Mykhailo R. Hudzenko (Udar)

21-year-old paratrooper Mykhailo Hudzhenko (call sign Udar) was killed on September 26, 2022, near the village of Iziumske in the Kharkiv region. While carrying out a combat mission, the defender was blown up by an enemy mine. Mykhailo was born and lived in the village of Polyanka in the Lviv region. In his youth, he was interested in farming. He learned to drive a combine harvester and a tractor. At the age of 19, he began military service under contract in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He held the position of a grenade launcher in the 80th Separate Air Assault Brigade. From the first days of the full-scale Russian invasion, Mykhailo defended Ukraine together with his comrades. In April, soldier Mykhailo Hudzhenko was awarded the Order of Courage III degree. "Mykhailo was a good and sincere person. He loved justice and could not tolerate lies. He had golden hands. Smart and genuine. Everyone loved and respected him. He was brave. He fought against the Russian occupiers until his last breath. He defended his family and all of Ukraine from the enemies," said the soldier's wife, Khrystyna. The warrior was buried in his native village. Mykhailo is survived by his parents Roman and Lidiya, sister Snihana, wife Khrystyna, and daughter Veronika, who was born in 2022.