Ihor A. Puzanovskyi (Ali-Baba)

Junior Sergeant Ihor Puzanovskyi (call sign Ali-Baba) was killed on October 22, 2022, near the village of Budarky in the Kharkiv region. While carrying out a mission, he was in a vehicle loaded with ammunition that was tracked by the enemy and hit with an anti-tank guided missile. On October 13, the soldier turned 30 years old. Ihor was born and lived in Kyiv. He studied at Lyceum No. 227 named after M. M. Hromov. He obtained an education in "Refrigeration Engineering" at the National University of Food Technologies. He worked as a refrigeration technician at a company and eventually moved into entrepreneurship. He performed his work very skillfully, with over 300 installed projects to his credit, ranging from network stores "ATB" to large industrial storage chambers across Ukraine. He planned to expand his business to open a company. Many business owners sought his help. In April 2022, he joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He was the commander of the mortar of the 3rd mortar platoon of the mortar battery of the 130th battalion of the 112th separate territorial defense brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. "He is a great personality, a leader, a person with skilled hands and deep thinking, honest and ambitious. There is much to tell people about him. In the morning — sports and work, which he lived for. He had a young family that was happy and building their life. He went to war voluntarily. I delayed as much as I could. At first, I didn't dare to leave so he wouldn't go, but later I realized it was futile; his words were: 'How will I look the guys in the eyes later? Everyone has children. I can, but others can't.' And it was so, as soon as he stepped over the threshold of the military unit, everyone understood that the guy was smart and capable. Then — the East, Kharkiv, mortars, and the front line. On October 21, he became a commander and received his first rank, and the next day he was killed... The military saw him as a new generation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He dreamed of a peaceful and happy future, a bus on wheels, a dog, three children, his own business, a rocking chair, and a cradle. In every grave lies the entire family, as there are no more of them..." wrote the wife of the fallen, Adriana. Ihor was buried at the Southern Cemetery in Kyiv. He is survived by his wife and a daughter, who was 2 years old at the time of her father's death and resembles him greatly. The defender was posthumously awarded the Order of "For Courage" of the III degree.