Thursday, March 28, 2024

U clubs unite, put on Slavic festivities

April 23, 2001

Sergey Nesterenko found a little taste of home Saturday afternoon.

The horticulture graduate student from Siberia was among the nearly 60 people who attended the MSU Slavic Festival, sponsored by the Russian, Polish and Ukrainian clubs.

Nesternko, who has left behind family in Siberia to study at MSU, said being away from home is a difficult thing to do, whether you’re from another country or even another state.

“I think for everybody, it’s really difficult,” he said.

Alyona Yasnogorodsky, an international relations freshman and secretary of the Russian Club, said the organization and others like it offer comfort to people away from their native countries.

“They get to see that they’re not alone in the community,” she said.

Yasnogorodsky moved to the United States from Russia when she was 12. She said organizations like the Russian Club are also beneficial to people who, like her, have been away from their native country for a long period of time.

“It puts me in touch with the culture and I get to talk to people who recently immigrated,” she said.

Saturday’s festivities featured a demonstration of Polish wedding traditions, Russian and Polish music, Polish activities for children and a discussion by Russian movie director Konstantin Bromberg.

Barb Nowik, president of the Polish Club, said the event also offers a lot to people who might not come from a Slavic culture.

“Everybody can learn,” she said.

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