Fonds F 196 - Bohdan Kazymyra fonds

Bohdan Kazymyra was born in Cherniiv, a village in Western Ukraine, on 19 October 1913 to Olha Wilczek and Dmytro Kazymyra. In 1922 the Kazymyra family moved to Zolochiv, where Kazymyra completed his high school education.

Kazymyra attended the University of Louvain in Belgium from 1932 to 1935. While there he attained a Licentiate of Political and Social Sciences with distinction. Upon his return from Belgium, Kazymyra continued his studies at the Ukrainian Theological Academy in Lviv, Ukraine. He graduated in 1941 and was appointed lecturer in Sociology and Research Methodology at the Academy until the summer of 1944. As the Soviet army advanced into Western Ukraine, Kazymyra fled to Krakow, Poland and from there to Vienna, Austria. While in Vienna he enrolled in a doctoral studies program in theology at the University of Vienna. He later changed his area of study to history. He lived in Vienna until 1948 when he moved to Belgium to manage the Ukrainian Press Bureau. He was also appointed as a senior research assistant, Sociology at the University of Louvain and was active in promoting Ukrainian interests in Western Europe.

Sponsored by Bishop Vasyl Ladyka of Winnipeg, Kazymyra immigrated to Canada in 1950 to assist with work in the Ukrainian Catholic Church in Western Canada. Kazymyra married Elizabeth Dorota on June 9, 1950 in Edmonton, Alberta.

While in Edmonton, from 1950 to 1955, Kazymyra worked as the manager and editor of the magazine, "Catholic Action" and directed the affiliated radio program. He also assumed responsibilities for the "Ukrainian News" newspaper. During this time he pursued his research interests in immigration and settlement of Central Europeans in Canada. He received his PhD in 1955 from the University of Vienna.

The Kazymyras had three children, Nadia, Marta and Dmytro. Kazymyra enrolled at McGill University in 1955 and graduated with a Bachelors degree in library science in 1956. After working as a librarian for a short period at the Department of Agriculture in Ottawa, Ontario, the family moved to Regina, Saskatchewan in 1959 when Kazymyra accepted a position as librarian-archivist with the Saskatchewan Power Corporation. He remained in this position until 1967.

In August 1967 he became head of the Serials Department at the University of Regina Library and in 1978 became head of the Archives Department at the University until 1980. During this period he was also an associate professor at St. Clement's University in Rome and a sessional lecturer with the University of Regina's History Department. Kazymyra retired from the University of Regina in 1981. He continued to research and write until the mid-1990's. Kazymyra resided in Regina until his death on February 14, 2007.

Kazymyra was a member of numerous professional and community organizations, including the Association of Canada Archivists, Canadian Library Association, Saskatchewan Library Association, Canadian Historical Association, Canadian Plains Research Centre, Shevchenko Scientific Society, Ukrainian Free Academy of Arts and Sciences, Ukrainian Catholic Councils of Canada and Ukrainian Canadian Congress.