A monument to Vasily Krikun, a native of Oktyabrskoye village, who participated in the Great Patriotic War, Hero of the Soviet Union, and holder of the orders of the Patriotic War was opened today in Jalal-Abad region of Kyrgyzstan.
He was born in 1918, went to the front line with his countrymen. In October 1943, in a battle near Melitopol, sergeant Krikun replaced the deceased troop commander, personally raised the subunit and achieved important strategic heights. For this feat, Krikun was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union and the Order of Lenin. After the war, he lived in Tash-Kumyr, then in Novosibirsk, where he worked at Sibselmash plant. He died in 2007.
Local residents, military, representatives of district authorities, Consulate of Russia, Orthodox and Muslim priests, who read memorial prayers, gathered for the opening ceremony.
The installation of the monument is an initiative of the deputy of Bagysh local council Kazbek Kaldybaev, who noted: «We are proud of the feats of our fellow villagers. We bring up children, youth based on their example. Funds for the monument were collected by the whole village.»
