In Vitebsk, finalists of the project were selected at the regional stage of the "I am a Patriot of My Country" competition
Winners of the regional stages gathered in Vitebsk today to compete for a spot in the final and a ticket to the Belarusian-Russian project "Train of Memory". Last year, the project was successfully held for participants from both countries. As conceived by the initiators – speakers of the upper houses of the parliaments of Belarus and Russia, Natalya Kochanova and Valentina Matvienko – the project united schoolchildren who care about the heroic history of their countries. This year, to get on the "Train of Memory", young people had to pass a competitive selection.
School, gymnasium, lyceum, cadet, and military-patriotic class students from all over the region had to showcase themselves in several rounds. "I am a Patriot of My Country" is both the name of the competition and the motto of each of its participants. At the regional stage, young men and women had to demonstrate their intellectual abilities in the "Memory of Generations" game, present their profile and creative talents in the "I Can" competition, write an essay "About that Spring…" and shoot a video about their small homeland.
Vera Solovyova from Tolochin turned out to be among the best in the field. She is participating in such a competition for the first time. For her, talking about herself was the most difficult part. "I knew what and how to talk about my activities at school, in the city (I host many events, I am fond of dancing) and in the youth parliament, but I didn't know how to do it. My teachers and family helped me. I dedicated my video to my native Tolochin and told a legend in it that Napoleon stopped at our women's monastery during the Patriotic War of 1812. And we also have very beautiful nature," shared the competition participant.
Roman Yesipov from Polotsk, who has been a member of a search party for six years, was counting on winning the competition. He said that he had participated in many search operations together with servicemen of the search battalion, had found quite a few artifacts from the Great Patriotic War, and intends to tell his peers about it if he travels with them on the "Train of Memory". The young man had a strong support group that instilled confidence in him and gave him strength during his performance.
This year, the geography of the "Memory Train" project will expand. "Last year, 200 schoolchildren from Belarus and Russia visited 15 cities, got acquainted with their attractions. This year, schoolchildren from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Armenia will join the Belarusians and Russians," said Olga Dorozhko, head of the educational work department of the main education department of the regional executive committee.
A competent jury selected about 10 finalists for the project based on the results of the regional stage.