Gifts for May 9th

The anniversary of the Great Victory is approaching. A parade, fireworks, a concert is sacred. And here are the gifts for May 9 ... Who should I give them to if there are fewer and fewer veteran ceremonial tunics heavy with awards at honorary concert venues every year? How many of them are left, those early-matured boys who did not flinch on the fields of World War II? After all, think about it, they, who barely turned 18 in 1941, are now 95! Are there any gifts in such and such summers? And if not to give to veterans, then to whom, what and why?

With these questions, we turned to one of the popular online stores specializing in expensive ones (not the reason to be able to do without a trifle!) gifts. As sales manager Ilya Chesalov noted, consumer activity is really increasing on the eve of May 9th. Quite a large number of people are interested in the category "gifts for the military", where everything that can be related to military valor and glorious victories of Russian weapons is collected. Recipients of winning gifts of various values, from several thousand to several million rubles, are not so few. Their generalized portraits, compiled with the help of our competent interlocutor, are given below.

Thank you, Grandpa, for the Victory!

According to official statistics of the state Pension Fund, about 1.8 million veterans and disabled people of the Second World War currently live in the territory of the Russian Federation. These include not only direct participants in military operations (there are less than 22.5 thousand people left for the whole huge country!), but also veteran widows, home front workers, prisoners of fascist camps, residents of besieged Leningrad – all those who forged Victory at the front and in the rear and bravely endured all the hardships of the war.

These people lived most of their lives as ordinary citizens of the USSR. Until 1965, May 9 was not marked in the calendar as a red date and was considered a normal working day. In the 60s, the pioneer movement "Red Star" began: schoolchildren of that time, following the example of the Timurov team invented by Gaidar, began marking the houses and apartments of front-line soldiers with cardboard or painted five-pointed stars.

As such, the mass celebration and congratulations of modest Soviet heroes began in the mid-70s, when they began to be invited to festive demonstrations and rallies held on May 9th in every smallest settlement. At the same time, the tradition of gifts began to emerge. In Soviet reality, the term "deficit" had already taken root thoroughly and front-line soldiers, many of whom were still cheerful and able-bodied, were generously presented with crystal vases at the production that had become their native. And especially those who distinguished themselves in their labors and valor had the opportunity to receive one of the "Izha", "Bug", "Moskvichonka" equipped with a trophy engine, or even a brand-new, representative-class Volga that had just descended from the factory assembly line.

In the 80s, most of the gray-haired veterans went on a well-deserved rest. Our Veterans honor boards dedicated to them appeared at the enterprises. And each leader considered it his duty to visit his veterans personally and apartment-by-apartment at least once a year. They went around with the same crystal, invited to a concert, invited to a class hour at school or to a themed evening of rest "For those who are over ...". Finally, the grandfathers had a reason to wear medals at least once a year.

The 90s, with all the confusion and ambiguity, became a severe test for many of the honorable old men. Before their eyes, what they had once fought for was falling apart. There was no time for them at the enterprises that were closing one after another. There were social services, benefits, holiday rations with buckwheat, stewed meat and what the private business, which was then on its feet, was moving towards. They tried to give something to veterans who suddenly found themselves out of work, but those who did not have caring relatives did not warm up much.

The order bearers who survived the harsh junction of epochs were truly remembered again by the beginning of the new millennium. The noughties were marked by presidential decrees on apartments and cars for each veteran. Children-grandchildren-great-grandchildren, meanwhile, have learned to survive very well in a market economy, and that's when the era of expensive veteran gifts came.

- We started receiving orders for personalized souvenirs for our grandfather, a front-line soldier, the very first year we opened, - says our interlocutor. – On the eve of the holiday, buyers were actively interested in the opportunity to make a commemorative engraving on exclusive souvenirs or some items of service they purchased on a solemn occasion, interior decorations and other products of author's work.

- And what exactly was chosen as a gift for a veteran?

- Depending on the degree of kinship and wealth. I remember the head of the company, who ordered at once for two veterans who once worked at his enterprise, personalized decorative plates from Zlatoust craftsmen. I took the matter seriously, I personally came several times to discuss and correct an individual sketch. Then the engravers worked on it.

A memorable, though inexpensive, order came from a young guy. By age, if not a student, then he did not go far from the student bench. And just imagine, a kid comes into our Moscow gallery with a backpack, in sneakers and suddenly, with genuine interest, begins to look at silver spoons. He'll get a price for that one, he'll weigh this one in his hands. Our consultants are interested. Usually, girls choose gifts for their godchildren for the first tooth. Let's suggest, they say, the spoon is too big if the baby. Oh, you didn't guess! The guy told a painful story about a family heirloom. Which he remembered from the time he walked under the table. His mother was telling him the story her mother had told him.

In the post-war grandmother's childhood, there was a stainless steel spoon in the household. Back then, aluminum was mostly in use. And this one, shining among them like a princess, was showing off. Only my grandfather ate with that spoon. He did not allow anyone to touch him and refused to take another one in his hands. This spoon was the only trophy that he, who reached Berlin and wrote his name on the wall of the Reichstag, brought home from the war. Over time, the edge of the spoon became almost as thick as a razor, and the front-line soldier stubbornly refused to use other cutlery.

