- April 27, 2024
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Good egg Margo Semenchuk poses with the Easter Bunny.
Photo by Lesley DwyerEaster games are set up on the lawn.
Photo by Lesley DwyerIlona Sakovich, Boris Tsatskin, Olena Gryniava, Margo Semenchuk and Nina Stetsenkp
Photo by Lesley DwyerElissa Anokhova pretends to be a bunny.
Photo by Lesley DwyerKaterina Anokhova and Katie Jewett communicate using a translation app.
Photo by Lesley DwyerMichelle Ewing, Katerina and Valeria Anokhova, Katie Jewett and Elissa Anokhova traveled from Largo for the Easter party.
Photo by Lesley DwyerOlena and Scarlett Guidry pose with the Easter Bunny.
Photo by Lesley DwyerFamilies gather in the courtyard to eat popcorn and cotton candy.
Photo by Lesley DwyerYeva and Kiril paint Easter eggs.
Photo by Lesley DwyerThe children gather around the lawn to meet the Easter Bunny and play games.
Photo by Lesley DwyerIt's a Ukrainian tradition to decorate trees with eggs for Easter.
Photo by Lesley DwyerThe kids raise their hands to play hopscotch.
Photo by Lesley DwyerThe children play hopscotch.
Photo by Lesley DwyerChapel helpers David Stone, Karen Pashkow and Lesley Rife
Photo by Lesley DwyerAfter their turn at hopscotch, the kids get a candy from the Easter Bunny.
Photo by Lesley DwyerElissa Anokhova and Scarlett Guidry laugh between rounds of musical chairs.
Photo by Lesley DwyerRobbie Guidry looks for Easter eggs with his mom.
Photo by Lesley DwyerThe kids go on an egg hunt around the garden.
Photo by Lesley DwyerOlena Gryniava leads a conga line.
Photo by Lesley DwyerValeria Anokhova leads the Easter Bunny in the conga line.
Photo by Lesley DwyerThe Longboat Island Chapel rents their Friendship Garden to host weddings, memorials and birthday parties. On April 8, it was used to throw an Easter party for Ukrainian refugee children.
The rental fee was waived, and the charitable outreach committee donated $1,000 to the Danube International Company for supplies. There were cotton candy and popcorn machines. Games were set up on the lawn, and the trees were decorated with eggs just as they would be in Ukraine.
“As soon as they heard the kids and people speaking in Russian, their eyes lit up,” teacher Katie Jewett said. “All day long, they’re in school and we’re translating through our phones.”
Katerina Anokhova has two daughters, grades pre-K and second, that enrolled in elementary school last month. She saw the party advertised on Facebook and asked the school’s principal if there was anyone who could drive them to Longboat Key. Jewett and her sister drove the family down from Largo.
The celebration was an American Easter with a Slavic twist. It’s already warm in Florida, but it’s still cold in Ukraine. The tradition of hanging eggs in trees is to speed up the arrival of spring. Boris Tsatskin played Ukrainian music as the kids formed a conga line and danced through the garden, and each family left with a loaf of bread.
“It’s like a sweet bread that we bake with raisins and nuts because we fast for 40 days before Easter,” Danube Co-founder Olena Gryniava said. “Easter day, on Sunday, we go to church and we bless the bread. We get blessings from the priest, and then we start from this bread for our Easter dinner.”
About 40 children and 60 caregivers between North Port and St. Petersburg attended the party. Danube is headquartered in Sarasota but helps refugees from all over the country apply for social service benefits and restart their lives. For more information, call 727-644-4839.
