Soldier Oleksandr

Before the full-scale invasion, I worked in the field of apartment and house renovation. My main area of expertise was installation of engineering systems.

I first went to the military enlistment office at the beginning of the war in 2014, but then they said that my speciality was already filled, so I was not needed yet, and I was told to wait. So somehow I continued living my own life. I got married. I have a child, a daughter. In February 2022, she was 3 months old. From the first day of the full-scale invasion, I immediately wanted to go to the military enlistment office, but my wife wouldn't let me do it, saying: "How will we manage without you?".

Perhaps, I finally decided to join the Armed Forces when a rocket hit a house next to ours in March 2022. I immediately ran there, I wanted to help people if I could. I saw this horror with my own eyes and did not want this for my loved ones.
 
Later I sent my wife with my older sister and her child (7 years old) to Poland, and I rushed to the military enlistment office. After training, I was sent to Donetsk region. I became a 120 mm mortar gunner in a mortar gun unit.

I got wounded in December 2022 near the village of Klishchiyivka. I did not hear the impact. Only when I opened my eyes did I realise that I was already lying down and could not feel my legs. I looked at my body and realised that I was hit very high up the limb and it was literally crushed. Even then I realised that walking normally would be problematic. There was no pain at that moment. I didn't lose consciousness until I got to the hospital in Druzhkivka, where I was evacuated and where the final amputation was performed.
 
I was afraid to apply the tourniquet myself, because I was holding the artery with my fingers as tightly as possible. I shouted to the guys: "Apply this thing on me!", pointing to the tourniquet on my chest, as I forgot its name from the shock. A little later, my brothers-in-arms pulled me away from the impact site and applied the tourniquet. They were risking their lives because we knew that they could always hit us again. I am extremely grateful to them for that.

After the tourniquet was applied, I was in a lot of pain. I asked: "Either carry me or shoot me!". On our way, they continued to shell us, but, thank God, everything went well.

Immediately after I was wounded, I realised that amputation would be unavoidable. But for some reason, I thought it would be quick and easy: I would get stitched up, have a prosthesis made and then I would start running around.

It turned out to be a bit different.

There were 13 surgeries and unbearable pain. Also, the depressed moral and psychological state due to significant limitations in my activities were taking their toll. But, thanks to the support of my family, I managed to pull myself together and get ready for rehabilitation and prosthetics.

I hope that I will be able to move normally on the prosthesis without crutches and guide my daughter holding her by her hand. In general, I want to be useful to society in some way. But for this I need a functional prosthesis, for which the funds allocated by the state are not sufficient.

Hence, I have to ask for help from chaarities and all those who care.
 
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Specialists at "Stetsenko-Center" created a prosthesis for Oleksandr. After a joint decision by Oleksandr and his team of prosthetists, the prosthesis was modified with different components. Consequently, there is no longer a need for additional charitable funds.

 

All collected funds will now be redirected to support the endoprosthesis for fighter Serhii Makarenko, call sign KRAKEN.