Day of the Cossack Mother in Almaty

December 6, 2025. Almaty. With the blessing of the Head of the Kazakhstan Metropolitan District, Metropolitan Alexander of Astana and Kazakhstan, the celebration of the Day of the Cossack Mother took place in the parish assembly hall of St. Nicholas Cathedral.

The event was held with the support of the Department of the Kazakhstan Metropolitan District for Cooperation with the Cossacks.

The holiday, whose history spans 256 years, concluded a series of events dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan, organized by the Association of Russian, Slavic and Cossack Organizations of Kazakhstan (ARSK) and the Public Association “Union of the Cossacks of Semirechye”.

The ataman of the Union of the Cossacks of Semirechye, chairman of the Almaty city branch of the Association of Russian, Slavic and Cossack Organizations of Kazakhstan, member of the Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan Vladimir Shikhotov congratulated the guests and participants on the approaching Independence Day and conveyed greetings from the chairman of ARSK, member of the Mazhilis of the Parliament of Kazakhstan S.M. Ponomarev.

The colorful festival featured performances by the Folk Song Theatre of Almaty, as well as the ensembles “Cossacks of Semirechye”, “Zori Semirechya”, “Rossiyanka Almaty”, the children’s choir “Cossacks of Semirechye”, the flanking club “Barbaris”, and “Alliance” under the direction of Marina Granova, Tatyana Egorova, Yuri Fokeev, Olga Lebedinskaya, Varvara Nekrasova, and Antoniya Yudina.

The doors of the celebration were open to all. Among the guests were the chairwoman of the Council of Mothers of the ANC Almaty, Zulfiya Khuseinova, representing the Turkish community, and the chairwoman of the Council of Mothers of the Azerbaijani Ethnocultural Association Maya Mamedova. They noted the warm hospitality, the distinct character of the performances, and the Kazakhstani principle: we are different, yet we are equal. Words of goodwill to the mothers were also expressed by: the deputy chairman of the Council of Elders of the Union of the Cossacks of Semirechye V.V. Tanyshev, the deputy chairman of ARSK for youth work and ANC member S.V. Shikhotov, and the president of the public charitable foundation “Theatre of Russian Folk Song” M.S. Granova.

All Cossack women and performers received flowers, certificates and Letters of Appreciation.