ST. MICHAEL'S CHURCH Valley Orthodox priest has 3 reasons to celebrate

Fifty has special significance for this Orthodox priest and his wife.
By LINDA M. LINONIS
VINDICATOR RELIGION EDITOR
YOUNGSTOWN -- In Russian, the word for three-fold is trojka.
The Very Rev. Protopresbyter George Hutnyan is marking an unusual three-fold observance -- his 50th year as a priest, his 50th year as pastor of St. Michael's Orthodox Church, Steel Street, and his 50th wedding anniversary.
The rarity and appreciation of such a celebration isn't lost on Father Hutnyan and his wife, Dorothy. Father Hutnyan said some priests have served at one parish for that long but it wasn't their first post.
He was assigned to St. Michael's on Aug. 18, 1955, and it's been his first and only parish. He'll most likely retire from there, though that's in the future.
"The congregation has wanted us to stay," Father Hutnyan said. "And we blended in well with the families."
Mrs. Hutnyan agreed and added, "We've been happy here."
The road to a vocation as a priest was his destiny or at least the "family business." His father, the late Andrew Hutnyan Sr., was a priest and his brothers, the Rev. Michael Hutnyan of Drifton, Pa., the late Rev. John Hutnyan, and the late Rev. Andrew Hutnyan Jr., also followed that path. A sister, the late Mary Jeskie, sometimes was asked if she was a nun. (No, she wasn't.)
Two nephews in the Hutnyan family also are priests.
"I was well-acquainted with the life and the duties," Father Hutnyan said. "It seemed natural to me, and I felt a special calling."
He graduated from Christ the Saviour Seminary in Johnstown, Pa., and was ordained July 31, 1955, by Bishop Orester P. Chornock. Before making the commitment as a priest, Father Hutnyan made another promise and that was to his bride, the former Dorothy Gost. They were married July 23, 1955.
"We have a choice [in the Orthodox faith]. But it must be made before ordination," Father Hutnyan said about marriage. And it's "one wife per life," Mrs. Hutnyan added with a smile.
Their meeting
Mrs. Hutnyan said she saw her prospective husband at a lecture and decided "he was the one I was going to marry." A cousin had a hand in getting them together, and they've been that way for 50 years. "My family razzed me about marrying a 'priest,' but I've had a happy life," she said.
"It's been helpful in premarital counseling," Father Hutnyan explained. "You can share experiences, and I think that has been valuable. And we've tried to set an example."
When the Hutnyans arrived as young couple in Youngstown in the mid-1950s they surprised some people who were unfamiliar with married Orthodox priests. Once while waiting for a bus, their presence as an obvious couple (and Father Hutnyan wearing clerical attire) raised eyebrows.
At the church, both admitted a little apprehension about fitting in. "I remember one event and I went to help in the kitchen. The 'bubbas' were doing dishes, and I started to help," Mrs. Hutnyan said. "But they said 'no,' and called me 'pa & ntilde;i' (a European term for a priest's wife), and they told me to sit down."
Mrs. Hutnyan said they both found their ways, as a couple and as individuals, in this new situation. "Most priests' wives don't work. But I had wanted to be a teacher," she said. So she went to college and earned a degree and taught first grade for 28 years at E.J. Blott School in Liberty. She continues to use her teaching skills at the church Sunday school.
Education
Father Hutnyan also furthered his education and earned two bachelor's degrees at Youngstown State University and a master's degree in education from Westminster College, New Wilmington, Pa. He has credits toward a doctorate at the University of Akron.
The Hutnyans have two children, David N. of Boardman and Nina C. Hutnyan of Canfield, and two grandchildren.
Father Hutnyan said having a family also has helped in counseling families. He said the P.K.s (priest's kids) sometimes were teased. "Many eyes were on them," Mrs. Hutnyan said. "But children are resilient."
There is good-natured teasing and exchange of humor between the Hutnyans. "She's become my Dad," Father Hutnyan said of his wife, referring to her singing at church and giving the cantor response.
Mrs. Hutnyan also helps at the church by taking care of the vestments and altar cloths. "I love to decorate at the church for the seasons," she said.
Change
Father Hutnyan said just as families grow and change, so has the church. A building project had started in 1938, and the church and social hall were completed in the 1950s. He said he is proud of that accomplishment.
"Years ago, the church was the center of social life," he said, in addition to the spiritual life. In the 1970s, the church had 300 members and now has about 100. "Priorities change and young people have moved away," he said. "But young people often return with their children for baptism and Chrismation [becoming a church member)] he and have them grow up with God," he said.
Father Hutnyan also serves in another capacity -- as chaplain for Orthodox patients at St. Elizabeth Health Center and Forum Health. "I get stopped by other families when they see the cleric collar," he said, and he prays with people of other faiths.
linonis@vindy.com