ENTRY DESCRIPTION
She holds a very high status in the Roma society of Transcarpathia. She is a symbol of wisdom, respect, and tradition. Her authority influences not only her family circle but also the entire community, as she preserves cultural heritage and unites people around family values. Her advice is the voice of generations, and her support is a source of strength for all her loved ones. Mama Maria has 8 children, 64 grandchildren, and 108 great-grandchildren.

AUTHOR
Michael Dorohovich is a portrait and documentary photographer, born in 1978 in Transcarpathia, in the small town of Uzhgorod.
Winner of the MONOVISIONS Black & White Photography Awards 2023 (single) award. He holds a master's degree in photography from the Kyiv University of Culture and is a teacher of audiovisual art at the Uzhgorod Academy of Culture and Arts.
Winner and prize-winner of many prestigious world awards in the field of photography. His works have received international recognition and have been exhibited in museums and galleries in Japan, India, North America and many European countries.
Author of photo projects that presented the culture and traditions of Transcarpathia to the whole world: “Famous and Interesting Personalities of Transcarpathia” (2021 - 2022); "Cultural Ethnos of Transcarpathia" (2022); "High-mountain inhabitants of the Ukrainian Carpathians" (2023-2024); "Unique women of the Roma culture Keldelari" (2023-2025).
Throughout his life, he has been engaged in solo mountaineering and mountain solo trekking. He traveled through the mountain systems of the Carpathians, Crimea, Caucasus, Alps, Altai, Kamchatka, Pamir and Tien Shan. He recorded all his ascents in photo landscapes.

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