The Cleveland Russian community demonstrated their heritage at One World Day in the Cleveland Cultural Gardens. One World Day has been the official event of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens Federation since 1946. The Russian community participated in the Parade of Flags which had 1500 people from over 53 countries.
Russian Garden in 2024 Parade of Flags
After the Parade they hosted visitors in their beautiful Russian Cultural Garden for performances, food, shopping and more.
The Cleveland Russian community demonstrated their heritage at One World Day in the Cleveland Cultural Gardens. One World Day has been the official event of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens Federation since 1946. Over 50,000 people visited the gardens on One World Day 2023.
The Russian community participated in the Parade of Flags which had 1500 people from over 53 countries.
Magical Journey to Lukomorye in the Russian Cultural Garden
Alexander Pushkin is considered by many to be the greatest Russian poet, and the founder of modern Russian literature. He is considered to be comparable to William Shakespeare.
The Russian Cultural Garden honored Pushkin on his birthday with a celebration of Pushkin.
Pushkin cat in Russian Cultural Garden
Svetlana Stolyarova is the leader of the Russian Cultural Garden in Cleveland and she and her team hosted a "Magical Journey to Lukomorye" in their Garden in honor of Alexander Pushkin's birthday on June 6, 1799. In the heart of the garden stands a magnificent oak tree, much like the one in Pushkin's famous fairy tale. A golden chain is tied to the tree, and at its end, a learned cat walks day and night, singing and telling enchanting stories.
Russian Cultural Garden - Yuri Gagarin and Walk of Fame
The centerpiece of the Russian Cultural Garden in Cleveland Ohio is a bust of the first man in space Yuri Gagarin. Surrounding the bust is a Walk of Fame made up of bricks featuring Russian cultural figures and Nobel Prize winners such as Anton Chekov, Leo Tolstoy, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Ivan Turgenev, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Vladimir Nabokov, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, Dmitri Shostakovich, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and dozens more.
Watch this short video tour.
Welcome to new Ambassador Svetlana Stolyarova
Ambassadors to ClevelandPeople.Com are individuals who are outstanding representatives of their culture and heritage. They have demonstrated great dedication to the advancement of their own community and to the greater good of honoring and celebrating other ethnic groups and communities to make our city and region more vibrant.
We are honored to welcome Svetlana Stolyarova as an Ambassador to the Russian community.
Svetlana Stolyarova, born in the USSR in 1962, is a passionate advocate for cultural heritage and community development. Her early years were marked by a deep appreciation for music and Western philosophy, which she studied extensively. As the era of Perestroika unfolded, Svetlana and her husband Aleksandr were among the enthusiastic individuals who embraced the opportunity for change, actively participating in the burgeoning business landscape and advocating for democracy and freedom.
In 1999, Svetlana's family made the decision to immigrate to the United States and settled in the Cleveland area. Since then, she has played an active role in the Russian-speaking community, using her career as a Real Estate broker to forge connections with diverse organizations and engage with a wide range of individuals.
In 2011, fueled by her passion for promoting Russian culture and heritage, Svetlana, together with Dr. Vinogradsky and Sergio Lebid, co-founded the Russian Cultural Gardens non-profit organization. Their goal was to establish a Russian Garden within the family of the Cultural Gardens of Cleveland, enriching the city's cultural tapestry. Svetlana currently serves as the President of the Russian Gardens non-profit and represents the organization as a delegate to the Cleveland Cultural Gardens Federation. Her involvement extends to her membership on the Executive Board of the CCGF, where she has held the position of Vice President twice.
Under Svetlana's leadership, the Russian Cultural Garden was successfully built and dedicated in September of 2018. Additionally, in 2019, a bust of Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space, was erected within the garden, commemorating his remarkable achievement. Svetlana's dedication to community engagement and promotion of cultural activities is evident in her enthusiastic organization of various events. One notable event is the Slavic carnival, Maslenitsa, or Pancake Festival, which has gained significant popularity and become an eagerly anticipated occasion for Clevelanders. Moreover, Svetlana has been instrumental in the growth and significance of the Cleveland music event, "The Stars of Summer International Piano and Vocal Competition and Festival," held in the Cleveland Cultural Gardens.
Through her tireless efforts, Svetlana Stolyarova has played a pivotal role in raising awareness of the Cultural Gardens and securing support for the development of the Russian Garden's infrastructure and cultural activities. Her contributions have brought the rich traditions and heritage of Russian culture to the forefront of the Cleveland community, fostering unity, appreciation, and celebration of diversity.
