Thirty families from remote villages in the Bodaibo district of the Irkutsk region have received New Year’s gifts from Polyus Verninskoye.
Each package weighed more than 20 kg and contained a variety of items. Polyus also held a festive Fir Tree Competition and built an ice village to be enjoyed by all the children in Bodaibo. The village of Perevoz is remotely situated almost 300 km from Bodaibo. The range of goods offered by the local shops lack the variety that can be found in the district’s main center. This meant that the arrival of the Polyus Verninskoye crew bus on New Year’s Eve, loaded with food packages, was a source of great excitement for the locals, and all of the village children were invited to a festive table laden with goodies.
Similar packages were also delivered to children in the Kropotkin, Artemovsky and Mamakan villages. In total, 30 families received these gifts.
Children living in Bodaibo didn’t miss out either as they were brought food packages as well as other presents, and the children and their parents were very pleased to receive this support.
A Traditional Fir Tree Competition was also organized during the holidays. This time the challenge was to make decorations for the trees in keeping with the local culture: for example, Gzhel and Khokhloma ornaments, Gorodets and Mezen paintings, Dymkovo toys and Russian nesting dolls. To ensure equal conditions for all of the competitors, fir trees of the same size were positioned in front of Polyus Verninskoye’s central office building.
Both children and adults alike tried their utmost in the competition: students from the Youth Club and Mamakan Leisure Center presented Russian folk style trees. Gzhel ornament decorations were made by children from School #1 and the central library created a Khokhloma-themed designer fir tree in the shape of a bull. The library’s exhibit was complemented by an information board telling the story of the symbol for the coming year, as well as explaining the traditions and story behind Khokhloma ornaments.
Polyus Verninskoye awarded the team from Secondary School #1 a laptop. Other winners receive sewing machines, which are in high demand for use in art classes.
Igor Tsukurov, Managing Director of Polyus Verninskoye, commented:«A great tradition we have in our team is the ‘Be Father Frost’ initiative for children over the age of 6. Nothing comes close to the joy of giving presents to children and seeing the smiles on their faces. Polyus Verninskoye likes to look after youngsters in the region well, and not only during the festive periods. For many years now we have been improving sports facilities for the kids in Bodaibo and investing in education to make the latest learning technology and high-end equipment available for them to use. Let’s hope 2021 can be a happy year for all the little ones!»
Another festive attraction is the colourful and sparkly ice village erected at the square in the Bodaibo Amusement Park. Polyus Verninskoye also sponsored plays being performed around New Year’s, which will be staged this weekend in the Vitim Cultural and Recreational Center.
Source: IrkutskMedia