Ihor V. Pohrebets

Senior soldier Ihor Pohrebets died on July 23, 2024 near the village of Serhiivka in the Donetsk region. During the demining of the position, he was blown up by a mine. The defender was 24 years old. Ihor was born in the village of Ponornytsya in the Chernihiv region. He and his older sister were inseparable. They shared a passion for cooking. After graduating from college, he enrolled at the National University "Chernihiv Polytechnic" to study "Automotive Transport". He graduated with a master's degree with honors. He defended his diploma during the war. When Ihor went to Chernihiv, he fell in love with the city. It was here that he met his first and only love - Viktoriia. "Ihorok and Vika dated for 7 years. They had a real marital relationship. They wanted to get married, but there was always something - either studies or getting on their feet, or a leap year. This year they finally dared and even chose a date. But it was not meant to be," says the defender's mother, Natalia Ivanivna. Ihor loved cars and motorcycles and dreamed of opening a service station after the war. He was involved in sports. He was extremely cheerful and sociable. Ihor was also a very hardworking person. From the first years of his studies, he looked for part-time work. In 2020, he got a job at Nova Poshta. In the first hours of the full-scale war, Ihor was in no hurry to leave Chernihiv: he said that first he had to hand over the shift, money, and close all his affairs... And when he did everything that depended on him, it became impossible to leave. Ihor spent several weeks helping the military in the defense of the city, building fortifications. "He was already with the defenders in his soul. He received the summons on March 9, 2022, although he was only 21 years old. But Vika said he would have gone anyway, because he was already there in his mind, with the guys in the positions," adds Natalia Ivanivna. Ihor held the position of driver in the engineer-sapper platoon. He defended the Chernihiv region, took part in the liberation of the Kharkiv region, and fought in the Donbas. He was the commander of the group, the commander of the bridgelayer machine of the engineer-sapper platoon of the tank battalion. "When he went to war, he was a very young boy. But in these 2.5 years, he matured by 10 years," says Natalia Ivanivna. "At the funeral, they said that he was like a spark, he attracted people and respected them, and they - him. Ihor was loved at work. He had many friends there. Many people from the city and the front came to say goodbye to him. They really missed him." The defender was buried in his native village. Ihor is survived by his parents, sister, beloved, and relatives.