On October 12, Vitebsk / Olga Bogacheva - BELTA /. A festive ceremony to award women of the region with the Order of Motherhood and the honorary prize named after Hero of the Soviet Union Zinaida Tusnolobova-Marchenko was held today at the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, reports BELTA correspondent. 33 women from the region took part in the solemn event, 8 of them were awarded the Order of Motherhood, and 25 received the honorary prize named after Z. Tusnolobova-Marchenko (two more prize winners could not attend due to family circumstances). "We always prepare for the traditional autumn meetings in honour of Mother's Day with a special mood. Each of us, from the first days of life, cherishes in our soul, as the greatest shrine, the love and memory of our father's house, our parental family, and childhood. And all this is connected with the name of Mother. Everyone has their own best, loving, beautiful, intelligent, and kind mother," emphasized Vladimir Terentyev, Deputy Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, congratulating the women present on the holiday. According to him, mothers' care for their home, family, and children, their kindness, compassion, and wisdom deserve sincere gratitude. It is no coincidence that Mother's Day is celebrated as a republican holiday in Belarus. "In our country, family support, and the protection of motherhood and childhood are priorities of state social policy. The focus is on supporting families raising children and ensuring the right of the younger generation to full development. Special emphasis is placed on strengthening family values, stimulating the birth rate, and promoting a healthy lifestyle. We have established a stable system of economic support measures for families with children, including various types of benefits, privileges, and guarantees (in the areas of housing policy, labour and employment, social insurance, taxation, healthcare, and education). Today, ten types of state benefits are assigned to families raising children in accordance with the law," said Vladimir Terentyev. In the Vitebsk region, in the first half of 2012, benefits were paid for 51,148 children, including childcare benefits for children under three years of age - for 34,132 children. State targeted social assistance in the form of monthly and lump-sum social benefits was assigned to 13.4 thousand citizens for a total of Br12.7 billion. Among the recipients of these types of assistance are 746 large families.