Art and Design by Svetlana Kamenskaya

     Two years ago, after New Year’s Eve, my mother and I were looking at the old family pictures. We were talking about my grandfather, Aleksey Haritonov. Later, I decided to search for information about my grandfather on the web. I sat near the computer and typed, “Haritonov Aleksey Ivanovich”. The first page which was found by the search shocked me…

     My grandfather, Aleksey Haritonov, was born in a village near Ryazan City. He graduated acting school in Moscow, and he was an actor in one of Moscow’s regional theaters. In Moscow, he met his wife, my grandmother. They were a happy couple. My grandfather was a talented, bright, and energetic man.

     In 1941, my grandfather went to front. During World War II, Aleksey Haritonov was a captain of a battery in the artillery. There were articles in the newspapers about him and his battery. The fighters of Aleksey Haritonov battery called themselves “Haritonovtsi”. He had medals and honors for his bravery. One of the medals he always wore was “For Valor”.

     …”In May 2006, we found the remains of the Soviet officer who was killed in Estonia in 1944. Also, we found the Medal for Valor with the number 235258. This number allowed us to identify Captain Aleksey Ivanovich Haritonov”, wrote a member of the military club Memorial on the web. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw these words. It was a miracle for me to read the information about my grandfather on the internet. I was very surprised.

     My grandfather was killed on March 22, 1944 in Estonia near the river Narva. In 1944, my grandmother received the notice about the death of her husband, in which it was said that he was buried in a mass grave. How Aleksey Haritonov died, my family knows from the letter. In battle he was killed by an artillery projectile. My family cherished the letter and the front-line newspaper clippings for 65 years. I remember how my grandmother told me that nothing was left from my grandfather. When I saw the information on the internet, I immediately realized it was he, because I have heard about him since my childhood.

     Finally, the military-historical club reburied the remains of my grandfather. We are planning to make the trip to Estonia in the near future, and visit the cemetery and the places where my grandfather was in the last days of his life. Our family wants to take Grandfather’s medal and keep it for the next generations.