Maria Berushko

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Maria Aparecida Berushko (Beruski) was a school teacher who died saving her students in a school fire in Brazil. She may become the first Orthodox saint in Latin America.^[1][2]

Maria, being of Ukrainian descent, was born in 1959, in Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil.

When a school caught fire in 1986, Maria refused a chance to leave the building, instead she stayed inside and assisted her pupils in escaping. Berushko assisted in saving the lives of 5 children, but 8 children died together with the teacher in the fire.^[2]

The Synod of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Latin America already placed the issue of Maria's beatification to the agenda.^[3] It is expected the final decision to be made within three years.

A street in the Brazilian town of Curitiba has already been named after Maria Berushko (rua Maria Aparecida Beruski).

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