Helen Michaluk


Helen Michaluk was a prominent figure of the Belarusian diaspora, a long-standing head of the Association of Belarusians in Great Britain.

Life and work

Michaluk was born in the village of, in the north-east part of the Second Polish Republic. She went to a Polish and then – Belarusian school.
In 1947, she settled in the United Kingdom and, two years later, married. She became a member of the Association of Belarusians in Great Britain and the Anglo-Belarusian Society; she was also actively involved with St Cyril of Turaŭ Belarusian school in London and the Belarusian Autocephalous Orthodox Church.
In 1982, Michaluk became a member of the Rada of the Belarusian Democratic Republic. In 1997, she was elected the chair of the Association of Belarusians in Great Britain – the position she held until 2013.
Michaluk died on 16 October 2022, at the age of 92, and is buried in Manchester Southern Cemetery.

Awards

In 2019, Michaluk was awarded a Belarusian Democratic Republic 100th Jubilee Medal for her contribution to Belarusian public life in the diaspora.