The faces of WWII Heroes

Timkov Roman Borisovich_x000D_ _x000D_ Ranл: Red Army Man_x000D_ Military branch: Artillery _x000D_ _x000D_ Roman Timkov was born in 1904 in the village of Kavkazskoe, Krasnoyarsk region. He went to the war on August 16, 1941. He fought in 256th Rifle Division, in the gun crew of 312 Separate Fighter-Anti-Tank Division. He went through the war to the end and participated in the most bloody combat and survived. _x000D_ He fought for Kalinin (Tver); was among the remnants of the division that broke out of the encirclement at Rzhev; broke the Siege of Leningrad, storming the impregnable Sinyavino Heights, was surrounded at the Volkhov swamps; fought in Narva, beating the endless attacks on "Evereska foothold". He was liberating Riga and hitting tanks buried in the ground with direct fire; he finished off the fascists in the Baltics when Berlin had been captured. For him, the war did not end on May 9, 1945. _x000D_ After the Victory, he crushed the million-strong Kwantung army in Manchuria. Roman Borisovich Timkov died on May 9, 1978. He was wounded five times. He was awarded four medals “For Courage”_x000D_ "Comrade Timkov had been fighting at war since 16.08.41. During this time, he had four injuries, including three light and one severe. In the combat to the north-east of the station Ergli 14.09.1944 the enemy launched a counterattack. Comrade Timkov destroyed six enemy soldiers with automatic rifle fire and showed exceptional courage. For the valor shown in combat comrade Timkov is worthy of the state medal "For Courage"._x000D_ “Rifleman of 8th rifle company, Red Army soldier Timkov Roman Borisovich received a state medal “For Courage” for liberation of the Soviet homeland in Volkhov, Leningrad and 2 Baltic Fronts, he proved to be honorable and skilled soldier, was wounded five times.”_x000D_ "In the combat in the area of Mizeneki Latvian SSR from 17.03 to 23.03.45 comrade Timkov, being a gun driver, showed himself bold and decisive. Under the enemy’s fire, he took out his gun in a timely manner to an open firing position and provided ammunition on time. 21.03.45 the enemy launched a counterattack with the support of heavy artillery and mortar fire. In the very midst of the combat, the ammunition ran out. Timkov, under heavy enemy fire, delivered ammunition to the firing position in a timely manner, thereby contributing to the performance of the combat mission. For valor in combat, comrade Timkov received a state award, the medal “For Courage". _x000D_ "In the combat with the German invaders, comrade Timkov proved to be an honorable Red Army soldier. In the combat in the area of South Buttobi, Latvia comrade Timkov under enemy fire took his gun to an open firing position in a timely manner, showing courage and determination, thereby contributing to the performance of combat missions. For exemplary performance of combat missions comrade. Timkov received a state award, the medal “For Courage".

Tanygin Taras Vasilyevich_x000D_ _x000D_ Title: Red Army Soldier_x000D_ Military Unit: 308th Latvian Red Banner Rifle Division _x000D_ _x000D_ Personal story of the Red Army Private Taras Tanygin:_x000D_ “I was drafted into the Red Army in 1940 from the village of Yakay-Sola Mari SSR. I started my service in Liepaja, in the marine corps, as a telephone operator. The barracks of our unit were located in the town of Tosmare. Early in the morning of June 22, 1941, we were alerted. Explosions and gunfire could be heard all around. Our department was located at the ancient Peter's fortifications of Grobinya. _x000D_ Especially, I remember my first combat. We went on the attack. I run with a rifle in my hands, completely disconnected with reality, scared, acting intuitively, and shooting on a run. Gradually I got used to the combat, and all my actions became conscious. For several days we fought off German attacks one after another. I held the shells up to the gun. Half of our crew was destroyed by the Nazis, and fire was getting more intense. A shell exploded near us, and the rest of our gun crew was killed. Suddenly I felt a sharp pain in my leg and lost consciousness. When I woke up, I saw my entire leg covered in blood. But my guarding angel had saved me for the first time. After 3 hours, I was picked up by paramedics and dragged to the rear on a raincoat tent. So I ended up at the Tosmare hospital. _x000D_ The Germans were advancing, and the evacuation of the wounded began. We were loaded into trucks and taken to the port, brought to the pier. Loading has begun. Soon the ship was fully loaded. Several more people were loaded in front of me, and I was left behind, the ship had moved away from the dock. I looked at the departing ship with sadness, wishing they had brought me on board. Suddenly German planes flew in. One of the bombs hit the ship, there was an explosion, and before my eyes she began to sink under the water. There were screams of people and explosions. And then I realized that fate had given me another chance at life. So my angel saved me a second time. _x000D_ We were taken back to the hospital. Suddenly, planes flew in. Explosions and machine-gun fire rang out all around. With difficulty, I climbed down from the truck and began to crawl into the woods. Looking back, I saw our truck hit by a bomb, and it was blown up, along with the remaining people in it. In the woods I crawled up to a Latvian farmstead. I asked the owner to help me and bind me up. He refused. I went back to the road, where the survivors were picked up by soldiers and brought back to the hospital. _x000D_ In the morning, when I woke up, I heard a German speech. A German officer with three soldiers was walking around the ward. When he came to me, he pulled the blanket off his head and asked:_x000D_ “Are you a Jude? - No, I'm a Marian.»