Oleksii M. Koshchenov (Koshchei)

Defender Oleksiy Koshchenov (call sign Koshchey) was killed on December 15, 2022, while carrying out a combat mission near the village of Ozerianovka in the Donetsk region. The soldier was wounded by shrapnel during enemy shelling, but they did not have time to save him - a Russian sniper killed him with a shot to the head. Oleksiy was born in the village of Kataiga (Russia). He lived in the village of Pologiy in the Zaporizhia region. He graduated from the Orikhovskyi Professional College of the Dmytro Motornyi Tavria State Agrotechnological University. He worked at the Azovstal plant as a foreman of the installation team. With the start of the full-scale war, the man went to the Armed Forces of Ukraine to protect his family and home from the occupiers. He joined the ranks of the 46th Separate Air Assault Brigade and went to the front line. "On February 24, 2022, he was just getting off the night shift when the plant was shelled from ships. He loved height and his work very much. We were saving up for an apartment in Mariupol. This city was very much liked by both him and me. He dreamed of traveling. He loved repairing equipment very much. He was a loving husband, father, friend, very kind, gentle and compassionate. He had never held a weapon in his hands, but he learned. Everyone who knew him was surprised that he went to the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Lyosha was a true patriot, he did not take pictures in a vyshyvanka, but gave his life for Ukraine," his wife Natalia said. "Dad raised me from the age of one. He was always an example for me, protected me, taught me everything I know. At the beginning of the war, we were in occupation, and in April, dad took us with mom to Zaporizhia. Then, in July 2022, he went as a volunteer to the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. In November, he took part in the liberation of the Mykolaiv region and the right bank of the Kherson region," the deceased's son Viktor said. The warrior was buried in the village of Matviyivka, Zaporizhia region. Oleksiy is survived by his parents, wife and son.