ancestral homeland. Eventually I completed a degree in Slavic Studies from the University of Waterloo and then went on to do an M.A. in Ukrainian literature at the University of Ottawa. Though I decided not to pile it higher and deeper, as some of my friends refer to Ph.D programs, but to continue my education in a somewhat different direction. completed my Masters in Library and Information Sciences at McGill University in 1990.

I spent over eight years working as a Librarian/Senior Information Specialist in the aerospace and educational sectors. I spent over ten years living in Ukraine where I began delving into positions which were not traditional for a Librarian, but they exposed me to working as a translator from Ukrainian and Russian to English and as editor and journalist in both print and broadcast media. I worked on democracy development issues, as a communication consultant for a number of Ukrainian Non-governmental organizations, and also as head of an information department at one of Ukraine's leading law firms. I then delved into cultural management having worked closely with many performing artists in Ukraine this seemed like a natural to me. Through combining my experiences in communication, research skills and a broad, as well as specific knowledge of things Ukrainian, I decided to dedicate some time to Wikipedia and hope to make a positive contribution to the community.