And so, somehow grandma couldn't stand it anymore, she took and threw away her husband's spoon on the sly so that he wouldn't embarrass her with his German scarecrow in front of the guests. Of course, I didn't tell the old man, I don't seem to know where I went and that's it. And he still remembers his spoon. What was connected with her? Why is it so safe? No one knows. My grandfather did not like to talk about the war. He always avoided questions and did not even watch films about the war. At the time when the great-grandson decided to purchase a personalized spoon for Victory Day, the addressee was already over 90. Almost blind. But the kid still asked to engrave on the back of the holder: "Thank you, grandfather, for the Victory!". That relatively modest spoon, in my opinion, is one of the most valuable victory gifts ordered from us.

- This is an outstanding exclusive. And from the more traditional ones, what do they give to veterans?

- Officials choose neutral options. For example, various techniques of caskets for storing awards, author's handmade bronze statuettes with a liberator warrior or military equipment. Personalized cup holders are in demand, paintings on gold leaf and made of stone with an appropriate plot. Table clocks in the form of military shoulder straps were also bought. But relatives, on the contrary, try to choose something with more individuality. It is difficult to generalize there, each gift is a family story, because it is those who buy it who honor it and try to preserve it for future generations.

- Do they buy gifts only for veterans by May 9?

- Not at all. Now, just more for those who were born much later than the war. Moreover, these are people of different age groups.

- Let's start with the oldest post-war one.

- Military personnel, security forces. It is customary to coincide with the awards of distinguished people and promotions for the holiday. In this regard, nominal dirks of various law enforcement agencies and other award-winning handmade weapons are in demand. Luxury items such as a gilded spyglass or more practical ones, such as a desk appliance, are also in demand. They also mark civilians who have distinguished themselves in their work. You see, May 9 is one of the few holidays that really unites Russians. Everyone considers this date their own, because almost every family remembers the heroic grandfathers. The heroes may have already gone to another world, but the memory of them is alive. Look at how many people are walking with portraits of relatives in the Immortal Regiment. And these awards, which seem to have no direct relation to that war, but still have. I want to be involved. I would like not to be ashamed in front of those who gave their lives for this peaceful and prosperous existence. Hence all cultural and sports events: relay races, contests that attract young people and children.

- This is probably the younger age group of recipients of the winning gift?

- yes. And here you should not think that everything ends with souvenir badges with a St. George ribbon. Among the young and even among children, there are those who deservedly receive a valuable gift for the holiday, some kind of exclusive that came out of a famous workshop. Take sports competitions. After all, there are a lot of people who are trying to organize some kind of relay race in honor of Victory Day or a volleyball tournament at their own expense. And these sponsors and patrons often give their best. It happened that commemorative cups were ordered from us precisely to encourage such minor children's sports victories of local significance or solid gifts for song contests, reading contests, musicians – there are many talented children in our country. And there are those who are willing to spend money to make a speech on such an important occasion remain for life not only in memory, but also on a shelf with family heirlooms.

-In addition to the cups already mentioned, what gifts and awards can be recommended as an incentive for the winner or laureate of various competitions and contests dedicated to Victory Day?

- If we talk about children and youth, then the book, as the best gift, is more relevant now than ever. The generation of gadgets is moving further away from the paper book, and this is not the most joyful circumstance of our time. A well-published gift book is guaranteed to capture the attention of a child, no matter how cool a tablet he possesses. Now there are an abundance of beautifully decorated folios in handmade leather bindings telling about the history of Russia, its heroes, and brilliant generals – something that children, with all the apparent variety of entertaining children's TV programs, lack. And even the most notorious bad boy would not dare to tear up such a book. Even he will blow the dust off her and learn by heart from cover to cover. But it's not the bad guys who participate in the contests, but the best of the best.

The same is true with chess, which is not particularly fashionable among young people. A simple game set, give it to a fifteen-year-old scamp, perhaps it will never remain unclaimed. But if any of the boys suddenly get a chess made of stone or bronze as a well-deserved reward for their efforts, talents, and even endurance. These are not the most expensive options for gift gaming devices available to us, but for a teenager, even they become a treasure from the cave of Aladdin, which all peers come to admire. And where they admire, they learn to play there, then you look and here he is a new Kasparov has appeared.

You see, when a child sees nothing more valuable than a utilitarian computer or phone, it is difficult to expect that he will suddenly become interested in the history of his Homeland, works of art or something else. If a clock with St. George the Victorious appeared in his room, which some kind uncle-sponsor presented to him for the best verse about the war at the city competition, or a statuette with three Vasnetsov heroes, you can be sure that by the next Victory Day the boy will be able to tell about why the ancient Roman martyr warrior is considered the patron saint of the Russian army and about the exploits of the epic Ilya Muromets. And then, many years later, he will show these relics that he once received for children's poems to his children. And, probably, he will also tell you something, teach you something kind, high, noble.

Summing up our conversation about the necessity and importance of Victory Day gifts in our long-peacetime, we can hope that thanks to such expensive gifts, sometimes beyond their age, the memory of that distant war will not be preserved in any generation. Happy Victory Day! And may the main gift be a peaceful sky above your head!