History lesson "Symbol of Will and Courage" was held in Chita The event dedicated to the fate of the children of the war was held on September 10 at the Museum and Exhibition Center of the Trans-Baikal Territory. This was announced on September 11 on the official website of the museum.
“It was June 22, 1941, it was getting dark, it was warm. Mom was at the Trud stadium, where the Cathedral is now located. Suddenly people ran to the loudspeaker. This is how everyone learned about the beginning of the war, - with such excerpts from the recordings of the participant of the Stalingrad and Kursk battles, the legendary pilot Maria Getalo, her daughter, the chairman of the Chita branch of the Children of War organization, Irina Shchapova, opened the meeting of generations.
According to her, ten days later, her mother, along with the whole class, went to the military registration and enlistment office, where she added one year to her age so that she was taken to the front. Maria Getalo served in an aviation bomber regiment. She took part in the Battle of Stalingrad, the battles for Kursk, in the liberation of Poland, and was seriously wounded. Maria Getalo survived, but lost her leg. Despite this, she did not lose her love for life - she started a family, gave birth to children.
The museum recalled that Irina Shchapova, together with Galina Sukhoparova, are editors of the book "Childhood Scorched by War." As part of the museum's history lesson, they talked about this publication and encouraged young people to talk with their relatives, who are children of war, and write their stories for publication in the third volume of this book.
Other participants in the history lesson also spoke about their generation, about their military childhood on this day.
