By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

all are welcome

Red Deer Public Library hosting Ukrainian Christmas Koliadky Party this Saturday

Jan 4, 2023 | 4:11 PM

Residents are invited to take part in an upcoming Ukrainian Koliadky Party; a free event put on by Red Deer Public Library (RDPL).

The party goes from 1-3 p.m. this Saturday, January 7 at the library’s Dawe branch.

The Koliadky, or caroling, happens January 7, which is Christmas Day in Ukraine. In the currently war-torn country is where Eastern Orthodox Christians use the Julian Calendar as opposed to the Gregorian Calendar, hence the later date for Christmas.

There will be tea and Eastern European treats such as banyky and makivnyk, as well as traditional Ukrainian Christmas carols by the fire, shares Tatiana Tilly, RDPL’s Strategic Planning and Community Engagement Manager.

“We have a quite a lot of Ukrainians who’ve come to Red Deer since last spring, and that’s in addition to the hundreds who already lived here. This event is a chance for all of them, and of course anyone who is interested, to meet each other and connect on what will be the first Christmas here for all those newcomers who came here from a very very hard situation,” says Tilly.

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“Ukrainians have a fantastic tradition of going house to house to sing Christmas carols, and to do that here is difficult because not everyone is familiar, so this event will hopefully give them an experience as close as possible to that.”

Tilly says a very talented group of people, including some who’ve sung internationally, have rehearsed for the event on Saturday, and will be there to lead the carols.

The gathering is intended to bring joy, she also says, in light of the continued negative news coming out of Ukraine in relation to the war.

“In the last year, the library has become a special connection place for Ukrainians here with our Adult Literacy Program,” Tilly adds. “Many people have started learning English here with the help of our volunteer tutors, which has allowed for faster integration. And we’re also always looking for more of those volunteers.”

According to the 2021 federal census — before the Russian invasion of Ukraine — an estimated 480 people born in Ukraine were living in Red Deer, while nearly 8,000 are estimated to identify ‘Ukrainian’ as their ethnic or cultural origin.

No registration is needed for the event on Saturday.