On the eve of the Old New Year (celebrated by many in Armenia and elsewhere in former Eastern bloc countries on Jan. 13) WinterFest 2010 summed up the results of its mission, awarding prizes and certificates to active helpers through Dzmer and Kaghand paps (Armenian Santa Clauses).

Awards to them were given by the organizers of the Christmas season events as part of WinterFest – Kanachastan NGO, Deem Communications and Boghossian Gardens. Armenia’s mobile phone operator Orange and other institutions, including the Yerevan municipality and the Ministry of Culture, have also acted as sponsors of the events.

It was the fourth time such a festival has been held around the New Year time in Yerevan. As part of such festivals, usually from December 25 till January 5, dance and singing groups stage performances, various fairs are held to raise people’s mood in the streets of Yerevan and generally “give bright colors to the winter routine”.

In the 2010/2011 events Ghoghanj (Ringing) NGO and IDS Organization were recognized as the best in this kind of activity. The two organizations presented Christmas trees made of recycled materials.

“This way we wanted to send an environmental message to the festival audience so that they spare fir-trees and love nature,” says Raffi Niziblian, director of Deem Communications and Kanachastan NGO, one of the festival organizers.

Niziblian considers the festival to be a success, as he says it managed to bring together an audience of 6,500 and featured more events than in previous years. Namely children’s outdoor games were held, 22 environmental Christmas trees were created, a fair was conducted, old Armenian dishes were presented, open-air concerts were organized in the Boghossian Gardens, etc.

This year, through the Teryan cultural center, the image of Kaghand Pap (an equivalent of Santa Claus) that was formed during the previous festivals has been finally defined. A special fairy tale authored by Astghik Simonyan was published. In the tale entitled “Kaghand Pap: Return from Rigel” an old woman tells her granddaughter Shushanik that Kaghand Pap existed still from the times of the Armenian patriarch Hayk and that he would spend the New Year with the assistance of his 12 helpers – the ghosts.

This year some participants of the festival have granted toys, books and stationery to orphanages.

Niziblian regrets that during this holiday season they didn’t manage to stage a nativity play. But he says this play will certainly be staged during the next festival.