For a unit with a long history and glorious combat traditions, its veterans are an invaluable asset. Today, when one of the most pressing issues is the upbringing of a patriot and a citizen of Russia, a true defender of the Fatherland, it is difficult to overestimate the practical work of the veterans' council. Vladimir Petrovich FEDORCHENKO, Chairman of the veterans' council of the Taman Division, shared with us how this council operates. We met this interesting man and companion on the eve of Victory Day. In the office of the division's deputy commander for educational work, a tall, thin retired officer felt at home. "Meet Vladimir Petrovich, the chairman of the veterans' council." We were introduced to a middle-aged man of average height with a youthful, fiery gaze. He was dressed in a navy-blue Soviet-style dress uniform. As he moved, his medals jingled melodiously, a testament to his heroic past. Like many of his peers, Vladimir Fedorchenko went to the Great Patriotic War as a young boy. He was nineteen years old at the time. It seems that the calendar changed during the war. He served in intelligence and fought through the entire war. He never left the service. After the war, he participated in numerous parades on Red Square. He was one of the first to test new firearms, firing AKMs, or Kalashnikov assault rifles. As the commander of a motorized rifle unit, he page 21 In 1953, he ensured the unhindered passage of the Taman Division's equipment into Moscow during the arrest of Beria. Vladimir Petrovich is not only an honest and devoted servant. His second passion, after his profession of "Defending the Motherland," is art. He is a sculptor and artist who creates works on military themes. His work "They Fought for the Motherland" was exhibited in 1967 at the All-Union Exhibition of Amateur Artists and was displayed in Moscow and Budapest. Vladimir Petrovich Fedorchenko is the creator of the Taman Division's Walk of Fame. He created the composition "Cranes" ... Читать далее