O.V. HITALOV

Hitalov Oleksandr Vasyliovych - was a noble mechanic, an outstanding Ukrainian farmer, statesman and public figure.

He was born on May 15, 1915, in the village of Komyshuvate, Novoukrainskyi district, died on March 17, 1994. Since 1929 he worked at the collective farm of his native village, a tractor team leader since 1936. In 1956, he initiated the complex mechanization of cultivation of row crops. His brigade, the All-Union School of Excellence, trained 12,000 machine operators from all regions of the USSR, and Komyshuvate was called the "Steppe Academy." He contributed to the completion of the Komyshuvate secondary school and the construction of the Tarasivka school in Novhorodkivskyi district, and was the founder of the Museum of Labor Glory in Komyshuvate village. He is the author of books of journalism "My Land" (1971), "Thoughts on Bread" (1972), "A Word to a Young Friend" (1977), "Our Frontline is the Field" (1986), and others. Twice Hero of Socialist Labor (1948, 1958). Member of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, member of its Presidium of seven convocations. The journalistic and documentary book "O. V. Hitalov" (Kirovohrad, 1999) is dedicated to his memory.