Traditionally in May, Ukraine celebrates Vyshyvanka Day (Embroidery Day), which has become a unifying event for all ethno-confessional groups and vividly demonstrates the unity of the modern Ukrainian political nation. This year, the holiday was celebrated for the twentieth time, and many institutions of the Dnipro Jewish Community, especially its educational establishments, traditionally joined in.
Vyshyvanka Day was celebrated very brightly and touchingly at the “Beit Zindlicht” Children’s Educational Center, the leading early childhood institution of the Dnipro Jewish Community – everyone wore embroidered shirts: the children, the teachers, and all the staff. Additionally, special lessons were held in the groups, during which the children became acquainted with various attributes of the holiday, learned about the embroidery design traditions common in different regions of the country, and the symbolism and color schemes of this important national element of Ukrainian identity.
At the Levi Yitzchak Schneerson Jewish Lyceum No. 144, the leading educational institution of the Dnipro Jewish Community, they organized not just a Day but an entire Vyshyvanka Week, joining the city authorities’ initiative dedicated to the 20th anniversary of this day. Vyshyvanka Day originated as an informal celebration in the far west of Ukraine, in the city of Chernivtsi, and within a few years became popular throughout the country as a vivid symbol of the unity of the multi-ethnic Ukrainian people. Each class prepared a special project in the format of a flash mob, which was then presented on the Jewish lyceum’s social media accounts.
Furthermore, as part of Vyshyvanka Week, the students of the Jewish lyceum, together with psychologist Svitlana Tsarytsyna, took part in the regional embroidery ornament competition “Vyshyvanka – the Heart of Ukraine, Woven from Love.” The lyceum particularly highlights three student works that made an unforgettable impression: Veronika Kruhlyak, in her work “Little Bird,” embodied the image of spring and the rebirth of life; Yevheniy Akinin, in his work “Sun-Sunflower,” used the colors of the national flag, emphasizing love for Ukraine; and Andriy Oliynyk presented his work “Little Ukrainian Girl,” in which he used traditional Ukrainian ornamentation.
In addition, Vyshyvanka Day was also celebrated in many other Jewish organizations in Dnipro – at the Museum “Jewish Memory and Holocaust in Ukraine,” at charitable foundations, social, humanitarian, and medical institutions, and many members of the Dnipro Jewish Community actively participated in flash mobs and events taking place throughout the city.
