Mykhailo D. Merkulov (Khudozhnyk)

39-year-old senior soldier Mykhailo Merkulov (call sign Artist) was killed on December 30, 2022 near the settlement of Krasna Hora in Donetsk region. While performing a combat mission, protecting his comrades, he sustained a fatal explosive injury as a result of enemy shelling. Mykhailo was from the city of Kryvyi Rih, Dnipropetrovsk region. He completed 9 grades of school No. 11. After that, he served in the army. He obtained a higher education at the Kharkiv National Automobile and Highway University. In peacetime, he worked as a firefighter driver at the fire station of the Central Mining and Processing Plant. He participated in the Anti-Terrorist Operation. He loved to travel, fish, and relax with friends. He was knowledgeable about technology and cars. On the third day of the full-scale war, on February 26, 2022, the man returned to defend his country from the enemy, joining the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He served in the 17th separate tank brigade named after Kostiantyn Pestushko. He was a grenade launcher. "He was a loving husband, a good and attentive father, a faithful friend. He always supported me in word and deed. He was my support, my strength, my unbreakable foundation! I love him forever," shared the wife of the fallen Tetiana. The warrior was buried in the sector of honorary burials of the Central Cemetery in Kryvyi Rih. Mykhailo is survived by his parents, wife, daughter, sisters, relatives, friends, and comrades.