This year, Easter celebrations in our safe children’s spaces lasted a whole week. From April 15th to 22nd, children, together with teachers, immersed themselves in ancient customs: they baked Paskas (traditional Easter bread), painted Easter eggs, and learned to sing Easter songs. But most importantly, they spent time together. Surrounded by warmth, safety and with a feeling of a true celebration.
The team of our foundation also joined the celebrations: we helped organize workshops and prepared sweet gifts for children.
📍 In Bezruky, teenagers read poems, participated in quests and competitions, painted Easter eggs, and created a large Easter tree of wishes.
📍 In Derhachi, thematic classes were held for the youngest: pysankarstvo (Easter egg painting), exploring the traditional types of Easter eggs, a creative workshop on making pendants and thematic wooden figurines. It is inspiring that parents also joined the craftsmen and made colorful crafts together with the little ones.
📍 In Savyntsi, children decorated Easter baskets for the festive table, and together with craftswoman Iryna Petrushko created Easter rushnyk (ethnic towel cloth) using the цoodblock printing technique – an ancient Ukrainian tradition.
🔸 In total, more than 300 children took part in the celebrations
🔸 8 events were held
🔸 13 craftsmen took part
🔸 All this took place in three settlements of the Kharkiv region
It was a week when joy was measured not only in Easter cakes and Easter eggs. It was in children’s smiles, in a quiet “look, mom, I did it myself”, in the moments when you could forget about the air raid siren and just be there together safely.
We are grateful to the teachers and craftsmen who lovingly pass on Ukrainian traditions to children. And we thank every child who created this holiday with us.
Because it is on such days that strength is greater than it seems. And it is in such moments that faith in a peaceful future grows.
