My name is Oleksandr Popyka, call sign KOT (Cat)

I began my military career in 2014 when I volunteered to join the 54th Separate Reconnaissance Battalion. I was discharged in 2017. During that time, I served in Debaltseve, Pisky, and Mariupol.

After my discharge, I worked as a driver. On February 24, 2022, I received a call that a full-scale invasion had begun. Without hesitation, I packed my things and went to defend my family.

I always joke that I have nine lives like a CAT, hence my call sign.

During my military service, I sustained several injuries, but the most severe one left me in a wheelchair. I received it on October 10, 2022, in Bakhmut. We were on a combat mission when a tank targeted us. Shell fragments damaged my spine and spinal cord. I sustained a closed chest injury, lung contusion, damage to my left and right thighs, and more.

Unfortunately, the shell fragments did their damage...

My comrades were the first to help me. Under fire, they evacuated me from the battlefield. I am alive thanks to a friend with the call sign KHVOST, who carried me 8 kilometers in his arms. Without him, I wouldn't have survived.

I was evacuated to Dnipro, stabilized, and then sent for treatment in Kyiv. My wife has been by my side the whole time. No matter how difficult it gets, she is always with me, my main support and strength.

I suffer from severe pain that makes life unbearable. Constant painkillers affect my internal organs. My liver is suffering, and my kidneys have failed. But the worst is that my heart might not hold out. The doctors give me hope – a neurostimulator implant. It's the only way to reduce the pain and live a normal life.

Despite all the difficulties, I am currently teaching at a school. I teach children what I know: tactical medicine, survival rules, and more. Children are our future.

While school is on break, I am undergoing rehabilitation at "Recovery" in Kyiv, trying my best to work on myself, but without the stimulator, it is very difficult.

I dream of living without pain! The neurostimulator will give me a chance at a peaceful life. That’s why I’m seeking help from the charitable foundation and everyone who cares.
 

Thank you to everyone who joined the fundraising effort for the neurostimulator for defender Oleksandr Popika. Together, we managed to raise the funds and purchase the neurostimulator.

The neurostimulator will help the defender get rid of the severe pain caused by his injury, which prevents him from living a full life. It is the only way to reduce chronic pain syndrome and return to an active life.

A huge thank you to everyone who contributed to the fundraiser! Your support is real help for our heroes. We especially want to thank our reliable partner, the charitable organization British-Ukrainian Aid, for their generous financial contribution of £4,826.00. Your help was crucial in this fundraiser.

Thanks to each of you, Oleksandr will have an important chance for recovery. You are doing incredible things by helping our defenders return to a normal life.

 

COLLECTED AND TRANSFERRED: UAH 837,447