_x000D_ Shaking his head, he went to the next room. In the evening, our doctors, who treated us under the supervision of the Germans, made bandages for all of us. _x000D_ Three months later, we were loaded into train and taken to a Nazi concentration camp. For 4 years I was in many camps in Poland and Germany. It was very difficult. But my angel saved me a third time. In 1945, I found myself in a transfer camp - Stalag 326 VI-A in Hemer (North Rhine-Westphalia). _x000D_ We, prisoners of war, about 1,000 men were sent to the coal mines and factories of the Ruhr. After sanitary treatment, all were placed in 4th camp block. In the morning, we were drawn up under convoy. Through an interpreter, the officers began to ask who had what specialties. We, the 10 tailors, were moved to 3rd camp block. We started repairing old gym shirts, overcoats and other clothing. In heads of the shop were two Germans, an officer, Paul Schulze, and a civilian, Genig Willis. _x000D_ To remember, especially bitter was to meet the former marines from Sevastopol. Crippled and in their striped sailor vests, they pounded the ground with their fists, cursing and crying: "We should have had some shells! We would have destroyed the bastards! Now we are being bullied!" _x000D_ The food was very poor, and we got what food we could from a warehouse where French, Belgian, and Polish prisoners were working. All of them received packages from the Swiss Red Cross every month but us. The guys helped us a lot and saved us from starvation. _x000D_ There were also good people among the Germans. Our officer, Paul Schulze, helped us in spite of everything. When control officers would be coming, he would alert us shouting "Achtung". When we heard this, we kept working harder. _x000D_ In the last months of the war, captured British and American pilots, most of them were black, were placed in the camp. I saw black people for the first time in my life. They were kept separate from the Russians. On April 12, 1945, at 14 o'clock, an American tank drove into our concentration camp, breaking the barbed wire. He stopped in the middle of the camp, the hatch opened, and American tankers appeared, black as coal. They started handing out cigarettes and food. Then regular American troops entered the camp on motorcycles and arrested all the camp guards, officers and the camp commander. Our Paul Schulze was also taken prisoner. _x000D_ The next day, the roles reversed, the Germans came out with shovels and brooms and began to clean up the camp. Our former prisoners began beating and scolding them. When they approached our officer Paul Schulze to take off his clothes, we fought him off from our comrades, and did not let him be offended. I told them: "Don't touch him, he's a good honest man, he saved us from starvation and death." Then he was released. We began to offer Paul cigarettes and canned food. He stood among us and wept. The other German officers looked at him and thought: "Look how strange these Russian people are, after all the torment we have brought them, they still feel sorry for us." So my angel saved me a fourth time, not letting me die in captivity. _x000D_ I continued my service, and then I started working in military unit No. 12244, item 30669. When I arrived in Berlin, I signed my name on the Reichstag. In 1946, in the city of Frankfurt on the Oder, on Christmas day, I met Tamara Andreevna Akinina, who was interned in Germany from Stary Oskol in 1942. We went to Berlin, where the Soviet Consulate registered our marriage. And we started a family. In March 1946, we were transferred to work in the city of Brambach. In the sanatorium Brambach treated and rested the highest command staff of the Soviet Army. Tamara was acquainted with Marshal Rokossovsky, generals Kuznetsov and Vasilevsky, whose wife befriended her, and constantly gave her various gifts. On April 12, 1947, our son Vladimir was born. In 1949, we returned to our Homeland, first living in the village of Koktash (Sinekamenka) in the Crimea, then in the village of Azamat (Malinovka), where we worked at the Malinovskaya hospital, which was located in the former estate of count V. Kakhovsky, Governor of the Tauride province. In 1950, in the former Catherine Palace-2, in the city of Belogorsk, our son Anatoly was born, then our sons Leonid, Viktor and Yuri. In 1953, we went to the village of Yakay-Sola in the Mari SSR to visit my sister Katerina. I worked as a tailor in Ronga and went to work on skis. In 1956, we returned to the Crimea, where we continued to work at the Malinovskaya hospital. Interestingly, my son Vladimir, when he was 7 years old, mentioned once that Crimea will be part of Ukraine for exactly 60 years, then it will join Russia again.»

