And once of the sudden Father Taras Mylyan's term of serving in the parishes of Omaha, Nebraska, and Lincoln and St. Joseph came to an end. With a happy heart, but with sadness in his soul, he returns home to continue his work as a priest closer to his native home in Ukraine. In less than 2 years of service, he has encountered many obstacles that could stand in the way of anyone but him. The Coronavirus Pandemic, that scared all of us, but he did not allow it to close the doors of the church to the faithful.

  Father Taras quickly transitioned to run the services online and continued to pray. He often risked his own health, did not refuse to receive the Holy Mysteries to those who needed it most, especially the elderly and sick parishioners. He was available 24 hours a day for everyone, sharing the joys and sorrows with the parishioners. Meetings for the youngest did not stop, it was nice to watch how young children sat intently in front of computer screens, and tried to listen carefully to new and interesting information about God, as well as learned to sing religious songs.
  He put a lot of undervalued work into the development of the parish, encouraging young people to continue attending Sunday services, and facilitated children's meetings to learn embroidery, beadwork, Easter egg painting, and the art of bakery decorations. Older youth had the opportunity to receive valuable information about the sacred mysteries of Confession and Communion, in the form of retreats before Christmas, Easter, as well as evening prayers throughout the year. We watched movies together and had the opportunity to discuss what we saw. We went on joint pilgrimages, held cultural poetry evenings, lunches, concerts dedicated to Mother's and Father's Day, as well as children's performances.
  We have not seen such diversity in the life of the church for years. In a special way he was able to share his heart with those who volunteered to help at the altar, to take care of the church, as well as with those who felt their vocation and began to study in theological seminary. We cannot convey in words all the feelings and emotions that fill the hearts of your parishioners. But we know for sure that your support, prayer, and kind words will always be with us, and will support us in continuing all the planned work, namely in introducing Ukrainian language lessons for children, continuing to study the culture and history of Ukraine, religious science and creating a strong parish. We wish you, Father Taras, new achievements, to meet people with hearts full of love, like-minded people, patriots, activists. May love for people and life overwhelm you, and may the power of Lord help and protect you in everything!
  May the Lord protect you and open new doors for you each time!