2022
Stars of Summer Annual International Piano and Vocal Competition
The Stars of Summer annual international piano and vocal competition took place in the summer of 2022 and winners of the competition performed at a gala concert. It began with a performance by students of the School of Cleveland Ballet who performed Waltz of the Flowers from The Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky. They performed outside on the stage of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens Centennial Peace Plaza.
Cleveland Ballet School students
Each of the Stars of Summer then performed for the audience. The participants were backed by the Cleveland Stars Orchestra led by conductor Lisa Goldman.
One of the highlights of the event was the Cleveland premiere of the Ukrainian Concerto # 2 by composer Alexander Peskanov by the winners of the Piano Concerto Prize.
The Cleveland Russian community demonstrated their heritage at One World Day in the Cleveland Cultural Gardens. One World Day has been the official event of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens Federation since 1946. Over 40,000 people visited the gardens on One World Day 2022.
The Russian community participated in the Parade of Flags
Russian Cultural Garden in the Parade of Flags
Here is a video of the entire Parade of Flags.
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When the Soviet Union fell in 1991 it was the first time in over 50 years that outsiders were able to visit the topic of this episode of Fun with Maps, Kamchatka. Kamchatka is a 900-mile-long peninsula roughly the size of California, yet only 400,000 people were allowed to live there, and all had to have special military clearances. The reason for the secrecy was Kamchatka's location so near Japan and the US that Soviets could listen in on communications during the Cold War.
Kamchatka is an example of a map having enormous geopolitical implications. Russia may have regrets about ceding the Kuril Islands to Japan, not to mention selling Alaska to the US in 1867. Had they not, how those events may have influenced history we will never know.
Cleveland's Russian community took part in the 75th One World Day in the Cleveland Cultural Gardens on August 29, 2021. They marched in the Parade of Flags and they hosted visitors in their beautiful Russian Cultural Garden.
Russian Cultural Garden in Parade of Flags
Cuyahoga Cossacks singing in the rain on One World Day 2021
Here is a video of the entire Parade of Flags at One World Day 2021.
Alexander Pushkin is considered by many to be the greatest Russian poet, and the founder of modern Russian literature. Alexander Pushkin’s poem Ruslan and Ludmila begins with a prologue in which he (the author) sits beneath an oak tree, where a learned cat on a golden chain tells him a fantastic tale.
Beside the sea stands a green oak tree, And on the tree a golden chain: And on the chain a learned cat Walks round and round and round again; When he goes left he tells a tale, And when he goes right he sings a refrain.
The Russian Cultural Garden honored Pushkin on his birthday with a celebration of the famous cat.
Pushkin's cat in Russian Cultural Garden in Cleveland
St.Theodosius Orthodox Christian Cathedral in Cleveland
St. Theodosius Cathedral is the oldest Orthodox Christian Church in the State of Ohio. It is located in the historic Tremont area of the City of Cleveland.
The historic cathedral was constructed between 1911-1912 and is considered one of the finest examples of Russian church architecture in the United States. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places in the United States.
The parish of St. Theodosius Orthodox Christian Cathedral was organized by immigrant Russians living in Tremont in 1896. St. Theodosius Cathedral was the "Mother Church" for most of the Orthodox Christian churches in northeast Ohio today.
The cathedral is perhaps best known for its appearance in the 1978 Best Picture winning film, The Deer Hunter with Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken, and Meryl Streep.
Ken Kovach has been Choir Master at St Theodosius for 50 years. In this video he gives us a tour of the inside of the Cathedral and shares some thoughts on the Eastern Orthodox Church.
St. Theodosius Russian Orthodox Cathedral Choir Master Ken Kovach
On June 1, 1971 Ken Kovach became Choir Master at the historic St. Theodosius Russian Orthodox Cathedral in the Tremont neighborhood of Cleveland Ohio. In his 50 (and counting) years he has witnessed many things in the Cathedral.
Ken is an Ellis Island Medal Recipient and inductee in the Cleveland International Hall of Fame. He also sings with a Russian folk group called the Cuyahoga Cossacks.
In this video, Ken tells about the Choir Master role and some of these stories. And then he gives a brief example of his great singing voice - singing The Lord's Prayer.
2020
Russian Holiday Traditions
We asked community leaders of various ethnic heritages to share some holiday traditions of their culture. Boris Vinogradsky, MD says "Russian history is complex and confusing, but nevertheless interesting.
