The Vitebsk Museum of M. Shmeryov invites veterans to the "Partisan Christmas Tree"

December 22, Vitebsk / Sergey Kochetov - BELTA /. The Vitebsk Regional Museum of Hero of the Soviet Union Minay Shmyrev is organizing a concert evening "Partisan Christmas Tree" for veterans of the Great Patriotic War, participants of the partisan movement, and relatives of partisans, which will take place on December 28. The museum director Irina Shishkova informed a BELTA correspondent about this. "The 'Partisan Christmas Tree', in the format of a meeting and reminiscence evening, is conceived by the museum as a tribute to the distinguished veterans who defended the independence of the Motherland during the war, as well as a tribute to the memory of the famous partisan brigade commander Minay Shmyrev, whose birthday is celebrated on December 23," explained the head of the museum institution. "This is precisely why the evening's content will differ from traditional New Year's events. Although the main New Year's tree – a fragrant fir tree – will occupy a central place in the museum, and its decorations will include handmade toys, as well as machine-gun belts and other attributes of partisan life." Participants of the evening will be the first to appreciate the updated exposition "Partisan Forest" in one of the museum halls, the opening of which after re-exposition is specifically timed by the museum staff to the New Year's celebration. The event program includes a round table on the history of the partisan movement, during which guests will become acquainted with the creative and research works of young local historians from the Center for the Creativity of Children and Youth of the Pervomaysky District of Vitebsk. Amateur art groups from the city's veteran organizations will perform for the guests of the "Partisan Christmas Tree". The concluding chord of the New Year's meeting will be an evening of reminiscences at a festive table. The Memorial Museum of the partisan commander of the brigade, Hero of the Soviet Union Minay Filippovich Shmyrev (partisan pseudonym Batka Minay), was opened on July 5, 1969, during the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the liberation of Belarus from the Nazi invaders. It includes 4 exhibition halls dedicated to various stages of the life of the legendary partisan brigade commander, as well as a park with an area of about 0.5 hectares. A sculptural bust of Minay Shmyrev by People's Artist of the USSR Zair Azgur is installed on the park territory, and an oak alley planted by former participants of the partisan movement is located there. In 2010, a partisan glory alley was created here in the form of an open-air exhibition recreation, recreating a partisan camp from the Great Patriotic War period. As a result, the museum and park expositions represent a single memorial complex dedicated to the partisan movement. The museum's collections hold about 9,000 items. The museum building was constructed at the turn of the 19th-20th centuries. -0-