Mykola H. Shchurenko (Artist)

Mykola Shchurenko was born on August 27, 1977, in the village of Kalynivka, Vasylkiv district. There he finished school and went to work at a gear factory. He served in the border troops in the city of Khorost, after which he studied carpentry at a vocational school in Kyiv. In adulthood, he moved with his parents to the village of Ivanivka, where they were originally from. He got a job at the agricultural firm "Mir-Sem" in the village of Pavlivka, Kaniv district, and later worked as a mechanic at his native agricultural enterprise "Ivanivske." However, it was not meant for him to be a farmer: later, the young man was invited to a security structure of the Security Service of Ukraine, after which he awaited work in a private security service. When Ukraine began to rise from its knees and the Maidan erupted, Mykola became its defender from the very first days. As the "Maidan activists" noted, he was someone they could rely on — the desperate Ivanivka resident cared for his comrades and was always ready to help anyone at a moment's notice. So when the undeclared war began in the East, without hesitation, on March 17, 2014, Mykola Shchurenko was one of the first to head to the ATO zone as part of a volunteer battalion. He was a daring instructor-scout, performing the most difficult tasks, and a guardian angel always protected him. This was also the case in the Ilovaisk encirclement, from which Mykola miraculously managed to escape with six bullets. After that, there was a rotation and a short leave. At that time, Mykola promised his elderly parents: in the spring, he would definitely return home to help with the household, which required strong male hands… It did not work out: on May 19, 2015, in the village of Katerynivka, Popasna district, in Luhansk region, where they were distributing food to the population, their group fell into an ambush. The guys fought back to the last, but the odds were uneven. Four fighters were killed, including Mykola Shchurenko (call sign Artist, which he received for his incredible ability to transform). The man fell, pierced by three bullets… The Hero was buried on May 23 with the entire village: from the church to the cemetery, the residents of Ivanivka knelt, bowing their heads in mourning for their fallen fellow villager… Mykola's awards were carried ahead — the badge "For Courageous Service" and the medal "For Sacrifice and Love for Ukraine," which he received according to the order of the Patriarch of Kyiv and all Rus.