Day of Remembrance of Soldiers-Internationalists

The flame of Afghanistan scorched the youthful souls of dozens of natives of the Lepel land, eight of whom perished in that flame. Grateful countrymen are doing much to perpetuate their memory, so that future generations remember those tragic events and do not allow them to be repeated.

Memorial signs have been erected in various places in the district, and the basketball tournament named after Igor Solovyov, who died in the mountains of Afghanistan, is regularly held. One of the streets in the town bears his name, and another street has been named after junior sergeant Igor Napadovsky. There is an intention to continue this good tradition and name new streets after the boys who died in that war. Annually, Afghan war veterans gather at the memorial sign to their fallen comrades to honour their memory.

Veterans of the Afghan war regularly meet with young people in schools, state vocational lyceums, and colleges, talking about the events of more than 20 years ago.

A separate area of work is maintaining contact with the families and relatives of the fallen. Not long ago, veterans established contact with Vladimir Sadovsky's sister, Olga Dyomka. The internationalist soldier is buried in his native village of Veleushchyna. Olga came to visit the grave.

First, a meeting was arranged with the pupils of the Sloboda Secondary School-Kindergarten. A documentary film about the events of the Afghan war was shown. Photographs from the family archives of Afghan war veterans eloquently tell about the war, daily life, and the specifics of relationships. Olga Ivanovna spoke about her brother, how he studied at the Veleushchyna Basic School and the Lepel Hydro-Melioration Technical School. In November 1984, when it was time for conscription, Vladimir did not hide behind others but honestly enlisted for service, ending up in a distant country at war. He served as a sapper in a motorized rifle unit.

Veterans also told the schoolchildren about their participation in that war, about the lessons it taught them for the rest of their lives, and the conclusions it compels them to draw today. Future defenders of the Fatherland can become acquainted with such concepts, still little known to them, as combat brotherhood, mutual assistance, and camaraderie in war, and the will to win, through a practical example.

Pupils of the Sloboda school, together with their history teacher Valeriy Tukhta, are carrying out extensive local history research. They visit the families of internationalist soldiers and record their memories. This is very important, especially for the younger generation, who, fortunately, learn about the horrors of war only in this way. And those who know how terrible war can be will do everything possible to prevent it from happening again.

Internationalist soldiers Mikhail Tarasov, Sergey Krivel, Valeriy Vasilyevsky, and the military commissariat employee, Major Alexey Evstafyev, went to support the woman. Together with the pupils of the Sloboda secondary school-kindergarten, they paid tribute of memory and respect, laying a wreath and crimson carnations at the final resting place of an internationalist soldier.

This year, activists of the district organization of internationalist soldiers created a memorial plaque listing all countrymen who died while performing their internationalist military duty. A memorial sign has been installed near the building of the military commissariat.

There is an idea to further develop the concept of preserving the memory of fallen heroes. Behind the BTR, which stands in front of the military enlistment office building, there is a lawn. One of the proposals is to create an alley of heroes there. The stands would feature photographs of natives of Lepel region who died in Afghanistan, distinguished themselves in the fight against the German fascist invaders, and in peaceful labor. Next to the photos, short biographies, descriptions of heroic deeds, and a list of state awards would be placed. Considering that the agricultural technical college is located nearby, the alley would become a significant link in the chain of patriotic education of the younger generation.

Vasily MATYRKA.
In the photo: Afghan war veterans and Olga Dyomka.
Photo by the author.