Father was seriously ill in recent years, having a disability from his severe hypertension and many concomitant diseases, but he didn’t abandon his ministry. The first heart attack didn’t seem to slow him down. 

Matushka Nadezhda was left with three children. the youngest of which is still a minor. They live in a village where their main aid is their homestead, though the house needs repairs. They are in urgent need of help, as the family has been left without its breadwinner, and the children still have a lot to learn to begin their own lives. 

Without our help, the children won’t be able to complete their education and find a respectable place in life. There is almost no work in the village where they live. Matushka just works as a store clerk, earning a meager salary that doesn’t even cover the basics. 

The eldest daughter lives with Matushka. Her personal life didn’t work out, and she was left with a small child and no husband. Matushka’s son Alexei is studying in Kursk. He used to help the family, but he lost his job due to the pandemic. The younger daughter is still a schoolgirl, intending to continue her studies. 

After the death of her husband, all of the hardships landed on Matushka’s shoulders. She has three dependent children and a young grandson, plus constant housework. The family is in distress. Matushka’s health has deteriorated recently, and a lot of money is spent on her much-needed treatment. 

Alexander Nikolaevich Maskanov was born on June 23, 1967. He was drawn to faith from an early age, despite the active protests of all his relatives, who considered priests to be parasites and religion the opiate of the masses. In 9th grade, he wrote a paper about wanting to become a priest. The indignant principal called Alexander’s mother, demanding an explanation and insisting that she have a conversation with Alexander to explain to him the pernicious harm of religion. But no matter what they said, he still intended to become a priest. 

The future Fr. Alexander had a very difficult childhood. He lost his father early on, and as the man of the house, he had to support his mother and help his sister’s family too. He was unable to continue his education after high school because he had so many responsibilities. 

After serving in the army, the future priest worked in various places. From his autobiography we learn that he worked in a printing house, in a sausage factory, as a yardman, as an assistant salesman, and as a businessman. Such life experience was useful for his later ministry, for the ability to see people from the inside and to find the spark of God in everyone. 

He was overjoyed when he received an offer to serve as a subdeacon for the local bishop. After all, serving God had been his main dream since childhood. Before getting married and ordained, he had served as a novice in the Monastery of the Nativity of the Theotokos, fulfilling the obedience of sacristan and steward, and it was especially during those years that his soul fell in love with the beauty and fullness of Orthodox worship, which was also useful to Fr. Alexander in all the years of his priesthood. 

His marriage to Nadezhda was very strong. They spent 23 years together in peace and harmony and had three children. 

Alexander graduated from the pastoral department of the Kursk Theological Seminary and became a priest on March 29, 1997. He was soon appointed rector of the Church of St. George in the village of Maloe Soldatskoe, where he served for 23 years. 

Vladyka initially offered the young priest three parishes to choose from, two of which were in the city, but Fr. Alexander immediately chose the poor village parish, saying the village was closer to him in every sense. He didn’t chase after a rich parish, although he had that choice, considering service to God and man to be the most important thing. 

Over the years, Father became intimately linked with the church, the village, and his beloved parishioners. After 10 years, he was able to start building a small house for his family, which he spent 12 years on. Before that, they lived in the Sunday School building. They suffered many sorrows, experiencing lack of money and need. 

After the birth of their third child, Matushka had to find work in order to provide the family with at least some small financial support. They kept a large farm and had to do a lot of work on the land. 

Father always worked on strengthening his parish, primarily attending to the people’s spiritual life, and his parishioners remember him with love and tears. They say they’ll never have another priest like him. Fr. Alexander didn’t waste a single day. 

He was distinguished by a particular modesty, never seeking any awards, always saying they are nothing before God. The most important thing is prayer, he always said.