Alevtina Zinoviev passed away April 3, 2020 at The Pines of Bristol, CT. She was born 98 years ago on November 16, 1921, in Manchuria, China, the only child of Claudia and Peter Orlenko. She left China in her teens to move to Russia during World War II. During this time, her father was swept up in the Stalinist purges, leaving his fate totally unknown. At the same time, Alevtina and her mother were taken as prisoners by the Nazis and endured years in slave labor camps. They were able to escape when their labor camp was bombed. They walked from their camp in Germany to France. Alevtina and her mother were then given a chance to immigrate to Argentina as there was a dire need for textile workers. In Buenos Aires, Argentina, Alevtina met and married her husband, Vasily, who also emigrated from Russia. Having no money for wedding rings and truly in love, Vasily removed his gold molars and had them melted into a ring for his wife! Their first daughter, Sophia, was born to them in Buenos Aires. In 1959, this small family moved to Hartford, CT, where a second daughter, Victoria, was born. Alevtina and her family lived in Hartford over 40 years, where she worked and retired from the Institute of Living in the maintenance department. In her later years, she lived for a time with her daughter in Plainville before entering The Pines. She was a very strong woman with a great smile, who loved her family and church very much. She leaves behind her daughters, Sophia and her husband Leonard Morse of Plainville and Victoria Zinoviev of Monroe. She also leaves her grandsons, Andrew Morse of Avon, Peter and Max Westphal of Monroe and her only granddaughter, Alexandra and her husband Kevin Vesci of New York and their son, Theo James, Alevtina's beloved great grandson. She is predeceased by her mother, Claudia and her husband, Vasily . The family would like to thank the nurses and staff of The Pines for their caring and in particular, Unique, for all her great kindness. Due to the current crisis, the funeral and burial will be private. In lieu of flowers memorial donations in Alevtina's name can be made to the Russian Orthodox Church of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple, 5 Wheeler Terrace, Stratford, CT 06614. Funeral arrangements are through Dillon-Baxter Funeral Home in Wethersfield.