Tkachev Ivan Nikolaevich_x000D_ _x000D_ Type of troops: Artillery _x000D_ _x000D_ Unit: 342nd Rifle Division (1st formation)._x000D_ _x000D_ “My dear Uncle Vanya, you are an example for me, you shed your blood for this country, you showed love for this land...”_x000D_ _x000D_ Ivan Tkachev (15.12.1919-31.03.2008). He was born on August 15, 1919 in the village of Vysokoye in the Mtsensk district of the Oryol region. He went to the middle school, then graduated from the Zadonsk technical school with a popular profession of a tractor driver. He worked in the city of Orel at the military airfield. On August 15, 1941, the Draft Commission at the Mtsensk regional military Commissariat of the Orel region found him fit for combat service and sent him to the 342nd Rifle Regiment in the Saratov region as a Rifle Man. On September 16, 1941 he took the military oath of allegiance to his Homeland. On December 27, 1941, 342nd division, located on the right flank of 61st army, approached the Oka River, south of Belev City. It was temporarily commanded by the division's chief of staff, Lieutenant Colonel I. F. Ioskevich. _x000D_ The actions on the Oka were the first in the combat history of the 342ndRifle Division. They developed extremely unfavorably. Repeated attempts to break through to the front line of the enemy's defense in the area of villages Fedinskoe and Petrovo were always repulsed by counterattacks of German tanks and motorized infantry. The division suffered heavy losses. On the night of December 28, 1941, the division went on the offensive. Its right-flank 1150th regiment on the opposite bank of the Oka river broke into of Fedinskoe village, but could not gain a foothold there. The battle continued for three whole days (December 28-30). The village passed from hand to hand. Eventually, the division's units were forced to withdraw back to the eastern bank of the Oka river by rapidly maneuvering motorized infantry and enemy tanks. _x000D_ In 1942 and the first half of 1943, he took part in defensive battles of the Bryansk and Western fronts. On January 17, 1943 he participated in the liberation of the city Velikiye Luki, where he received a concussion and a severe wound to the lung and was taken to hospital. But as soon as he recovered, he returned to the front again. _x000D_ In the summer of 1943, as part of the 3rd army of the Bryansk front, the 342nd division participated in a counteroffensive during the battle of Kursk. As a result of persistent fighting on July 20, 1943, it liberated Mtsensk, and on August 5 it reached the Western outskirts of Orel. On September 23, 1943, for its successful actions in the Orel operation and its mass heroism, the 342nd division was transformed into the 121st Guards Rifle Division, which participated in offensive and defensive battles in the Western direction, in the Orel, Bryansk, Gomel-Rechitsa offensive operations, as well as the liberation of right-Bank Ukraine and Poland, in the Berlin and Prague offensive operations. Ivan Tkachev liberated the following cities: Vyshny Volochyok, Tula, Kursk, Velikiye Luki, Smolensk, Bryansk, Belgorod, Mtsensk, and Orel. _x000D_ On February 29, 1944, he was severely wounded in the left arm and left leg, so he was sent to the Balakhnin Evacuation hospital No. 5821. From here, on May 15, 1944, he was discharged from the reserve due to injury and commissoned. _x000D_ During the Great Patriotic war, he was awarded: medal "For Courage" in 1942, also notable are a dress badge of the "Patriotic war" and Order of the «Red Banner of Labour of the USSR of the 2nd variant». _x000D_ After the war, he worked in the Molotov kolkhoz of Zalegoshchensk district of the Orel Region as a tractor driver, restoring the destroyed land in the post-war period. He died on March 31, 2008 in the city of Oryol and was buried in the cemetery of village Suvorovo Zalegoschensk area of the Orel region. We are proud of our grandfather and great-grandfather, he is a Hero!

