Gennady Shepelev Passed Away
This former railwayman was called "the guardian of Krapivna field".
Gennady Shepelev turned 70 this year. He lived in Baran (Orsha district). A former paratrooper, he worked as a train driver, and later earned a living as an entrepreneur.
Gennady Shepelev was called "the guardian of Krapivna field". For a long time, he organized bard festivals in honor of the historic Battle of Orsha on September 8, 1514.
Sometimes this happened under extreme conditions. Here's how "Nasha Niva" described the events of 2007: "Already in the dark, policemen began searching the area along the Orsha-Dubrovna highway. Therefore, Gennady Shepelev delivered politician Pavel Sevyarynets to one of the impromptu bonfires in his kayak along the Krapivna River."
When it became impossible due to repression, Shepelev personally appeared on the field with a tent on the eve of the anniversaries and spent the night in the legendary places, as if guarding them from the enemy.
"A man of action. A man who could unite and support people. I always perceived him as a Belarusian giant. Despite his respectable age, he had excellent physical form (which created the impression that nothing bad could happen to him in terms of health). His Belarusian speech was sincere and captivating. He could tell many stories about how the Belarusian language helped him. And he would note: if I hadn't spoken Belarusian, this wouldn't have happened to me," writes a compatriot about him.
Gennady Shepelev invited Nasha Niva staff to Orsha and organized meetings between editors and readers at factories and cultural institutions.
Last week, Gennady Shepelev's blood pressure spiked, and he was admitted to cardiology, but he remained in good spirits and joked, friends write on social media. Since September 8, he had been in a coma.