Taras V. Zapolskyi (Kashtan)

Zapolskyi Taras Volodymyrovych was born on September 18, 1994 in Kyiv. During his school years, he practiced boxing and later Brazilian jiu-jitsu (he had a white belt in this martial art). He was an excellent cook and knew how to bake bread. He was passionate about music and photography. After graduating from school No. 94 "Ellada", he entered the Kyiv National Linguistic University. In 2015, he obtained a degree as an English language translator. Taras loved life, his family, friends, traveling, learning, and had an extraordinary sense of humor. He read a lot. The work of E. Nakonechny "Stolen Name: Why Rusyns Became Ukrainians", the works of E. Junger, and "Moral Letters to Lucilius" by Seneca had the greatest influence on his worldview. In 2020, he joined the ranks of the OZSSP "Azov", took direct part in the Anti-Terrorist Operation, in the repulsion and containment of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. He was killed on April 3, 2022 during street fighting in Mariupol, allowing his comrades-in-arms to escape the encirclement alive.