By means of hospitals and settlement houses, the already established Roman Catholic Church and the Protestant denominations made earnest attempts to assist the immigrant to adjust to his new surroundings. Many newcomers took advantage of the social services offered but felt more comfortable with their Old World religious traditions. The left frame shows a Russian Orthodox ceremony being performed in the North End of Winnipeg in 1909. On the right the Eastern European onion-shaped dome dominates the prairie. Those symbols of a European way of life provided a focal point for the communities of uprooted European peasants struggling to wrest a living from the sometimes harsh prairie environment.