During the Czar's times Russia used the Julian (Old Style) calendar which was introduced by Julius Cesar in 46 BC and was two weeks behind the now widely accepted Gregorian calendar introduced in 1582 by the Pope Gregory XIII. Russian Orthodox Church still uses the Julian calendar, because it considers itself The Third Rome - the Roman Empire being the 1st, Constantinople (Eastern Rome) being the 2nd and Russia (Moscow) being the 3rd. The change to the New Style occurred after the 1917 Revolution when Lenin and Bolsheviks decided to join the developed world.
After that the New Year's Day moved to January 1st. Soviets did not celebrate Western Christmas (December 25th), since they banned all religious holidays, but the devout Russians kept celebrating January 6th (Epiphany - Old Christmas Eve), January 7th (Sochel'nik) and January 14th (the Old New Year)."
Celebrating Christmas in Moscow A festive celebration of Christmas nearby the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow. 2003
Flowers were in bloom in the Russian Cultural Garden in Cleveland when we visited on April 28, 2020. The tulips by the sign were a welcome addition to the bust of Yuri Gagarin, the ring of honor and other features of the Garden.
Yuri Gagarin Bust Unveiled in the Russian Cultural Garden
Yuri Gagarin was a Russian cosmonaut who became the first human to journey into outer space, completing one orbit of Earth on April 12, 1961. Gagarin became an international celebrity and was awarded many medals and titles, including Hero of the Soviet Union, his nation's highest honor. He was honored with a bust in the Russian Cultural Garden in Cleveland during the One World Day celebration.
Svetlana Stolyarova before the Gagarin bust unveiling
The Cleveland Russian Cultural Garden hosted the 5th annual Maslenitsa celebration at the Rockefeller Greenhouse. It featured Best Bliny and Babuskha contests, Russian music, kids games, food and more.
The Cleveland Russian community was out in full force at the 73rd annual One World Day on the site of the Russian Cultural Garden. Members of the community marched in the annual Parade of Flags and later there was music, dancing, entertainment, food and fun as members of the Russian community shared their culture with thousands of visitors on One World Day.
Russian Cultural Garden Dedication - September 8, 2018
The Cleveland Russian Cultural Garden has been a work in progress since 2011 when Svetlana Stolyarova, Dr. Boris Vinogradsky and Sergio Lebid formed a committee to create a Russian garden in the Cleveland Cultural Gardens chain of gardens.
Their rationale was 3 key points
We believe that Russian culture is one of the world's most diverse and interesting.
Russian is the second largest European language
Russian culture in America deserves to be explored, represented and promoted.
The formal dedication of the Russian Cultural Garden was held on Saturday September 8, 2018.
The Cleveland Russian Cultural Garden hosted the 4th annual Maslenitsa celebration at the Rockefeller Greenhouse. It featured Best Bliny and Babuskha contests, Russian music, kids games, food and more.
Exactly 19 years ago, 12/12/1998 my husband, two sons, myself and our Airedale terrier Hrisenda Gerciron left Moscow for the United States. Thus began our long and not easy journey to the new life in the new country.
19 years ago we arrived in Chicago where stayed overnight and then took a ride to Cleveland that became our home, our life, and our love. Our kids liked the country at first sight because mail boxes looked exactly as in Tom and Jerry , and it was familiar and funny.
We learned how to bank, how to shop, how to speak and how to better understand American English, how to learn something new every day. Very quickly we figured out some baseball rules because there were too many references to this game in the kids' Math books .
We learned that football is not the game where players play ball by foot, and what we used to call Football is Soccer. We learned how to order Chinese food and Mexican food.
We learned how public schools work and we liked it. Of course, we landed in Orange School system, so it was a lot to like and to appreciate there.
We learned how to get a job and how to start our own business despite a limited language ability and a limited knowledge of the system.
We learned how health care works, and we are forever grateful to all the amazing doctors, nurses and caregivers in the UH who saved our son's live when he got seriously ill. We learned how compassionate and helpful people are in our new country. We learned how important it was to have an opportunity to receive a simple help from our new neighbors, friends and even strangers when it's most needed: bring a hot soup, help to clean or shop, babysit with our other son. Forever grateful for this incredible kindness and for important lesson: we learned how to give back and how not to wait when someone asks for assistance but simply help.
We are fortunate and privileged to realize an American Dream and to become homeowners. We are fortunate to witness and to contribute to the Renaissance of our beloved Cleveland. We are privileged to belong to the vibrant International community of Cleveland. We are fortunate to witness Cleveland Cavaliers championship and glory of the great LeBron James, after all!
