The tank, built with the money of Soviet children

In 1942 the newspaper "Omsk truth" was published "Letter Zanegin Ada", which marked the beginning of the country's only movement preschoolers to raise funds for the front.
It said:
"I - Ada Zanegina. I am six years old. I am writing in the print.
Hitler threw me out of the city of Smolensk region Sychevka.
I want to go home. Little me, but I know that it is necessary to break Hitler and then go home.
My mother gave money to the tank.
I gathered a doll 122 rubles and 25 kopecks. And now I give them to the tank.
Dear Uncle editor!
Write in your newspaper for all children so that they too have given their money on the tank.
And let's call him "Baby".
When our tanks break Hitler, we go home.
Hell.
My mother is a doctor and my dad tanker. »

10 photo.





Hell Zanegina



Then the newspaper published a letter Alik Solodova six years: "I want to return to Kiev - wrote Alex - and I bring the money collected on the boots - 135 rubles 56 kopecks - for the construction of tank" Baby ».

"My mother wanted to buy me a new coat and gained 150 rubles. I Ponos old coat. Tamara Loskutova ».

"Dear unknown girl Hell! I was only five years old, and I lived for a year without a mother. I really want to go home, because gladly give the money to build our tank. Hurry to our tank smashed the enemy. Tanya Chistyakov ».

The regional branch of the State Bank account was opened № 350035. children - preschoolers, schoolchildren of the city and the region have started to raise funds for the tank "Baby". The money came almost daily - rubles, even a trifle that was childish purses. Children kindergarten farm "Novo-Ural" prepared a concert and listed earned 20 rubles to the State Bank.

Daily newspaper put the letters of children who have lost their "puppet" savings on the tank "Baby". Managers of Omsk Education Department sent a telegram to the Supreme Commander: "Children of pre-school, wanting to help the heroic Red Army finally crush and destroy the enemy, the money collected by them for toys, dolls ... given for the construction of the tank and asked to call him" Baby "". Classified as "top government" came the response telegram: "Please convey preschoolers Omsk, who collected 160,886 rubles for the construction of the tank," Baby ", my warm greetings and gratitude to the Red Army."



Hell dreamed that the tank "Baby" will fight her father - a tanker. But the mechanic-driver it was the 22-year-old Ekaterina A. Petlyuk, Sergeant of the 56th Tank Brigade, a month to retrain in mehvoda from Odessa flying club pilots Osoaviahima, having passed all the exams as "excellent". In the first fight she led the "Baby" at Stalingrad in November 1942 in the area of ​​Kalach-on-Don, between the state farm «X years of October" and MTF-2. Telecommunication "Baby", whose commander was Sergeant Kozyura, briskly slipped through the black fountains of tears, drove to the command vehicle, took orders, raced in divisions passed these orders, the dispatch repairmen to the destroyed tanks, delivered ammunition, evacuation of wounded.



In December, the team was disbanded and "Baby" with a new crew (commander of the tank became Lieutenant Ivan Gubanov, the driver left Kate, and more in the T-60 and one was not) falls into the 90th Tank Brigade. After completion of the fighting in Stalingrad tank with driver-mechanic he was transferred to the 91 th Tank Brigade Colonel I. Jakubowski.



For courage and heroism in the battles of Stalingrad Petlyuk Katya he received a medal "For the Defense of Stalingrad" and the Order of the Red Star. She not only had frostbitten hands and face, and feet. Communists chose Katia party organizer company (Komsomol activist Petlyuk took the party January 17, 1943). Brigade in March 1943 was renamed Guards in August joined the composition formed by the 7th Mechanized Corps.

In the crucible of the Battle of Kursk in the summer of 1943 Catherine Petlyuk with "Baby" had to leave and transfer to T-70, taking a picture with a broken tank tank watches, which are now exhibited at the Museum of defense of Stalingrad, and the name of Little, who affectionately called since Katya (she herself was an increase of 151 cm). So named Ekaterina A., fellow soldiers and veterans of the 7th microns from the Odessa group.



The commander of a tank platoon became Lieutenant Michael Kolov. During machine operation Orel was hit by enemy aircraft, and Kate Petlyuk was ordered to transfer to the T-70 to the second lieutenant Peter Fedorenko. In one battle tank lost speed, but he continued to fire off. They managed to break the two German dugout and suppress machine-gun nest. Fedorenko was wounded in the head and taken to hospital in the rear, and Katya was injured left leg, but remained in the ranks. For courage in these battles, it was awarded its second Order of battle - World War II degree.



Before going out to the Dnieper party organizer company Katia Petlyuk with a tank commander Michael's Code has been translated into the 39-th Guards separate reconnaissance avtobronebatalon Army 3rd Guards Tank Army. After the liberation of Shepetovka February 11, 1944 troops of the 3rd Guards that were withdrawn from the fighting and got a break, and a driver Petlyuk, which had by that time the three injured, two military orders and medals, was assigned to the Ulyanovsk Tank School.



Catherine Petlyuk in October 1944 passed all exams with a grade of "excellent". She was promoted to the rank of second lieutenant and. left school training platoon commander.

In heavy fighting from October 1942 to February 1944 "Guard Kate" earned three medals and 12 medals. It was the reserve for injury. In 1945, the garrison military medical commission made merciless verdict: invalid of the second group.

Catherine Petlyuk become an instructor of military training in Odessa. Soon she was elected a deputy of the regional council. It ends in absentia University School of Law.

In 1975, a student in the club "Seeker" Omsk Palace of Pioneers Vladimir Yashin in the old filing "Omsk truth" found a letter from Ada Zanegin distant forty-two years. Guys excited about this letter. They began to search for that girl, which initiated fundraising for the construction of tank "Baby".



May 19 the same year in Omsk first met two mistresses tank "Baby". Adel A. Zanegina, ophthalmologist from Elektrostal near Moscow, and Ekaterina A. Petlyuk, head of the registry office of the Leninsky district of Odessa. It turned out that the father of Ada, tank, also fought on the Orel-Kursk. There he died. Then they traveled to Smolensk, the home of Ada.

After meeting with them Second grade students of secondary school number 2 of Smolensk we decided: "Our front - in the wheat field!" The children began to collect scrap metal, waste paper, medicinal plants, to use the money to build a tractor "Baby" and give him the best tractor driver area. Call Smolensk Octobrists Pioneers picked up the whole area, and a year later in Smolensk at the Mound of Immortality lined fifteen powerful "MTZ-80." Each tractor - brass letters: "Baby." These tractors built Komsomol Minsk Tractor Plant in the days of Saturday.

Posted in [mergetime] 1389873326 [/ mergetime]
The following year, Smolensk schoolchildren raised money for fourteen tractors, then another twenty-one. Responded to the patriotic call peers guys from Omsk region. Kharkiv students decided to build one hundred and twenty tractors and replenish their column "Baby».

Seeing the road tractor editorial column "Baby", Ekaterina A. Petlyuk told the guys:

- I'll never forget this day. Once again, I deeply felt: not for nothing that we are fighting for every inch of land, no wonder it watered with their blood. We have sown good seeds, seedlings and now delight our eyes. Today the peaceful sky above us and the children collect scrap metal on the tractor.

Posted in [mergetime] 1389873469 [/ mergetime]
That's all I wanted to say!



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