The XIV open inclusive Easter Joy Festival will be held at the Tver Suvorov Military College from 5 to 7 June 2026. This is the only All-Russian creative competition for families raising children with disabilities, as well as for students and teachers of orphanages, correctional schools and church social projects from different regions of Russia. The festival is organized with the support of the Tver Diocese and the Synodal Department for Church Charity and Social Service.
This year, 29 bands from 12 regions of the country will take part in the festival: Tver, Kaluga, Kostroma, Moscow, Orel, Ivanovo, Kursk, Vladimir, Omsk regions, St. Petersburg, the Republic of Chuvashia and the Republic of Tatarstan. More than 300 people are expected at the festival.
"Over the course of several joyful festival days, conditions are created for the participants that reveal not only their creative potential, but also their personal potential," said Veronika Leontieva, head of the Department of assistance to people with disabilities at the Synodal Department of Charity. — Students and youth participating in the project discover the world of people with disabilities and often become friends. But the most important thing is the spiritual atmosphere of the festival, the opportunity to get acquainted with the shrines of the region and take part in the Divine Liturgy, which is also translated into Russian sign language for people with hearing impairment. This is very important for our participants."
The participants will present their creative works in such areas as vocal ensemble, solo vocals, sign singing, dance, artistic reading, decorative and applied arts and others. The festival will host educational workshops for people with disabilities, teachers, parents, and NGO representatives.
Since 2011, the Easter Joy Festival has been held annually in different regions of Russia.: Moscow, Ivanovo, Tver, Kaluga and Penza regions. During the festival, more than 110 bands from 20 regions of Russia took part in it.
The Synodal Department of Charity helps people with disabilities. Assisted living projects for people with disabilities are being created, as well as centers for working with the deaf, deafblind, and hard of hearing people. There are currently over 400 Orthodox organizations in Russia that help different categories of people with disabilities.