In Memory of Ivan Lobatchev

My Dad was born in Arbuzovka village (Altai Krai, South-West SIberia) on August 5th, 1926. At the age of 16, he got into a military college and was sent to Chechnya. He served as a mechanic at the military airport in 1944-1951 repairing planes that collected intelligence data. After honorable discharge from the army, he was hired by Grozny NefteRazvedka (an oil and gas mining company in Grozny, Chechen capital). He was planning to start a family there. But his brothers and sisters in Siberia needed him there.

My Dad's Dad was arrested in 1937 as thousands and thousands of other good Russian people on a false accusation of being involved in conspiracy against Stalin. My Dad's family was treated as traitors, and their life was miserable since then.In 1952, My Dad returned to Barnaul, an industrial centre of Altai Krai. He got a job with Altai Boiler Plant where he met my Mom. She moved to Barnaul two years before after graduation from Sverdlovsk Industrial College.

After more than 15 years of work as an Associate Director of one of the production departments of the plant, he left the dangerous and unsafe job at the Boiler Plant and accepted a position as a head of one of the towns (districts) of Barnaul. By that time around 700,000 people lived in that city. He accomplished a lot at the position of the Head of the RailRoad District but decided to move to a less stressful job as a Head of Municipal Registration services where he worked until retirement. He built a house; he helped all his brothers and sisters to move from Arbuzovka to Barnaul and settle there; he brought up two daughters. He was a decent man, great Dad and husband and a good friend.