It is with profound sadness that the family of Olga (Olya) Kuch informs you of her passing at the age of 93. Olya was the eldest daughter of Paul and Emilia Stepowy. Olya will be lovingly remembered as the devoted wife of Walter, loving mother to Daria (Mark) and Christine, doting grandmother to Stefan (Alyssa Metcalfe) and the late Andrew Olynyk.

She and her sister, Orysia, were born in Windsor and later the family moved to Grimsby. In 1950, at the age of 18, she and Walter were married at St. John the Baptist Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Oshawa where they were active and hard-working members for 57 years.

Olya was strongly committed to her faith and maintained strong values throughout her life. She was an active community leader and initiated the Ukrainian Women’s Association of Canada (UWAC) Barvinok branch in the parish in 1957 and was President for 12 years. She organized countless events and was often asked to chair, lead or speak at special occasions. After moving to Etobicoke in 2007, Olya was President of the Sophia Rusova branch of the UWAC for 3 years at the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of St. Demetrius.

Olga was passionate about sharing her Ukrainian culture and was an advocate, ambassador and resource person in her church community and the greater Oshawa community. She was one of the organizers of the Oshawa Folk Arts Council. Olya taught hundreds of students in schools to write pysanky, reached out to the local media to publish articles or feature segments about the church community and Ukrainian traditions.

She did not hesitate to speak out or advocate about a problem and would often advise people to “write a letter” to politicians, or to those in authority, to draw attention to an issue or concern. Olya always focused on creating better opportunities for herself and her family. She and Walter bought a corner store in 1962 in Oshawa which opened new doors for her family. When the store was sold in 1972, she went into real estate and enjoyed, excelled and loved being a real estate agent for The Permanent.

Olya always got involved with her children’s activities. She was President of the local and regional Home and School Associations. As a mother who believed in education, she argued the case for her daughters to go to university. As a grandmother, she was a constant presence in her grandson’s lives and shared her passions, Ukrainian traditions and interests with them.

She loved cooking and her home was filled with recipes written on any scrap of paper. As a very creative person, she painted, knit, sewed clothes, designed her own hats, created flower arrangements and learned to upholster and sew drapes. There was always a project that she was working on or a next one that was planned. Olya loved people. Even in her later years, she would always choose an environment where she could see or be with people. She will be remembered as a strong, determined and resilient person who wasn’t afraid to chart a new path or take a risk.

Olya has now been embraced by God’s outstretched arms and has passed into the other dimension of life where she will be reunited with family and friends. Her memory, spirit, and caring will be remembered forever by those who loved and appreciated her.

Vichnaya Pamyat

The family is grateful to Dr. Lukasz Drzymala, cardiologist and Jennifer, Heart Failure Clinic nurse and to family friends, Dr. Paul Slavchenko and Dr. Natalie Baziuk, for many years of supportive help.

A special thank you to staff and excellent PSWs at both Ivan Franko Homes for their care and support.

If desired, memorial donations can be made to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of St. Demetrius, Etobicoke or St. Volodymyr Institute.

Visitations and services will be at Turner & Porter Yorke Chapel (2357 Bloor St. W., just east of Jane St.) on Friday, June27th, 2025 from 5:00 to 9:00 pm with a panakhyda at 7:00 pm. The Orthodox Rite of Funeral will be on Saturday, June 28, 2025 at 10:30 a.m. A private burial will be held on Monday, June 30, 2025.

For those who wish, donations would be appreciated to www.stvolodymyr.org or to www.stdemetriusuoc.ca