Friday, January 23, 2015
By JOE GORMAN
YOUNGSTOWN
Pirogi Fridays will never be the same at Holy Trinity Ukrainian Catholic Church without Mike Iwaniuk.
Iwaniuk, 84, was found slain in his West Side home on Oakwood Avenue early Wednesday. He was a member of the church and helped the crew that makes pirogies for the church.
They were there in the church hall Thursday getting ready for today’s rush and spoke fondly of Iwaniuk, saying as they rolled flour into balls or kneaded it into pirogi form that he was an important part of the preparations.
“He was a hard worker. A good worker,” said John Turco. “He was always here when you needed him.”
Several of those in the hall of the church on West Rayen Avenue said they were wary of giving their name to a reporter, but they all spoke of Iwaniuk’s good nature and sense of humor. Turco said he was indispensable because of his attitude and also the fact that he was a jack of all trades.
“He could do just about anything you could think of,” Turco said. “He was very versatile.”
Turco said it was not uncommon to have Iwaniuk roll the dough one day, or cook it, or knead it the next, or do it all in the same day.
Iwaniuk was found dead by police after a paper carrier became suspicious because all of his house lights were on and his front storm door was open. He suffered several blunt-force injuries to the back of his head and was lying by the front door. His car also was missing and was found a couple of hours later at Calvary Cemetery.
Authorities at the home said they believe Iwaniuk had been dead for more than a day. Chief of Detectives Capt. Brad Blackburn said Thursday detectives were still looking for good leads in the case.
Those at the hall said Iwaniuk raised three sons and three daughters and worked in one of the mills in town.
Another church member who knew Iwaniuk, Fred Woak, said he was a small man, at just 5 feet 5 inches, and he had breathing problems, but he was a hard worker and good man.
“He was the nicest guy you would want to meet,” Woak said. “Everybody at the church is really broken up about this. He was a very nice man who didn’t deserve this.” Bill Horn, a Mahoning County deputy sheriff, grew up two houses from Iwaniuk at the end of Oakwood right next to the on-ramp for Interstate 680 south. Horn said Iwaniuk had his mother living in the home with his six children, and family was very important to him. He doted on his children and would attend all of their sporting events and practices, Horn said.
“He was just a nice guy in the neighborhood,” Horn said.
Horn said often the children would play in one yard and end up in Iwaniuk’s yard but that he liked having the kids around.
“We played in each other’s backyards all the time,” Horn said. “You didn’t have one backyard; you had three.”
Woak said one of the things that bothers him is Iwaniuk was like a lot of elderly people in the city who live alone in neighborhoods that have crumbled around them in recent years.
“I feel bad because there are so many old people who live in these neighborhoods that have gone downhill around them,” Woak said. “[Iwaniuk] lived there and raised his family there for 50 years. It’s a real shame.”
Iwaniuk’s death is the first homicide in the city in 2015. In 2014, Youngstown had 19 homicides.