From the age of seven, Vasily Ivanovich Kostikov was brought up in an orphanage at the Joseph-Volokolamsk Monastery. Then he went to study in Moscow and entered a vocational school.
When the war began, all the students of the vocational school were sent to work at Moscow factories, and in November of 1941, the factories were evacuated from the capital to Ural. But Vasily returned home.
In December 1941, the Volokolamsk District was liberated from the Germans, and the fate of Vasily Ivanovich changed again – he went to study at a vocational school in Kolomna, then ran away from the school to the front, because he dreamed of volunteering. Many times, the military patrol brought the kid back, until in Tuapse he was once again arrested and sent, after sorting it out, to the reserve regiment. So, he became the son of the regiment.
At the age of 17, Vasily Kostikov was drafted into the army. He took military training courses and then was sent to the front. In February 1943, Vasily Ivanovich was wounded and shell-shocked near Taman. After the hospital, he was sent to study as a corpsman. And, to his great joy, in October 1943, he got into his own unit again and participated in the liberation of Kerch and Sevastopol.
During the fighting, Vasily Ivanovich had the opportunity to serve as an infantryman, a signalman, and an anti-aircraft gunner. From October to December 1944, he was a corpsman.
Awards:
Order of the Patriotic war, of the 2nd class, medal "For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945."
