Planned performances include several ethnic dances, including the Hopak and the Kolomiyka. (Courtesy of the Ukrainian American Sport Center)
The event takes place in Horsham on Aug. 24 from noon to 8 p.m., with Bobby Pietrangelo and Corey Nawrocki to be honored in an afternoon ceremony
The 2025 Ukrainian Folk Festival will be held at the Ukrainian American Sport Center on August 24 from noon to 8 p.m.
During the festival’s formal opening ceremony at 1:30 p.m., speakers will honor the lives and sacrifices of Bobby Pietrangelo and Corey Nawrocki, two local men who died will fighting in the Ukrainian military.
Pietrangelo, 23, of Hilltown, a Pennridge High School graduate, was killed in action in January 2025 near Pokrovsk, Donetsk Oblast, while Nawrocki, 41, of Lansdale, a North Penn High School graduate, was killed in action during a reconnaissance operation in the Bryansk region in October 2024.
Corey Nawrocki, 41, of Lansdale. (Credit: Corey Nawrocki/Facebook)
Bobby Pietrangelo, 23, of Hilltown Township, died Jan. 3, 2025, during a Russian offensive in the city of Pokrovsk. (Credit: Dana Fancher)The ceremony will include a reading of a tribute to both men in English and in Ukrainian, a formal dedication of the concert program to the memory of the two fallen heroes. In attendance will be members of Congress, local and state officials, wounded Ukrainian soldiers recovering in the U.S., Ukrainian refugee families, clergy, and members of the general public. The families and childhood friends of both heroes will be present to receive the community’s deepest gratitude, respect and recognition, said the release.
The festival will feature Ukrainian folk music, dance, foods and arts and crafts. Guests can experience the rich color and deep symbolism of the delicate “pysanka” (Ukrainian Easter Egg), the thunderous, power, rhythm and strength of “HOPAK,” an ethnic dance, and “Kolomiyka” (polka) and soulful folk songs, said a Ukrainian American Sport Center press release.
Other offerings include traditional Ukrainian foods and baked goods, a BBQ pit, standard picnic fare, a vendors’ grove, Ukrainian arts and crafts displays and bazaar, cool refreshments, live reenactments from Living Ukrainian History Exhibitors and Ukrainian hospitality.
A “Celebrate Liberty and Unity” outdoor summer concert will be held from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. The artists have created a dynamic and integrated collaborative program that will excite the senses. Following the concert will be a performance from VOX ETHNIKA BAND, featuring Ukrainian, East European, traditional, ballroom, rock and modern routines, said the release.
For a full list of performers, as well as their bios and links to their websites, videos and social media, visit https://www.tryzub.org/Festival-Bios-2025
The annual festival will feature Ukrainian folk music, dance, foods and arts and crafts. (Courtesy of the Ukrainian American Sport Center)
A "Celebrate Liberty and Unity" outdoor summer concert will be held from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. (Courtesy of the Ukrainian American Sport Center)
The festival will include a performance from Vox Ethnika band. (Courtesy of the Ukrainian American Sport Center)Admission is $20 per person. Kids under 15 get in for free. Tickets can be purchased at the gate. Parking is free. $2 of each ticket will be donated to Humanitarian Relief of War Victims in Ukraine.
The Ukrainian American Sport Center, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt non-profit charitable institution serves the Delaware Valley region with athletic, spiritual, cultural and artistic programming that is open to the general public at little to no cost. With over 500 member families, the center also provides acres of open space and a natural setting. Festival proceeds benefit humanitarian, sports, charitable, community, cultural and artistic programming.
For more information, contact Eugene A. Luciw at info@tryzub.org or 267-664-3857.
