Leaving Home ― The Remarkable Life of Peter Jacyk

Petro (Peter) Jacyk survived two of the most horrendous events of the 20th century: the Ukrainian famine of the 1930s, instigated by Stalin and responsible for the deaths of untold millions, and waves of invasion and slaughter from Soviet Russia and Nazi Germany. Fleeing postwar Europe in 1949, he arrived in Canada with seven dollars in his pocket and horrific images in his memory. His adopted country would inspire a deep and lifelong love in Jacyk. Here at last, as he put it, he was ?free to live and free to succeed.” Through the Toronto building and land development firm he founded, he established himself as an economic and cultural powerhouse. Exacting in his dealings with others, yet a generous mentor, he sought excellence in all of his pursuits. In time, the man who had begun as a ?poor-penny immigrant” became one of the country’s most prominent philanthropists, donating substantial portions of his wealth to projects dedicated to Ukrainian history, language, and culture. Universities such as Harvard, Columbia, and the University of Toronto benefited from his largesse. Leaving Home celebrates the life of a remarkable man determined to make a positive impact on an often-hostile world.

John Lawrence Reynolds, a native of Hamilton, Ontario, holds two degrees from McMaster University (English and Psychology). He began his career in advertising, becoming VP-Creative Services of a major ad agency before pursuing a career in feature writing, photography, and film/video production and direction. His travel and feature writing has appeared in periodicals including Financial Post, Toronto Life, Report On Business, Leisureways, Canadian Living, and others. He has published over 25 fiction and non-fiction books, winning various awards including two Arthur Ellis Awards and a National Business Book Award for Free Rider: How a Bay Street Whiz Kid Stole and Spent $20 Million (McArthur & Co.)