St. Petersburg, Russia—The Northwest Russia chapter of UPF held a Winter Peace Road event on a date that holds great meaning for Russians.
January 18, 2018, was the 75th anniversary of the day in 1943 when Soviet forces broke through a small section of Nazi Germany’s blockade of Leningrad (St. Petersburg), thus providing some relief to the city’s people.
The Peace Road participants celebrated the memorable date by hiking through Sosnovka Park, located 3 kilometers (1.86 miles) from the city, to visit memorials to the defenders of Leningrad. Among the participants were several survivors of the blockade.
The Northwest Russia branch of UPF organized the event together with the Will of Petersburg movement.
Gennady V. Boldyrev, the deputy chair of Will of Petersburg, prepared a nice surprise by giving each participant equipment for Nordic walking!
Coach Czeslaw Blasik gave a lesson in Nordic walking and unique warm-up exercises, using the donated equipment. Under his sensitive leadership the participants overcame a long, snowy path in the name of world peace.
The event ended with a warm, friendly meeting over cups of hot tea, with friendly communication and the singing of favorite songs.
The participants conveyed their greetings and the relay baton to the city of Ryazan, where, over the next three days, the city residents would contribute to the cause of world peace, neighborliness and cooperation.