Soldier Vladyslav Shmalionov, call sign DZHONYK

My name is Olha. I am the mother of Vladyslav Shmalionov, our DZHONYK.

When the full-scale invasion began, Vlad did not wait for a summons and did not look for excuses. He voluntarily went to the military recruitment office. To all of our worries he simply replied: “I want my family to be able to live in peace.” Since his school years, friends called him DZHONYK. This childhood nickname became his call sign in the war. Behind it is a smiling, kind, and sincere young man who loved life, made plans for the future, and dreamed of his own home.

In May 2022, Vlad was sent to defend Lyman. Very few of the guys returned from those battles. Then came the difficult front roads of Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk oblasts, including the Pokrovsk direction as part of the 68th Separate Jaeger Brigade. Day after day he protected us and you, our land, our homes, and our peace. War is always nearby, even when it seems to someone that it is far away. Thanks to guys like Vlad, Ukrainian families have the opportunity to wake up in their beds, embrace their children, and make plans for tomorrow.

In August 2025, Vlad sustained a severe traumatic brain injury and numerous injuries to internal organs and limbs. The doctors gave minimal chances of survival. He underwent decompressive craniectomy, sustained severe lung damage, multiple rib fractures, bilateral pneumothorax, a ruptured spleen, and severe injuries to internal organs. My son had to endure complex surgeries, a fight for every breath and every day of life. The consequences of the injuries remain extremely severe today. He also has a non-united fracture of the left humerus, underwent numerous surgical interventions, and remained in critical condition for a prolonged period.

But the Lord heard our prayers.

With God’s help, thanks to the support of family, friends, caring people, and the incredible willpower of Vlad himself, after more than nine months of treatment and rehabilitation, he was able to emerge from that terrible condition.

Today my son continues his most difficult battle — the fight to return to a full life.

He needs to relearn how to maintain balance. He needs to restore the use of his hands. He needs to relearn how to think, speak, and perform actions that are ordinary for each of us. What seems simple and everyday to most people is for Vlad now the result of exhausting daily work.

From May 25 to June 14, 2026, Vladyslav is scheduled to undergo specialized health and rehabilitation activities at the “AGAPE Ukraine” rehabilitation center. The program includes physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, as well as gym sessions.

It is this rehabilitation that offers a chance for further recovery and the return of lost skills. But for our family, covering all the necessary costs on our own is very difficult.

That is why today I am turning to every caring heart. Please help my son. Help the defender who did not hesitate when the country needed him. Help the person who went through the hell of war and now every day overcomes the consequences of severe injuries.

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Vlad completed the rehabilitation course within the framework of the project “Support for Families of Veterans with Disabilities. Recovery and Rehabilitation,” implemented by the Citizen Charitable Foundation within the “Capable and Strong” program, carried out by the East Europe Foundation with the assistance of Switzerland.

For the family, this support was of extraordinary importance. Because rehabilitation after a severe traumatic brain injury is not only work with the patient, but also the education of the family members who are by his side.

During the sessions, the specialists helped Vlad restore physical and cognitive skills, worked on safe walking, trained the facial muscles and speech apparatus, which in the future will contribute to the return of speech. Special attention was paid to the development of already acquired cognitive skills and the formation of new ones that emerged during the rehabilitation.

The support for his mother was equally important.

The specialists provided the family with detailed consultations regarding the specifics of Vlad’s physical and cognitive-behavioral condition, his care, communication, support for physical recovery, nutritional needs, and the condition of the left arm. They explained the characteristics of Level IV cognitive functioning according to the Rancho Los Amigos scale, taught the principles of safe interaction and effective communication with their son. The family received recommendations regarding the formation of everyday skills through repetition and step-by-step task completion, learned to perform passive exercises, stretching of the upper limbs, prevention of contractures, and stimulation of voluntary movements.

Thanks to the knowledge gained, the mother better understands her son’s condition, knows how to properly help him in daily life, and support him on the path to recovery.

But rehabilitation after such severe injuries is a long journey that cannot be stopped. Every new course offers a chance for further recovery of movement, thinking, speech, and a return to the most independent life possible.

 

COLLECTED AND TRANSFERRED: UAH 78,500