Love, gratitude and respect to my new country.
Forever grateful for an opportunity to change our lives and to be able to contribute as much as we can.
Svetlana
Fashions from Russia at Cleveland multicultural party
A highlight of the 8th Annual ICC-WIN Cleveland Multicultural Holiday Celebration on Wednesday, December 6, 2017 at the Global Center for Health Innovation in Cleveland was the International Fashion Show featuring almost 100 models from about 30 countries.
The Women are wearing traditional Russian dresses called "sarafan" with headpieces called "kokoshnik". Boys are wearing blue and read "kosovorotka" with Cossack's hats. They also demonstrate boyar winter coats and hats.
Cleveland Russian community at Cleveland Multicultural Event
The Cleveland Russian Community was represented at the 7th annual International Community Council - Worldwide Intercultural Network (ICC-WIN) holiday party on December 14, 2016.
120 people participated in the fashion show and each walked the runway to music from their country. Click on the white arrow to watch the short video of the Russian models Antonina Pakholkova Mohamed, Elissa Mohamed, Kristina Shapiro, Varvara Zasukhina and Ken Kovach.
The Cleveland Russian Cultural Garden and Russian community participated in the 71st One World Day on August 28, 2016. They began with the Parade of Flags.
Throughout the day members of the Russian community of Cleveland hosted hundreds of visitors in the Russian Cultural Garden and shared Russian food, music, dance and culture.
11 year old Polina Kornyushenko sang accompanied by her teacher and pianist Olga Druzhinina at the 71st annual One World Day in the Centennial Year of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens.
A highlight of the 6th annual Holiday Celebration of Cleveland's Diversity held in the atrium of the Global Center for Health Innovation in the Cleveland Convention Center by the International Community Council-Worldwide Intercultural Network (ICC-WIN) was the multicultural fashion show.
afans with kokoshniks. Sarafan is a traditional Russian jumper dress worn as Russian folk costume by women and girls. Kokoshnik is a matching headpiece. The costumes were made by Katerina Turichenko with the help of Oksana Dallas for One World Day this Fall and by Antonina Pakholkova for this fashion show.
We'll do the "Bread and Salt" greeting as it is an old welcome greeting ceremony in Russia. In modern days, on official occasions, bread and salt is presented on rushnik (an embroidered towel) by young women dressed in national costumes.
The Stabrova Youth Ballet performed at the Cleveland Museum of Art's International Cleveland Community Day in the Atrium of the museum. They were sponsored by the Russian Cultural Garden.
St Sergius Cathedral presented the 2015 Russian Festival over the weekend of July 24-26, 2015. There was delicious Russian food and beverages, a Russian Tea Room, Vendors,a Kid's Korner and, of course, Russian entertainment including the Golden Gates Musical Group and the Iveria Georgian Dancers from St. Petersburg Russia.
The Cuyahoga Cossacks Greater Cleveland Russian Chorus under the direction of Michael Pilat performed a Russian folk song about 12 Robbers featuring Ken Kovach at the 70th annual One World Day in the Cleveland Cultural Gardens. This performance was part of the annual Cleveland International Folk Festival.
Stay informed about the local Russian community by signing up for the free Cleveland Russian eNews mailings. You can select other groups as well. It's easy and free.
First annual Maslenitsa celebration in Russian Cultural Garden
The Cleveland Russian Cultural Garden hosted its first annual Maslenitsa celebration on the site of their coming Garden. The snow and cold was not a problem for the event - it was a welcome necessity! Maslenitsa is celebrated outside in Russia so outdoor activities are expected and part of the fun.
There were snow games, a Bliny Cook Off, a babushka contest and life size matryoshka cutouts for photos and more.
Posing with the matryoshka cutouts
ClevelandPeople.Com was a media sponsor for the event and we have 5 pages of photos and videos covering the snow games, contests and people.
Representatives from the Cleveland Russian community participated in the International Community Council - Worldwide Intercultural Network's (ICC-WIN) 5th annual multicultural holiday celebration at the Global Center for Health Innovation in the Cleveland Convention Center in Cleveland Ohio. They modeled Russian costumes at the International Fashion Show which featured traditional costumes of dozens of countries.
Europa Russian Restaurant in Pepper Pike September 30, 2014
The Cleveland Food Adventurers Passport event in September 2014 was at the Europa Russian Restaurant in Pepper Pike. Russia is a huge country. So just as there are many different languages and types of people in different parts of Russia, there are different food preferences. The Food Adventure to Europa was a sampling of many traditional Russian foods and culture.
