About yourself
My name is Zamaraikina (Shmatko) Anna Prokofevna. I was born on 25th May, 1925 in Kursky region, Belgorod district, in Kozinka village. Half of villages in this region was Russian, half - Ukrainian. I'm Ukrainian, but can speak Russian. In adolescence I was working in a kolkhoz (collective farm) 'Krasnaya zvezda' ('Red star') on a sugar plant (sugar beetroot). There were about 1000 people in our kolkhoz. I was the head of a brigade. The life was hard and poor. We worked for workday units which were not so numerous. That's why many people strived to leave the village in order to find a better place to live. My parents also lived and worked in the kolkhoz together with me.
During 1932-33, when I was 7-8 years old, there was a terrific starvation. One of the reasons was a drought when nothing grew in gardens. I used to eat grass, clover, lime blossom. People often swelled due to malnutrition.
I had 7 sisters and brothers. 3 of them died during the starvation (in the beginning of 30's). At that time we also used to bring some rags and clothes to come to the city and exchange it for food.
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