Valerii M. Onishchenko (Botsman)

49-year-old Staff Sergeant Valerii Onishchenko (call sign Boatswain) was killed on July 12, 2022 in the area of the village of Dementiivka in the Kharkiv region. The defender fell into an enemy ambush and received fatal injuries during the battle. Valerii was a Kyiv resident, born and raised in the capital. He graduated from the National University of Food Technologies. He worked at the municipal enterprise "Kyivteploenergo" and helped Kyiv residents in comfortable living. In his free time, the man loved to fish. With the start of the full-scale invasion, Valerii took up the defense of Ukraine. He was the commander of a unit in the A4081 military unit of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. However, he did not return with a shield. "Valera was one of my closest friends in the Armed Forces. He was really a very good person with a big, open heart. Hundreds of people were at his funeral," said his comrade Oleksandr. "Farewell, Valera, may the Kingdom of Heaven be yours, light memory, deep bow! It is difficult to find the words. Your life ended too early... We sincerely thank you for our protection. Rest, Valerachka. You will always remain in our memory. You brought our Ukraine, us closer to Victory at the cost of your own life," wrote his acquaintance Liudmyla Riabova. The defender was buried at the Novosilkivskyi cemetery in his native Kyiv. Valerii is survived by his parents and brother.