In Postavy, the memory of the heroes of the First World War was immortalized

In their honor, a memorial plaque was unveiled on the building of the House of Crafts, located near the bridge over the Myadzelka River. It is dedicated to an event that occurred on the night of September 17-18, 1915.

At that time, Warrant Officer Ivan Druzhinin of the 85th Vyborg Infantry Regiment was tasked with conducting reconnaissance on the southern outskirts of Postavy, which were occupied by the Germans. With two platoons of scouts, he launched a surprise bayonet charge, dislodged the enemy's right flank, and forced them to retreat across the Myadzelka. However, as they retreated, the Germans set fire to the bridge over the river. Seeing that the mission could be jeopardized, Druzhinin, under machine-gun fire, rushed forward across the burning bridge and, by his example, inspired his comrades. The further advance of the Russian army ultimately drove the German troops out of Postavy. According to Raisa Kurachenko, director of the Postavy District Museum of Local Lore, for his successful operation, Ivan Druzhinin was awarded the Cross of St. George, 1st Class, making him a full Chevalier of the Cross of St. George:

- We learned about Druzhinin's feat while studying Russian archives and materials from the Trophy Commission of 1916. There, incidentally, we discovered an engraving by artist P. Nosko, which depicts the battle on the burning bridge over the Myadzelka in September 1915. Furthermore, we found out that another person was involved in this event – Alexandra Gerasimova. In 1915, she was 21 years old and worked as a teacher at the Postavy Church Parish School. When she noticed that the Germans had set fire to the bridge piles and railings, she grabbed a bucket, ran to the river, and managed to extinguish the flames.

During the Great Patriotic War, Alexandra Mikhailovna also bravely fought against the enemy. Later, she worked in the education system in the Vitebsk region. Her grandson currently lives in Molodechno. As for Ivan Druzhinin, the museum staff in Postavy are trying to find out his further fate with the help of colleagues from the Novgorod Museum-Reserve. So far, it is only known that he was born in 1888 in the village of Kaptsy, Novgorod Governorate.

Sergey Golesnik, "SB".