The Rechitsa Regional State Archives presents a document—a letter from a WWII veteran to his mother in the Bragin District

The archives of the Department of Labor, Employment, and Social Protection of the Population of the Bragin District Executive Committee hold a letter from WWII veteran Ivan Arkadyevich Anaprienko, dated November 27, 1943 (F.186. Op.3. D.91. L.90-90ob), addressed to his mother, Paraskeva Klimovna Anaprienko, in the village of Grushnoye, Savichsky Village Council, Bragin District. The letter contains the following lines:

«Hello, dear parents, Mom, Marusya, Misha, Vitya, Ninka, and Grandpa, if he’s alive. Dear Mom. I am writing a second letter to inform you that your son Ivan is currently alive and well.

Mom! It’s been a long time since I heard a word about your life, and you haven’t heard a word about me. «Mom, although I endured many hardships fighting the German occupiers, I still didn’t commit the foolishness of some of the boys, some of whom, of course, were from our village. I survived everything and am now in the Red Army.

Dear Mom, please receive a letter from me – describe your health, how you are and how you were, and whether everyone is alive and well. Don’t worry about me, Mom. If I’m alive, I’ll come back, and you’ll find out everything».

The website «Memory of the People» (pamyat-naroda.ru) indicates that Ivan Anaprienko was born on July 15, 1922, in the village of Grushnoye. He was called up to the front on July 12, 1941. He fought in the 54th Engineer Battalion and the 45th and 196th Rifle Regiments. He was awarded the Order of the Patriotic War, 2nd and 1st class, the Order of the Red Star, and the medals «For Courage» and «For Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945». According to data from the household registers for the village of Grushnoye for 1944-1948 (F.218. Op.3. D.1. L.79ob-80; F.218. Op.3. D.6. L.35ob-36), Lieutenant Anaprienko survived and returned to his village.

1-3. ZGARech. F.186. Op.3. D.91. L.90-90ob