Solutions to win: Zhytomyr lyceum raises $2,000 for Ukraine’s armed forces at annual Pumpkin Fest

In Zhytomyr, Lyceum No. 10 held a charity autumn fair called "Pumpkin-fest," where students raised 87,650 hryvnias [over $2,000 – ed.] to support the military of Ukraine's armed forces. The festival featured various activities such as a pumpkin porridge competition, the sale of treats, workshops, and an exhibition showcasing crafts made by lyceum students.

Suspilne Zhytomyr reported that, referring to the lyceum's Facebook account.

According to the lyceum director, Oleksandr Velychko, this festival was initiated last year and has now become a tradition. Throughout the year, the lyceum hosts two major events—one in the autumn and one in the spring.

According to Oleksandr Velychko, the autumn festival is unique not only for its charitable purpose but also for decorating the festival areas with various vegetables and straws.

"Since it is autumn, the harvest ends. And for us, for Eastern Slavs, for Ukrainians, this has always been symbolic. That is why we do not depart from our Ukrainian national traditions; we have many vegetables – pumpkins, melons, watermelons, zucchini, and eggplants.

And there must be straw. We bring bales of straw. And we also decorate the photo area with products made of straw and wheat, which are made by our colleague, the famous craftsman Oleksii Pshenychniuk," the head of the lyceum said.

^{Photo: Facebook / Lyceum 10, Zhytomyr}

The festival became a place where students, teachers and parents had the opportunity to participate in:

• pumpkin porridge contest,
• painting and straw weaving master classes,
• exhibition of works from natural materials.

Velychko said that a particular jury determined the tastiest porridge, there were various nominations, and none of the participants was left without an award.

One of the highlights was the charity lottery, in which 10th-grade student Ivan Boychenko bought 40 lottery tickets with 1,000 hryvnias from his own funds, demonstrating his desire to help the military.

"One of the most remarkable moments of this year's lottery was when 10th grader Ivan Boychenko purchased 40 lottery tickets for 1,000 hryvnias using his own hard-earned money. Incredibly, a young child went out of his way to buy these tickets, not solely to win, but to fulfill a noble mission of supporting our armed forces," the head of Lyceum No. 10 said.

Olena Nychyporchuk, the deputy director, mentioned that the money will go towards buying necessary supplies for the military, including parents of students deployed on the front lines.

"The parents of our students, who are on the front lines, have specific needs. As a team at the lyceum, we will review these requests and strive to fulfill them, at least in part. And we will certainly provide a report to the parents so they can see how the funds raised at the charity fair were used," she said.

Lyceum No. 10 in Zhytomyr collected 87,650 hryvnias for Ukraine's armed forces during the "Pumpkin-fest" autumn charity fair.

For reference:

It should be noted that the Pokrovsky Fair was held at Lyceum No. 24 in Zhytomyr for two days. During this time, schoolchildren collected almost 218,000 hryvnias for the soldiers of Ukraine's armed forces.