Tleulin Tulegen_x000D_ _x000D_ Rank: Sergeant _x000D_ Unit: 196th Rifle Gatchina Red Banner Division_x000D_ _x000D_ My grandfather, Tleulin Tulegen, was born on may 23, 1913 in the Orenburg region of the Adamov district in the village of Kumak. When the war began, he was sent to the machine gun school in Leninsk-Kuznetsk. In December 1941, according to the Directive of the headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief and on the basis of the State Committee of Defense resolution of November 22, 1941, in Sol-Iletsk, Orenburg (then Chkalovskaya) region, the 424th Rifle Division began to be formed in the South Ural military district, which then in early January 1942 was renamed the 196th Rifle Division. From April 26, 1942 to June 9, 1942, the division was relocated to Stalingrad. _x000D_ The division was formed from residents of the Chkalov (now Orenburg) region of the RSFSR, as well as Aktobe, Guriev, West Kazakhstan and some other regions of Kazakhstan. The vast majority of the division's soldiers (some units up to 80%) were ethnic Kazakhs. After studying at the school in the city of Leninsk-Kuznetsk as part of the 196th Rifle Division, he fought in the battle of Stalingrad. In August 1942, he received a shrapnel wound and was taken to a hospital in Orsk. After the victory at Stalingrad, humanity gained hope for victory over fascism, and the division, which was left with about 500 men, was awarded the Order of the Red Banner for bravery, selflessness and courage. _x000D_ Tleulin Tulegen was awarded the medal "For the Defense of Stalingrad". In 1943, he fought in the battle of Kursk Bulge, the largest tank battle in history, which became an example of the heroism of Soviet soldiers, after which no one had any doubts about the victory in the Great Patriotic war. Tleulin Tulegen was awarded the order of Patriotic War of 1st degree for bravery, perseverance and courage shown in the battles for the Motherland. _x000D_ My grandfather had 11 children, including my mother. Now children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren live in Russia and abroad. We remember and are proud of our grandfather!

Semenyakin Vasily Matveevich_x000D_ _x000D_ Title: Military Jurist of the 2nd rank _x000D_ Military Branch: Military-legal staff _x000D_ Division: 121st Guards Rifle Gomel Order of Lenin Red Banner Order of Suvorov Division._x000D_ Missed in military action in the first year of the War _x000D_ _x000D_ Vasily Matveevich Semenyakin was a military jurist of the 2nd rank, military Prosecutor of the 121st Rifle Division. The division was formed in September 1939 in Mogilev, took part in the accession of Western Belarus. In June 1940, she briefly participated in the accession of Lithuania. In the summer of 1941, the division was stationed mainly in Bobruisk, with the exception of the 383rd rifle regiment (in Rogachev) and the 705th rifle regiment (in Zhlobin). On June 11, 1941, the division moved to a summer camp in the area of Obuz-Lesnoy, where it was found by the war. 209 separate fighter-antitank division did not have time to go to its destination, which affected the fighting in the future. On the night of 22-23 June, the division occupied a 28 km wide front on the Shchara river in the area of Slonim._x000D_ _x000D_ In the afternoon of June 24, the enemy, having reached the division's positions, began to concentrate for a strike. The attack took place at 16:00 after a heavy aerial bombardment and artillery preparation. However, the enemy's attack was repulsed. The enemy lost 36 tanks. On the night of June 25, due to the open flanks, the division was forced to withdraw to the district of Baranovichi to the Baranovichi - New Mouse line. At 16: 00 on June 26, the enemy attacked the division's positions. The battle continued fighting until late in the evening. _x000D_ On the night of June 27, the enemy broke through the division's defenses in the direction of Mir-Stolbny. The 17th tank division of the Wehrmacht, working from the area of Polonka (between Slutsk and Baranovichi) in the direction of Columns and Dzerzhinsk, dismembered 121th Division and threw it on the east from shosse Baranovichi-Minsk. The main part under the command Colonel Lozhkin began to retreat to Svoyatichi (the border of the Brest and Minsk regions, 40-45 km South-West Column, 25 km West of Nesvizh), the other halа under the command of General-Major Zykov P. M. retreated to Bobruisk, where it became part of the combined detachment of the commander of the 47th Rifle corps. _x000D_ At the same time, the division's coomand went to Gomel to form a new division. On July 3, the remnants of the 121st and 143rd Rifle Divisions crossed the Berezina river in the Yakshits area at about 6 p.m. and moved in the direction of Mogilev. By July 8, 1941, the emerging division was ordered to concentrate in the area of Novozybkov for formation and manning. From June 29 to July 2, a combined regiment of 121 Suvorov Division (1000 men) was fighting under the command of major Anokhin from the assigned staff of the division. _x000D_ Semenyakin V. M. was recognized as missing in action at the beginning of the War on the Western front (Report of the VP Zapfronta № 001216 of 07.03.1942).

