Ivan, 25, from the village of Yavoriv, Ivano-Frankivsk region, was fond of football, worked as a security guard in a supermarket, and dreamed of starting a big family.

In July 2023, he received a summons at his place of work. Without hesitation, the next morning Ivan packed his things and went to the military enlistment office, answering the call of fate to become a defender of the Motherland.
Soon after, he left for 45 days to the UK, where he was trained as an assault pilot.

Now he has the rank of senior rifleman and participated in fierce battles in Donetsk region. His fate tested him even more when his brigade was redeployed to the Kharkiv sector.
There, on February 4, 2024, he came under mortar attack. He was bringing people to the position when an 80-caliber shell exploded 5 meters away. The soldier was injured in the thigh. His comrades took Ivan out of the line of fire to a safer place, removed the turnstile and later evacuated him to a military hospital.
There the defender was treated and returned to combat missions. But the pain in his leg did not go away. He went to another hospital, where doctors took an X-ray, which showed that a shell fragment remained in his leg.

The commander of the brigade in which Ivan serves recommended that he contact Dobrobut.
Oksana Myronenko, a microsurgeon and orthopedic traumatologist at the medical chain, together with her team, performed surgery and removed the fragment from the thigh.
About a month of rehabilitation is ahead, after which the soldier plans to return to service.

“I am worried about my comrades who are at the front, while I am safe here. Some invisible force starts pulling you there to your comrades. You can’t do it without fear… it’s scary, but you have to work. After the victory, I plan to return to work, where I am expected. Maybe I will find another one over time. I want to meet my love, start a family, and continue with my plans for the future,” Ivan says about his plans for the future.

The young soldier’s surgery was paid for thanks to the funds raised on the Benevity platform, Alan Gerdov, and Direct Relief. Medicines, tests and examinations worth UAH 7,877 were covered by donations raised on the Microsoft platform. Anesthesia, surgery and inpatient treatment were funded by the international charity organization Direct Relief in the amount of UAH 31,320. The total cost of treatment amounted to UAH 39,197.