Serhii S. Slobodian (Manhust)

Junior Lieutenant Serhii Slobodian (call sign Mongoose) was killed on February 15, 2023, in a battle with the occupiers near Soledar in the Donetsk region. Near the village of Paraskoviyivka, the warrior received fatal injuries. He was 26 years old. Serhii was born in Kharkiv. He spent his childhood and most of his life in the village of Tsupivka in the Kharkiv region. In 2017, he graduated from the Kharkiv National Technical University and the military department of the Kharkiv Tank School. He worked at a company engaged in beekeeping and was the deputy head of the warehouse. In his free time, he played football and was the goalkeeper of the Tsupivskyi "Avtomobilist" club. With the start of the full-scale invasion, Serhii evacuated his relatives to a safe place and joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He served in the 15th Separate Mountain Assault Battalion of the 128th Brigade. He commanded a platoon. He took part in the liberation of the Kherson region and in the battles in the Donetsk region. In the autumn, Mongoose was awarded the Steel Cross decoration of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. "Brave, courageous, fearless, determined, persistent, selfless - this is all about the same man. Young, full of dreams and hopes... He was very kind, honest, and sensitive. He could not refuse people or harm anyone. He always f ound words of support for his comrades-in-arms," said the officer's wife, Kateryna. The warrior was buried in the city of Derhachi in the Kharkiv region. Serhii is survived by his wife and son David, who was 3 years old at the time of his father's death.