Photo from Agenda.ge’s ‘Heroes of WWII’ gallery wins contest

A portrait of World War II hero Mose Mdinaradze, published by Agenda.ge "In Pictures” on May 9, 2014 to commemorate the Heroes of WWII, has won second place in ‘The Veteran of my Country’ photo competition, organised by the State Department of Veterans Affairs.

The sad news is that the hero from the portrait - WWII Georgian Commander Mdinaradze, died last month on March 15, 2015, at the age of 98.

The idea to meet and commemorate Georgians who contribute to the victory over fascism belonged to Agenda.ge photographer Nino Alavidze.

Agenda.ge is proud to share with you the stories of some of Georgia’s heroes of the war "In Pictures” on Victory Day of May 9, 2014. All of the pictured veterans were aged 90 or older when the photos were taken, and their faces will tell you more than the captions pictured alongside the images.

Mdinaradze was called to serve in WWII when he was 22 years old.

He put on his military uniform for the first time on January 1, 1940, and took this photo to remember that day. Photo by Nino Alavidze/ Agenda.ge 

Mdinaradze was wounded in 1944 when a mine exploded. Seven pieces of the bomb still remained in his body. He joked while speaking with Agenda.ge photographer Nino Alavidze that he couldn’t stand to bring home a souvenir from the war. He continued to serve after his recovery and was the head of a unit consisting of 3,500 soldiers.

War is a nightmare. It is hard to describe the hell in words,” Mdinaradze recalled.

"I was not only responsible for myself but I was also responsible for my soldiers too. I still remember every village we passed through, every river, every path we followed, all of my friends, all places where I slept. Now I am 97 and it is hard to deal with this age and all these memories,” he said.

His full dress (which he wore in the portrait) with awards weighted about 20kg. Photo by Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge 

During his service he received 35 medals and nine orders.

Mdinaradze lived in Tbilisi with his family. He was together with his wife Eteri for almost 70 years. The couple has four grandchildren and six great-grandsons.

On the awarded photo he is pictured with his great-granddaughter.

The idea of ‘The Veteran of my Country’ photo contest, organised by the State Department of Veterans Affairs, was to pay tribute to all war veterans, not only during World War I and II but also to recognise Georgia’s struggles to save its territorial integrity and the war with Russia in August 2008.

The best pictures were calculated by the number of likes each photo received on the Department’s official Facebook page.

First prize went to Tsotne Otanadze and third place was awarded to Iuri Galdava.

Click here to see the ‘Heroes of WWII’ gallery on Agenda.ge by Nino Alavidze.