Grigori Stepanovich
Born 21 April 1926 in Grigoriople, Moldova (MSSR, part of USSR), second child of 3. Keen football player, but told by mother to play barefoot to save shoe-leather. Home was a spacious bungalow with a good orchard growing many fruit trees. Mother was a Moldavian language teacher in the local gymnasium, and was able to employ a home help nanny Ulyana.
At the start of war (1941), because of the threat from Romania, his mother asked the Red Army to take him, but this was refused because he was too young. However, they made an agreement with the Red Army officer to say Grigori was born in 1925, so he could join the Cadet College (near Leningrad?). In 1944, he was sent as an officer to the USSR border near Leningrad, and he received a medal for courage.
After the end of the war in 1945 he continued to study and graduated (1949?) and became Lieutenant. As a successful officer he was sent to Minsk, whereas his best friend was sent to the Grodekovo in the Far East. After celebrating their postings, drunk & sad, they decided to find the distance between their two posts by placing the political map of the USSR on the gym floor and marched over it. Caught by the chief commander, they were disciplined and both sent to Grodekovo!
In Grodekovo he met Genrietta Viktorovna Makarikhina, daughter of a serving officer, at a theatre performance, and married her soon after on 29 December 1951. First daughter Irina Grigorievna was born in Barabash (near Grodekovo) on the North Korean border. The day after Irina's birth he was due to leave for Port Arthur, China, and wanted to see his daughter before leaving. So with his father in-law, after celebrating her birth, they went to look at her secretely through a window into the neo-natal ward. Finding 6 babies well wrapped up, they started to unwrap each in turn, looking for the name tag. Unfortunately Irina was the last to be unwrapped, so much crying ensued. They were caught & narrowly avoided discipline (with the help of an old bottle of cognac). He then left for China, leaving wife & daughter behind. They joined him after 6 months: on meeting them at the railway station he dropped flowers & chocolates in joyful shock, not knowing which to kiss first.
His second daughter Tatyana Grigorievna was born in China on 29 January 1954. He celebrated her birthday with his friends while looking after Irina. After the part he arrived home & suddenly realised something was missing - Irina! Terrified, he rushed back to the restaurant, where Irina was being cared for by the Chinese waitresses: they were discussing who should take such a pretty girl home.
In 1955 USSR troops were withdrawn from China, his unit was sent to Luga, near Leningrad. On the 14 day train journey, Tanya & Irina caught measles. The girls & their mother were put in the last carriage to avoid contagion: they recovered before the end of the journey. The family lived at a secret base (Polygon #1) in comfortable & spacious Finnish houses, each with 4 families sharing.
In 1961 he was sent to Vladimir, near Moscow for 2 years, living in a special small city for families of officers, Perecopsy Gorodok. In 1963 his unit was sent to Teikovo, near Ivanovo, where he served until 1970, promoted to the rank of sub-Colonel. Unfortunately at this time he experienced a serious heart attack, was discharged from military service, and given free choice for where he should live. He chose Moldova (his birth-place), and the family moved to Apartment 57, Bubnovsky 76, Kishinev. There he worked as Chief Personnel Manager at the Intourist Hotel, Kishinev until his death on 15 September 1983.
Biography written by Irina Yamalyants June 2020