Only a patriot can raise a patriot: Igor Fedorov entered the top three of the republican competition for military patriotic education

Igor Fedorov told the correspondent of "BB" about the war in Afghanistan, the service and how to raise real patriots. An internationalist soldier, the head of military-patriotic education at Vitebsk gymnasium No. 7 named after P.Kondratenko entered the top three in the republican competition in the nomination "The best head of military-patriotic education of a general secondary education institution."

There is such a profession — to defend the Homeland

Being brought up, like many children, on films, books about the Great Patriotic War and stories of veterans, Igor Pavlovich dreamed of becoming a defender of the Motherland as a child. His father served at sea, and he dreamed of landing troops. The boy really wanted to jump with a parachute. To do this, he was engaged in athletics and even fulfilled the standard of a candidate for master of sports in the 400 m run.

– Then many people wanted to serve, to be like their grandfathers, great-grandfathers, who heroically defended our country from the Nazi invaders. In my understanding, a real man is a defender of the Fatherland. And military people have the highest degree of patriotism, because they take the oath, at any moment they are ready to defend the Motherland and give their lives for our country," the source said.

A dream come true! Igor Fedorov entered the Ryazan Higher Airborne Command School, after graduating from which he served in intelligence units. And even received a medal "For distinction in military service." And then – Afghanistan…

"I was dying every night"

In Afghanistan, a 24-year-old boy was entrusted to command the reconnaissance company of the 357th Guards Parachute Regiment of the 103rd Airborne Division. Even before the arrival of the new commander, the platoon was considered heroic, led by its officer Andrei Ivonin, who was shielded by Corporal Alexander Koryavin, posthumously awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union for this feat.

During their service, the scouts were on the verge of death more than once. They organized ambushes, accompanied food convoys that were coming from the Soviet Union to help the Afghan people. These cargoes were often the target of attacks by the dushmans, so the young guys had to join the battle. For this, Igor Fedorov was awarded the Order of the Red Star.

— The hardest thing in the war is to see how comrades die, how they get injured. No matter how brave and courageous men we were, we endured it very hard, we cried," Igor Pavlovich stressed.

The scouts shared their experiences only with each other. For another 20 years after the withdrawal of troops, Igor Fedorov remained silent about Afghanistan. He did not tell his family anything until his wife saw an old issue of the newspaper "Soviet Patriot", which published an article describing one of the military tragedies, with a photo and a comment from her husband.

So, on the night of February 7-8, 1989, the regiment in which Igor Fedorov served was leaving Afghanistan, crossing the Salang pass. When the platoon was climbing the serpentine to the mountain peak, it suddenly started to snow. The first avalanche blocked the road. As soon as it was cleared, the second one collapsed, which in a matter of moments carried two cars into the abyss. The third bombarded almost the entire company of Igor Fedorov, which was being transported to the BMP. Without hesitating for a minute, he and several soldiers began to wield shovels to free themselves from the snow captivity, and then helped twenty more servicemen. But the joy of liberation was overshadowed by the loss of three comrades.

In Termez, the Soviet soldiers were met by journalists who asked them to take pictures with smiles, but the guys did not succeed, and this can be seen in the picture. They talked about the dead guys, but they did not publish it, it was not accepted to talk about it then. A few hours later, Igor Fedorov returned home to his family, but at first he continued to fight in his sleep.

"I've been dying every night for about a year. Then I felt better. He was in a difficult moral and psychological state. The soldiers had the hardest time, but my mother, wife, children, work and friends helped me adapt," Igor said.

He served faithfully in the paratroopers for more than thirty years. In 2013, he retired from the post of Deputy Chief of Staff of the 103rd Separate Guards Mobile Brigade (now the 103rd Separate Guards Airborne Brigade) with the rank of Guard lieutenant colonel, and in 2021 he began working as the head of military patriotic education.

Patriotism begins in the family and school

According to Igor Fedorov, everything starts with the family. Any child first of all takes an example from his parents. A striking example is the family of the interlocutor. Igor's younger brother also graduated from the Ryazan Military Academy and served in the Soviet forces. The eldest son of the military instructor has already received shoulder straps, and the younger one is only planning to connect his life with law enforcement agencies.

The second significant factor of education, according to the interlocutor, is school. And here the responsibility for children and the future of the country falls on the shoulders of teachers. Igor Fedorov knows this firsthand, because he is responsible for military-patriotic education in Vitebsk gymnasium No. 7 named after P. Kondratenko.

— Patriotism is not only love for the Motherland, family, and home. These are also the spiritual and moral qualities of a person: honesty, decency, reliability, loyalty," Igor Pavlovich stressed.

– We instill patriotism by telling about the history of our country, the successes we have achieved, and worthy people. Children are our future, and depending on what values we invest in them, what we teach, the citizens of our country will be like that.

Igor Fedorov teaches at the gymnasium for schoolchildren of different ages. Fifth–graders have "Fundamentals of life safety", and 8th-11th grade children have electives on military–patriotic education, "School of Young Defenders of the Fatherland", and also oversees a detachment of young rescuers- firefighters.

An elite Honor squad has been created from among the graduates, the guys take out the National Flag of the Republic of Belarus during important events. And even the best of the best keep a Memorial Watch at post No. 1 in Vitebsk – on Victory Square near the memorial complex in honor of Soviet soldiers-liberators, partisans and underground workers of the Vitebsk region.

In the classroom, the military instructor does not just tell the story of the Great Patriotic and Afghan Wars, but takes schoolchildren on excursions to museums and memorable places. He does not just tell the boys that they need to serve in the army, but conducts a field training camp in his native 103rd airborne brigade, where the guys visit the barracks, get acquainted with the army regime, learn parachuting at the airborne complex.

– The guys saw with their own eyes how the soldiers live, train, what their regime is. Many admitted that they also want to get a military specialty," Igor Fedorov noted.

When the strong rear is children

High school students participate with interest in military-patriotic events, love and respect their military instructor, therefore, as soon as the guys learned that Igor Fedorov would participate in the regional competition among leaders of military-patriotic education, they immediately responded and prepared for all stages together.

– The most difficult thing for me was preparing for creative self-presentation. I was helped by a team of drummers, with whom I went on stage to the music. Then my guys told me about five areas of military-patriotic activity, and at the end I performed Maxim Fadeev's song "Cranes" with talented vocalists from our gymnasium," the military instructor said. – There was a generational connection through the whole number, we rehearsed a lot, and I was worried, because we – the military – are not used to performing. Looking at the result of the competition, I think I managed to convey the depth of my work with children and their love for our region and country.

By the way, the competition "Head of military-patriotic education" was held by the Ministry of Education together with the Ministry of Defense for the first time.

Igor Fedorov and students of Vitebsk gymnasium No. 7 named after P. Kondratenko became winners of the republican competition "Head of military-patriotic education".

– I've always enjoyed teaching. Even during his service, when he taught soldiers the basics of topography, he was very happy when they began to understand everything. It's even more interesting to work with children. I get great pleasure from communicating with them, I like to watch their progress," said Igor Fedorov.

Photo by Dmitry OSIPOV and from the archive of Igor Fedorov.

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