Sobkalov Daniel Ivanovich_x000D_ _x000D_ Title: Red Army soldier _x000D_ Military Unit: 42nd Cavalry Division_x000D_ _x000D_ The fascist command concentrated large military forces on the Stalingrad direction. Heavy fighting unfolded along the entire southern front. There was an immediate threat of a breakthrough of the fascist troops to Stalingrad and the North Caucasus. Just at this difficult time, the battle path of Daniel Sobkalov, who fought as part of the Caucasian cavalry corps in the 42nd Caucasian regiment, began. He was in command of a platoon. Daniel Ivanovich often recalled how fierce the battle turned out. The enemy sought to cross the Kuban river, capture the high ground in the area of Maykop and Armavir, and then go to the passes of the Main Caucasus range and through them to Transcaucasia._x000D_ In these critical days, the troops were read out order No. 227, which said: "the Fighting is taking place in the area of Voronezh, on the Don, in the South of the North Caucasus, to retreat further means to destroy ourselves and at the same time our Homeland." The platoon members commanded by Sobkalov, Daniil Ivanovich, were both Russian and Chechen. They stood to die to prevent the enemy from capturing the Caucasus. By the end of September and the beginning of October 1942, the front had stabilized everywhere in the North Caucasus. The enemy did not get rich sources of Caucasian oil. And our countryman Daniil Ivanovich Sobkalov also contributed to this victory .For heroism, for skillful command in battle, he was awarded the order of the Patriotic war of the 2nd degree. But the main award was still ahead. Taking part in the liberation of our country from the German invaders in 1943, he was awarded the order of Alexander Nevsky.

Stoyalov Gavriil Petrovich_x000D_ _x000D_ The award list entry, filled in by the Battalion Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Gusev, reads as follows: _x000D_ "Fulfilling the order of the road clearance command in the area of Ustenets farms, private Stoyalov acted boldly and bravely. Despite the mortar and artillery fire from the enemy, he fulfilled his combat order ahead of schedule, neutralizing 45 anti-tank mines of the enemy. Thus, he ensured the fulfillment of the mission and created a full possibility for the advancing of the corps. _x000D_ A private Stoyanov is worthy of the governmental medal "For Courage" on October 16, 1944 for exemplary performance of combat missions of the command on the front of the fight against the German invaders and for his valor and courage. _x000D_ The next award list entry, filled out by the Battalion Commander, Captain Blinder, says: "Junior Sergeant Stoyalov has been in the battalion from the beginning of its formation and went through the entire combat path of the battalion. On April 28, 1945, Junior Sergeant Stoyalov supervised the work of his squad during the construction of the bridge. Despite the enemy fire, Sergeant of Stoyanov, in the chest in cold water have established an intermediate support. The work was completed ahead of schedule, which ensured the timely passage of the upcoming military units. _x000D_ On April 27, 1945, together with his unit, he reinforced the bridge in Breitschenheish Mule over the Welse river. The work was completed on time, despite intense enemy fire. On May 18, 1945, Junior Sergeant Stoyalov Gavriil Petrovich was awarded the Order of the Red Star.

Sokolov Ivan Fedorovich_x000D_ _x000D_ Born in 1916 in the Smolensk region. After graduating from high school, from 1936 to 1939 he studied at the Agricultural Technical School in Zhizdry, Kaluga region. Having received a diploma of agronomist, a young specialist was sent to the TRANS-Urals. Here he began to work in his specialty in the Shumikhinsky district. It was back in 1939, when the Second world war had already started. In 1942, in the soldier’s gray overcoat, Ivan settled in the trenches near the city of Livny, Oryol region, holding the defense. His military roads ended near Vienna in Austria, although the service continued for another three years after the Victory, mainly in Romania. He was discharged on October 12, 1948. In the military ID all front-line roads had been noted in scant lines. What's behind them? Heavy fighting on the Kursk Bulge in 1943. Miraculously, he stayed alive, not even scratched. The bullets were catching up with him later. He was injured, lay in hospitals, got surrounded, starved, and froze. After the war life could have turned out quite differently, because he was in the rank of Lieutenant. He was going to have a military career. But the love to the land took over, he returned to his old peaceful profession. He worked as an agronomist in the village of Karachelskoe as a head of the Agricultural Department. And in 1954, he was sent to work as the Chairman of the kolkhoz "Ural". In the village of Berezovo his career had ended because of the old wounds, he fell ill. But, despite a severe illness, he worked until 1974. Then lived in the city of Shumikha were engaged in a garden, brought up grandchildren. For his military services, Ivan Fedorovich was awarded orders and medals, as well as government awards of various levels.

