MPO History - Methody Chaneff Took MPO to Washington and New York

by Christo N. Nizamoff

Kosta Popoff was succeeded by Methody Chaneff as President of the MPO. Like his worthy predecessors Anastas Stephanoff, Vasil Eshcoff, Pandil Shaneff and Kosta Popoff, Chaneff was one of the dedicated founders of the organization. He was also the last of the original group of Founding Fathers to occupy the post of President.

Born in the village of Ostrovo, the district of Voden, he came to Canada in 1912. He soon moved to the United States and worked in Indianapolis and Dayton. Chaneff eventually established himself in the grocery business in Canton, Ohio, in partnership with two of his countrymen. Later he opened his own grocery.

In Canton during the early 1920s Chaneff became an ardent advocate of the revived movement for a free and independent Macedonia. A founder of the local branch of "Boris Sarafoff", he was an active participant in the first Ft. Wayne gathering. Young, energetic and endowed with natural intelligence, he soon became well-known and respected by Macedonians in surrounding cities. Even then he was marked to play a leading role in the affairs of the MPO.

Having previously served as a member of the auditing committee, Methody Chaneff was made a member of the Central Committee at the 1942 Convention in St. Louis. As an individual Methody was one of the noblest human beings one could ever meet. Kind and generous, he helped many come to the United States after the Second World War.

Early in his married life his wife Veneta became ill and had to be institutionalized. Left alone, the devoted husband made frequent visits to spend a few hours with his wife and often brought her home-cooked dinners so that they could dine together. The ordeal was heavy, but Methody never complained. Chaneff took the post as head of the MPO very seriously. He wanted to be informed in detail of how the branches were doing. Two or three times a week, he would call the Central Office.

One of the most memorable acts of his presidency was the well-documented expose against the Greek oppression of the Bulgarians in Macedonia. In March of 1956 the British, who governed the Island of Cyprus, deported the Greek Bishop Makarios for subversive activities a conspiracy to unite the Island with Greece. As may have been expected the Greek Holy Synod and the Athens government protested against the "barbarous act" of Great Britain.

The Central Committee took advantage of the attention given to the Makarios deportation and prepared a well-documented expose of Greek oppression in Macedonia. Besides the members of the Central Committee, the document was signed by the delegates of the 35th Convention in Pittsburgh, Pa; by the president secretary and Ladies Section of every local MPO chapter; and by the officers of our Bulgarian churches, including the Bishop and all the clergy.

A special delegation went to New York to hand the document to the Secretary of the United Nations. Copies of it were sent to the President of the United States, to many senators and congressmen, to the envoys of the great powers, and to most of the major newspapers and libraries here and in Europe.

A week later the British government in London, by special telegram, ordered a dozen copies to be mailed to their Ambassador in Washington. A request from the Turkish Embassy soon followed. The library of the State Department in Washington asked for an extra copy. During the years of Chaneff's Presidency, the Central Committee on several occasions sent delegations to the UN and to Washington to plead for the rights of Macedonian-Bulgarians living under Serbia and Greek rule.

At the 1965 Convention in Toronto, Methody Chaneff was retired and given the title of Honorary President.

He is remembered for his dedication, compassion and active service to the organization. When he died on March 6, 1974, the MPO lost an able leader and ardent patriot who served the Cause from its inception.

The writer had worked for the MPO for more than 40 years. After retirement he continued to write articles for this newspaper until his death in 1989. Reprinted from the Jan. 3, 1985, issue of the MACEDONIAN TRIBUNE.