Kopyrin Mercury Alexandrovich was born on October 26, 1915 in Pavlovo on the Oka river where he spent his childhood. He was one of the first organizers of pioneer squads in his native city. The representative of the 1st all-Union meeting of pioneers in Moscow in 1929, he was a real leader of Komsomol. After graduating the industrial technical school, he worked as a teacher at the craft school. In 1933 Kopyrin M. A. entered the faculty of physics and mathematics of Kazan State University (KSU). In 1939 he graduated it with honors and was enrolled to the postgraduate studies at the department of Mechanics of KSU. At the same time, he worked in the aerodynamic laboratory of Kazan aviation Institute (KAI). Big plans ahead… But they were disrupted by war... June 23, 1941. Kopyrin M. A. joined the Red Army (see reference №397 of 16.10.1945). For his exploits and courage shown during the great Patriotic War, Kopyrin A.M. got the battle awards: two orders of the Patriotic war of the II degree 1941-1945. Order of the Red Battle Banner, Order of the Red Star. Medals: for the Defense of Moscow, for the Defense of Leningrad, for the Liberation of Warsaw, for the Capture of Berlin, for the Victory over Germany in the great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. M. A. Kopyrin met the victory in Berlin. He was demobilized in December 1945. In January 1946, he stared his career in KAI, where he had been working for about 40 years, rising from the assistant to Professor. His wife-Kopyrina N. V. (before marriage - Svetlova). Veteran of the Great Patriotic war and veteran of Labor. Died in 2018. Kopyrin M. A. – the participant of the Great Patriotic war, veteran of Labor. He died in 1982. After the death of Kopyrin M. A. at the request of the Kazan State University Museum management, his family donated his awards (4 orders and 5 medals) to the Museum, along with his war tunic and 7 medals from the post-war period, as well as his personal items from the war period, photos and scientific papers (see the photograth of the stand in KSU Museum). And part of the documents belonging to Kopyrin M.A. is keeping in the Museum of KAI (award documents, letters to employees of KAI from the front, photos, scientific papers). Here are the memories of Mercury Alexandrovich published in the newspaper: "During the second world war, I happened to be a participant in combat operations on 8 fronts. I joined the artillery reserve of the General command. First, the offensive near Moscow, then actions near Leningrad from Volkhov front to participate in Voronovo-mga-Shlissenburg. Sinyavsky battle in the autumn of 1942, breaking the Siege of Leningrad, the Liberation of Novgorod, Pskov, Riga. Operations to eliminate Libavo-Vindava group, operations on the liberation of Warsaw, the fighting in East Prussia, the capture of Danzig, the offensive in Oder in Kustrin district, and finally the capture of Berlin. In the view of the fact that our regiment (and then a separate brigade, which included the regiment) participated in many strategically important operations, now it is even difficult to distinguish the most peculiar of them. However, the deepest trace in the memory remained from the offensive near Moscow. This was my first baptism of fire. An indelible impression was left from the operation near Leningrad and from the attack on Berlin. At the beginning of the war, I was a platoon commander, then an assistant of the battery commander. For more than a year I was the chief of the regiments’ intelligence near Leningrad, and then, when the separate howitzer artillery brigade was organized from two regiments, I was the first assistant of the Chief of staff until the end of the war. Our brigade especially proved itself in the battles near Novgorod and became known as Novgorod brigade. By the end of the war 3 orders were fixed on the banner of our brigade: "Red banner", "Order of Kutuzov of the II degree" and "Alexander Nevsky". Our brigade awarded the Order of the Red Banner for the direct fire during street fighting in Berlin.