Grand Piano Concert in the Russian Cultural Garden
August 24, 2014
The Russian Cultural Garden hosted its first inaugural "Grand Piano in the Russian Garden" concert. The event took place on the site of a future Russian Cultural Garden on Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. in Rockefeller Park. The concert's theme was "Music of the Cultural Gardens of Cleveland" and featured works from composers in other Cultural Gardens such as Chopin (Polish Garden) and Liszt (Hungarian Garden). Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky represented the future Russian Garden.
Dmitry Tyurin, Arseny Tarasevich-Nikolaev, Svetlana Stolyarova, Nara Avetisyan and Boris Vinogradsky
Congratulations to the leaders of the Russian Cultural Garden for such a wonderful concert in such a beautiful setting. We can't wait till next year.
Barynya Russian Folk Dance and Music Ensemble performed traditional Russian songs and dances at the annual Cleveland Russian festival at St. Sergius Russian Orthodox Cathedral in Parma (Cleveland) Ohio.
Young Russian girls sing at the Cleveland Russian Cultural Garden
Young students of Anastasia Svyatlovskaya of the Celebrity School of Music sang at the new Russian Cultural Garden in Cleveland Ohio. They sang in Russian and English.
Fly Me to the Moon
The Greater Cleveland Russian Chorus performed a traditional Russian folk song at the 4th annual Worldwide Intercultural Network (WIN) holiday celebration of global diversity at the Ariel International Center in Cleveland. They introduced themselves as the Cossacks of the Cuyahoga for the special event.
The Russians are coming to the Cultural Gardens. The plan was presented to the Cultural Garden Federation Board to rave reviews. The Board approved the design and now it must go to the City for the final stamp of approval. On February 13, 2013, the Committee made a presentation of their proposal to friends of the Russian Cultural Garden/
Russian Cultural Garden Committee Co-Chair Svetlana Stolyarova
Youngsters Singing Russian Songs at Cleveland Museum of Art
3 young (8, 11 and 13 years old) students of Anastasia Svyatlovskaya at the Celebrity School of Music performed in the Ames Family Atrium in the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 13, 2013.
Doris O'Donnell in Russia Image courtesy StoryWorks.TV
Russian History and Culture
Russia is the largest country in the world, covering more than an eighth of the Earth's land area. It is the ninth largest by population with 142 million people.
Russia extends across the whole of northern Asia and 40% of Europe, spanning 11 time zones and incorporating a great range of environments and landforms.
Memorial to Yury Dolgoruky (George the Long-Armed), the founder of Moscow
Russia
Founded in the 12th century, the Principality of Muscovy, was able to emerge from over 200 years of Mongol domination (13th-15th centuries) and to gradually conquer and absorb surrounding principalities. In the early 17th century, a new Romanov Dynasty continued this policy of expansion across Siberia to the Pacific.
Under Peter I (ruled 1682-1725), hegemony was extended to the Baltic Sea and the country was renamed the Russian Empire.
Peter the Great officially proclaimed the existence of the Russian Empire in 1721
During the 19th century, more territorial acquisitions were made in Europe and Asia. Defeat in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-05 contributed to the Revolution of 1905, which resulted in the formation of a parliament and other reforms.
Repeated devastating defeats of the Russian army in World War I led to widespread rioting in the major cities of the Russian Empire and to the overthrow in 1917 of the imperial household. The Communists under Vladimir Lenin seized power soon after and formed the USSR.
The brutal rule of Iosif Stain (1928-53) strengthened Communist rule and Russian dominance of the Soviet Union at a cost of tens of millions of lives.
The Soviet economy and society stagnated in the following decades until General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev (1985-91) introduced glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring) in an attempt to modernize Communism, but his initiatives inadvertently released forces that by December 1991 splintered the USSR into Russia and 14 other independent republics.
Since then, Russia has shifted its post-Soviet democratic ambitions in favor of a centralized semi-authoritarian state whose legitimacy is buttressed, in part, by carefully managed national elections, former President Putin's genuine popularity, and the prudent management of Russia's windfall energy wealth.
Russia has severely disabled a Chechen rebel movement, although violence still occurs throughout the North Caucasus.
Read more about the Russian and other Ambassadors. If you are interested in being considered to be an official ClevelandPeople.com Ambassador to the Cleveland Russian community, please contact us.
