Sofia Sergeyevna Zimina. She is a participant of the Great Patriotic War. This is what she remembers: In August 1943, Sonia turned eighteen, and in September she received a summons to the military committee. She was enlisted in the forty-third female assault and machine gun regiment. And there she turned out to be the youngest. When the soldier's outfit was issued, the small fragile girl could not find the necessary size. So she appeared before the foreman: in boots, which seemed to be way too wide on her thin legs, and in long, almost to the ground overcoat. Having smiled sympathetically, the foreman joked: "Well, soldier, when you crawl, your knees will not get cold". There turned out to be some truth in his words. It was not necessary to crawl as their regiment stood far from the front, guarding the most important objects: bridges, stations - from the attacks of German planes. And the overcoat served her faithfully throughout the war. After graduation, Sonya was promoted to the rank of Junior Sergeant and was appointed senior in the rank. Of the three girls in the crew, she was again the youngest. Sonia was still the same fighting, restless girl. And so no one was surprised when the battalion members elected her their secretary. Life at the front for anti-aircraft gunners was not measured by usual days but by periods from one duty to the next. Duty, rest, heavy crossovers from one object to another, sometimes along swamps, and river crossings. One night, Sonya heard an alarm. Running out in total darkness, to her surprise, everything was calm: neither airplanes nor bombs could be heard. It turned out that the German landing party had been dropped. But the paratroopers did not go far. Sonya caught one with the help of her girls. It may seem that everything was going smoothly, without any casualties. But the enemy was the enemy. There were fierce short shootings, which killed three anti-aircraft gunners. In August 1945, Sonia was demobilized, she turned 20 then. Sonia welcomed the victory with tears in her eyes. After the war, Sophia Sergeyevna had a hard life. Everyone respected and appreciated her.