Turilov Konstantin Alexandrovich_x000D_ _x000D_ Rank: Lieutenant_x000D_ Type of troops: Artillery_x000D_ Unit: 50th Reserve Rifle Division. _x000D_ _x000D_ Turilov Konstantin Alexandrovich joined the Red Army in March 1940. He participated in the Great Patriotic War from the very first day. He was assigned to 589th Separate Airfield Maintenance Battalion outside the city of Rzhev in the direction of the Western Dvina station Olenino. Then his unit was retreating almost to Moscow. In Moscow, so called old-timers, (and such he was considered, since he had served for eight months at war) formed a sapper battalion, 68th Sapper Battalion of the 50th Rifle Division near Moscow, the Central front. As a part of the battalion, Konstantin was promoted from Naro-Fominsk to Moscow as the head and a driver of a searchlight station. On February 9, 1942 he was severely wounded: his cheek was torn open, his lips and teeth were torn out, and he received a shrapnel wound to his back. Waking up, drenched in blood, Konstantin crawled to the nearest trenches. The dugouts were empty. He went on. In one of the next trenches, in a dugout, he heard Russian speech and lost consciousness. He woke up in the Moscow experimental hospital: doctors removed fragments from his back and performed an operation to transplant facial tissues. Then he was sent for treatment in the rear, in the city of Gorky (N. Novgorod). For a long time Konstantin Alexandrovich could not speak. And in his military unit, he was considered dead, because they saw that he was wounded in the head. He was not in his medical unit. It was concluded that he didn't make it, killed, and got snowed in. After 11 months of hospital, Konstantin Turilov was assigned to the 4th Separate Signal Regiment of the 5th Guards tank army as a driver on a car-radio station, which provided communications for the commander. As part of this army, he fought on the fronts: Voronezh front from 03.1943 to 06.1943; The steppe front, from 06.1943 for 08.1943; 2nd Ukrainian front from 08.1943 to 01.1945; 3rd Belorussian front from 01.1945 to 04.1945; The 1st Baltic front with 04.1945 for 05.1945. _x000D_ Being part of the 1st Baltic Front, Konstantin Alexandrovich Turilov entered the city of Konigsberg. During this time, three of his cars were smashed by shells. But the Lord had kept him here, too. _x000D_ At the end of April 1945, it becomes part of the repair shops of the 1378th antiaircraft artillery regiment of the 1st Baltic front. From August to September 1945, the 1378th Antiaircraft Artillery Regiment was transferred to the 1st Far Eastern front. There Konstantin Alexandrovich took part in the war with Japan. Along with the regiment came to the Manchurian city of Mudanza. The war was bloody. According to Konstantin Alexandrovich, the army lost 20 thousand soldiers killed in 10 days. He was discharged on 20.03.1946.

Todev Badma Kabashevich_x000D_ _x000D_ Troops: Ground forces, air force (except for marine aviation), coast guard, NKVD troops. The border guard Todev Badma Kabashevich, Honored Builder of the Republic of Kalmykia is one of those who built the city of Elista in the difficult years after the deportation of kalmyks. Thanks to such people, now the city is called the «The Pearl of Steppe”. Badma Kabashevich lived a difficult but full life. _x000D_ He was born December 14, 1925 in the village of Hakata in the Kalmyk ASSR in the family of a fisherman. In 1931, he went to school in the same village,where he studied from grades 1 to 4. In 1934 he became an orphan and was sent to a boarding school, which was located in the district center of the village of Dolban. He graduated from 7 classes and in 1942 was sent to study for the courses of mechanics in Astrakhan. On October 9, 1942, Badma Kombashevich was drafted into the Red Army. He had served in the Separate Guards Training Division of the 4th Cavalry Corps until October 1944. He had fought in the North Caucasus and 3rd South Ukrainian front._x000D_ In 1944, he was recalled from the red Army, and as a citizen of Kalmyk nationality, was involved for political reasons in forced labor in the Shirokov GULAG camp in the Perm region. In October 1945, he was demobilized and came to Omsk, where he began his career as a builder from October 1945 to 1957. _x000D_ In 1957, he moved to his native Elista, where from July 14, 1957 he worked as a foreman of masons in the construction department. By the decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Kalmyk ASSR of February 4, 1983, he was awarded