The city's mascot, Sharachok, will celebrate the New Year with the residents of Sharkovshchina.

In the pre-New Year days, Sharkovshchyna's Sharachok will invite its first guests to its residence.

— There is an old legend that once upon a time, a diligent, hardworking farmer lived in our area, and he had three sons. The youngest was nicknamed Sharachok for his grey eyes. When it was time for the father to die, he divided the land among his sons. Sharachok was luckier than the others – a spring broke out on his plot. Sharachok was a diligent farmer, like his father, he built a log house around the spring, hung a dipper – drink, people! Since then, the peasants began to say: let's go to Sharokovshchyna to drink water. Hence the name – Sharokovshchyna, Sharkovshchyna, Sharkovshchina. That's why the idea arose to make a talisman of our city in the form of Sharachok, — says Victoria Dubovskaya, director of the Sharkovshchyna Center of Crafts.

Sharachok is a cute, mustachioed old man, handmade from linen and other natural materials. He has a bright hat on his head and a capacious bundle with forest and garden gifts on his back. Lyudmila Somova, junior researcher at the Sharkovshchyna Center of Crafts, and Irina Grunina, methodologist, worked on creating the doll, and all their colleagues helped.

The large Sharachok, about a meter tall, "lives" permanently in the House of Crafts, while dozens of its small copies have already spread throughout the district and beyond. The souvenir-guardian is in demand among the residents of the urban settlement and its guests.

And recently, Sharachok got his own residence. It is located not far from the district center in a picturesque forest corner and will soon welcome its first young visitors. In the pre-New Year days, in a beautiful wooden house, along with the host Sharachok, Ded Moroz (Grandfather Frost) and Snegurochka (Snow Maiden), and many other fairy-tale characters will greet guests. Many entertainments are prepared: songs, games, dances, fun surprises, sleigh and horse rides. The main thing is that the weather does not let us down, pleases us with snow and frost.

Irina Svirko, "Respublika"