Yakov Moiseevich Lyubarsky was born on November 15, 1925, in Tomashpil, Ukraine. In 1941 he evacuated to Tyumen, where he worked as a machinist at a military plant. In 1943 he volunteered for the army, attended infantry school, and joined the 487th Artillery Regiment of the 2nd Cavalry Corps as a machine gunner. Lyubarsky fought in Belarus and Poland, and stormed Berlin. He was awarded the Orders of the Red Star and Glory and medals "For Courage," "For the Liberation of Warsaw," and "For the Capture of Berlin.” After demobilization, Lyubarsky graduated from an automobile and road construction school and worked as a driver in Kyiv. He emigrated to the US in 1979. The interview was recorded in Los Angeles on March 18, 2009.


A 16-year-old lies about his age to join the Red Army.

Shooting down a German Junkers aircraft.

Competing against an anti-Semite to complete the Five Year Plan.