the title "Honored Builder of the Kalmyk ASSR". These are the sparse lines from the veteran's autobiography, where each can become the subject of a big story. These lines lie the years of the orphan's childhood, war deprivations and hardships of life in exile. However, despite all the trials that fell to his share Badma Kabashevich was always kind, principled and honest man. He was a wonderful family man, husband, father, raised 6 children, 14 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Toporkov Yegor Kirilovich_x000D_ Rank: Junior Sergeant _x000D_ Type of troops: Artillery _x000D_ Unit: 96th Rifle Division (2nd formation) _x000D_ _x000D_ _x000D_ Toporkov Yegor Kirillovich was born in 1922. He went to the front in February 1942 and participated in the war with Germany as part of the Don, Stalingrad and Ukrainian fronts. His first baptism of fire was in a battle near the Don river near the town of Serafimovich. The veteran remembers: _x000D_ "We were crossing the Don river by whatever means we could use. We, the gunners, have prepared rafts for transporting the guns. The Don was literally seething with exploding mines and shells. The fighters were floundering in the icy water, going to the bottom. The enemy fire was so strong that the crossing was choked. It was a terrible sight, people in their last seconds of life were making such inhuman screams that it was shivering on the skin. But gradually the enemy fire stopped, and I saw a small group of our fighters on the other side of the Bank. They took up a circular defense and repelled the attacks of the Hitlerites. We were given the command to take up firing positions and cover our fighters with artillery fire. So the foothold with a length of about one and a half kilometers on the other Bank of the Don was occupied. At night, the rest of the units had crossed over. The next day, the town of Serafimovich and several settlements were liberated. _x000D_ Yegor Kirillovich fought on the Kursk Bulge, took part in the destruction of various groups of fascists. He liberated Romania, Hungary, and Austria. He was twice seriously concussed, severely wounded, and had about eleven light wounds, twice surrounded. _x000D_ Sergeant Toporkov was awarded 14 commendations from the Supreme Commander-in-Chief and many medals, including "For Bravery", "For the Defense of Stalingrad", "For the Capture of Budapest", "For the Capture of Vienna", "For the Victory over Germany".

Stepin Vasily Ivanovich. Commander of the 969th Rifle Regiment (273rd Rifle Division, 6th Army, 1st Ukrainian Front).

Senin Ivan Mikhailovich_x000D_ _x000D_ Title: Political Officer. _x000D_ Branch of the military: Military-political Command. _x000D_ Military Unit: 267th Rifle Division (1st formation). _x000D_ Senin Ivan Mikhailovich was conscripted into the Soviet Army in June 1942. At first he graduated from 3-monthly courses of political personnel in Cavernous in the Gorky region, and then to the end of the war had been at the front as the first political Commissar of a company on the Western front, then Deputy of the Battalion Commander for Political Affairs and the Communist Leader of a battalion of the 2nd and 3rd Ukrainian fronts. In the battle on April 5, 1945, during the offensive on the Height 220 Senin I. M. explained the combat mission and in the chain of fighters rushed to storm the height, thereby inspiring the personal example of the company's personnel. As a result, they broke into the Height and gained a foothold. _x000D_ In the battle of 8-10 April 1945 in the area of the factory in Vienna, the battalion was given the task of knocking out the enemy from a large building and reaching the junction of three Railways. Senin Ivan Mikhailovich, being in the companies, explained the combat mission to the personnel who rushed forward. However, the enemy on the left flank fiercely resisted, leading a heavy fire and trying to counterattack our units. Confusion was spreading among our fighters. Senin I. M. restored the situation and himself, being in combat chains, went on the offensive. The enemy couldn't stand it and stepped back. The mission was accomplished. Despite the fierce fighting, I. M. Senin systematically engaged in the education of personnel, involving the best, distinguished in battle fighters in the ranks of Communist Party. During the offensive battles of March 16 to April 12, 1945, he recruited 16 people. Educational work and personal example he had shown have always contributed to the implementation of the assigned combat missions.

