Oleksandr M. Druzhyna (Funtik)

40-year-old soldier Oleksandr Druzhyna (call sign Funtyk) died on April 8, 2022, in a hospital. On March 26, while performing a combat mission in the area of the settlement of Verkhnotoretske in the Donetsk region, he sustained serious injuries. Oleksandr was born in the village of Bohdanivka in the Kirovohrad region. After serving in the army and the death of his father, he moved with his family to Kryvyi Rih in the Dnipropetrovsk region. He graduated from the local vocational school No. 28, where he trained as a gas-electric welder. He worked at a local industrial enterprise. In his free time, he enjoyed fishing. He participated in the Anti-Terrorist Operation in the Donbas. During the full-scale war, he took up arms to defend Ukraine from the occupiers. He fought as part of the 25th Separate Airborne Brigade of Sich. "I am the wife (it is terrifying to say this again…) of the fallen Hero-Warrior... With him, I also died… I just breathe, but I do not live... Because he was not just a man. He was the meaning of my life. To love, breathe the same air, and do good with the best, kindest, bravest, and most just, beloved and dearest man, with whom I understood everything with half a word… He wanted to teach our grandson how to fish. He always said: my best psychologist is you, my love, and fishing. And now I am alone in this terrible world. And I understand that otherwise, he would not have been able to... It comforts me a little to think that he was still conscious when I flew to the hospital to see him. He saw me and whispered, 'Manyuska, I missed you so much.' And then he fell into a coma. They fought for his life for two weeks, but, unfortunately... It will hurt until the end of my days..." — said Lyudmyla Druzhyna. The paratrooper was buried at the Alley of Glory in the central cemetery of his hometown. At home, Oleksandr was awaited by his mother, wife, two sons, and grandson. Posthumously, soldier Oleksandr Druzhyna was awarded the Order of Courage of the III degree.