Tbilisi Artillery School

[Chuck In Oregon]

Here's another one of the badges that my darlin' wife brought back for me.

This series is interesting to collect. Not that I do, but it's interesting nevertheless. I think this is one of the very-hard-to-get examples, a graduate's badge from the Tbilisi Artillery School.

Sidebar: When I'm in Tbilisi on Victory Day, I like to go the national park (Vake Park) to see and take pictures of the veterans. I always offer free copies if they will let me take their picture and lots of them take me up on it. Some are suspicious, who can blame them after what they have survived, but most say OK and many ask me to take pictures of them with family and old friends.

I asked one old vet where I could deliver his photo and he said "at my job". You mean, you're working? "Yes, just come over to the Tbilisi Artillery School and meet me at the gate." So that's what happened. This old (mid-90s) colonel was an artillery commander all through WW II and that's what he teaches every day at the school. In fact, he teaches partly by outlining what he did and how he did it in several of his battles. Very nice guy, and he was disappointed (as was I) when I couldn't accept his dinner invitation.

Enjoy.

Chuck