Starostenko Georgiy Borisovich_x000D_ George Borisovich Starostenko was born on May 4, 1915 in a peasant family in the village of Yartsevo, Starodubsky district of the Bryansk region. When he was only 6 months old, his father Boris tragically died under a horse cart. His mother died when the boy was 4 years old. Georgiy was raised by 5 older sisters. He graduated from 6 classes of school. After that, he worked as a shoemaker. And throughout his life, he had never given up his professional craft. _x000D_ In 1935, Georgiy Borisovich was drafted into the army. On August 12, 1935, he married Lisogor Maria Lukyanovna. Maria at that time was 16 years old, and it was too early for an official registration according to the law. But the girl's father obtained a permission somehow, and the wedding took place. Maria gave George three sons and a daughter. In 1941, at the age of 30, he went to the front. _x000D_ Place of recruitment: Starodubsky Red Army Commissariat, Bryansk region, Starodubsky district _x000D_ Rank: Sergeant since May,1941. _x000D_ He participated in the battles of the 33rd army of the Western front as a Commander of the Rifle Division. He had been on the front from March 1941 to March 1943. On March 29, 1943, he was severely wounded: a through bullet wound to the left shoulder with bone damage, a through shrapnel wound to the soft tissues of the left hip and a through bullet wound to the soft tissues of the chest. _x000D_ My grandfather was awarded a few times, but so far we know accurately only about the Order of the Red Star. He was not captured or surrounded during the war. After hospital, he served in the 2nd Division as a loader. _x000D_ It is known that after the war Georgiy Borisovich worked as a brigadier in the Krupskaya kolkhoz in the Starodubsky district. In 1977, the Starostenko family moved to the village of Scriabino in the Vygonichsky district of the Bryansk region. On February 21, 2000, Georgiy Borisovich died.

Sergiyenko, Nikolai Fedotovich_x000D_ _x000D_ The stories about my great-grandfather Nikolay Fedotovich Sergiyenko I learned from my relatives, who carefully preserve memory of him. My mother keeps a manuscript of memories that my great-grandfather gave her for safekeeping at the end of his life. He dreamed that this manuscript would one day become a book… _x000D_ In 1940, after graduating from the Aviation club, my great-grandfather Nikolai was sent to study at the Kachin military aviation school of fighter pilots on a crash course. On July 10, 1941, by order of evacuation to Central Asia, cadet Nikolai Sergienko, together with his pilot-instructor, were in training "spark"on the way to their destination. He writes as follows: "in the area of the Sinyavka Station (near the city of Rostov-on-Don) we had to refuel. And then we were attacked, unarmed, by two Messers: a machine-gun burst went through the front cabin, where my instructor was. He was fatally shot in the head. I took over the controls and put the plane on an emergency landing. I landed the plane on a ploughed field, across ploughed furrows. The plane was violently shaken, and then it turned over. I lost consciousness from my injuries and came to myself in a Tbilisi hospital..." _x000D_ At that time, my great-grandfather was only 19 years old... After being discharged from the hospital, Nikolai returns to aviation again. At first, he flew on the PO-2, transporting the seriously wounded from the medical unit to hospitals. After some time, Nikolai was allowed to sit at the controls of a combat fighter I-16. From this moment on, he began his combat sorties to protect the coast from Sochi to Gelendzhik. Day after day, he entered into fierce air battles with the enemy, losing his comrades. Twice he had to leave the plane damaged in battle and jump with a parachute into the Black sea. He was rescued by border guards cruising on fast ships near the sea coast. _x000D_ _x000D_ Here is another of the episodes. My great grandfather writes: "My plane was severely damaged, the engine stopped working, and I had to plan in the Lazarev area. There was a low height, and I was not able to jump with a parachute, and I had to land in the mountains in woods and received severe injuries. A shepherd came to my rescue. He pulled me, unconscious, out of the wrecked plane and gave me first aid. When I regained consciousness, the shepherd's son took me to the Lazarev field hospital on an ass." _x000D_ _x000D_ In one of the air battles in the sky over Krasnodar, his best friend, wing-man Alexander Matchenko, was fatally wounded. His plane was shot down by a Messer. My great-grandfather was severely wounded by a shell fragment in this battle that exploded next to his cab. He remembers: "With great difficulty, losing consciousness, I went to an emergency landing in a field near Goryachy Klyuch. Our ground troops were there." _x000D_ After recovering, despite the conclusion of the medical Commission of the hospital that he was unfit for flight service, great-grandfather again returned to his avia unit on the Taman Peninsula. The Sivoiet assault on the Kerch Strait was being prepared. _x000D_ _x000D_ "At the end of November 1943, the offensive of all units of our troops began, we, the pilots, had destroyed the enemy's firing points with our machine-gun fire. The city of Kerch was liberated.»_x000D_ In the battles for the liberation of Zhytomyr, my great-grandfather was seriously wounded, again. After recovering, once again hiding the doctors ban on continuing flight service, he returns to his unit and sits at the controls of a combat fighter. "With my military friends, I liberated Western Ukraine, Belarus, and Poland."