Ahead of May 9, the Social Fund invited veterans of the Great Patriotic War to convey words of gratitude and congratulate them on the upcoming holiday. Andrey Chalov, Deputy Chairman of the Social Fund, welcomed them on the premises.
"Dear veterans! We are celebrating a great holiday that would not have been possible without you. Victory Day remains a symbol of joy and pride for the Great Victory. You are living legends, models of courage and resilience and the embodiment of an unwavering will to win. We bow down to you for the peaceful sky that you gifted to future generations!"
At the festive table, the veterans recalled the wartime hardships: how they saw their loved ones off to war, waited for news from the frontlines, hid from bombings and endured adversity. Yet, the joy with which they welcomed the long-awaited Victory Day will forever remain in their memory: the thunder of fireworks, people who poured out onto the streets, hugging and crying.
Official meetings with veterans ahead of May 9 took place at the Fund's branches across the entire country. 900 people in total were invited. The Social Fund's employees visited some of them on their own to offer congratulations and present memorable gifts.
In some regions, the Fund's staff took part in events commemorating the Victory Day. In the course of the Memory of the Fiery Years campaign, the attendees tested their knowledge of the key events and heroes of the Great Patriotic War. The Light of the Great Victory motor rally took place in Buryatia. The Fund's employees visited rear workers with gifts and congratulatory letters and participated in festive rallies held around war monuments.
In Kalmykia, members of the Fund's staff took part in the Green Memory of Generations drive, planting pine alley near war obelisks. The Social Fund branch for Primorye Territory launched the Memory Navigator project. Employees and activists helped elderly people and their loved ones find information about relatives who participated in the Great Patriotic War, as well as restore their combat history and burial sites.
Veterans were also venerated at the Social Fund's Communication Centers for Seniors, where over 1,200 official meetings with veterans and children of the war took place. The centers' visitors also participated in 1,500 events, including rallies, concerts, remembrance campaigns and laying flowers at memorials.