Viktor A. Stepanenko

24-year-old fighter Viktor Stepanenko was killed on September 3, 2022, in the vicinity of the village of Petrivka in the Kherson region. While carrying out a combat mission, he sustained fatal injuries during an enemy mortar shelling. Viktor was born in the town of Sakhnovshchyna in the Kharkiv region. He lived in the village of Shevchenkove in Kharkiv region. He obtained the profession of electric gas welder at a vocational technical school. He worked at LLC AF "Sunrise". He was passionate about football and was a player for the local team "Tavezhnyansky Rubin". On February 25, 2022, Viktor joined the ranks of volunteers to defend Ukraine from Russian occupiers. He served in the 60th Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, where he held the position of grenade launcher in the 96th Battalion. “Viktor left a mark in the hearts of many people during his short life. He will forever remain in the memory and heart of everyone who knew him as a kind, open, and cheerful guy, the best friend, brother, and son, a reliable comrade and brother-in-arms, a loyal patriot of his homeland, who will always be 24 years old... Despite concussion, pain, and fatigue, he fulfilled the combat missions assigned to him. He never complained and was always confident in the victory of our state. He was faithful to his military oath, demonstrating resilience and courage in battles for the future of Ukraine and its people, giving his life. I am proud to have had the honor of living alongside this brave warrior!” — said Karina Bida, the class teacher of the fallen soldier. Relatives and acquaintances remember Viktor as a bright, kind, caring, and always cheerful person, a brave man, the best friend, brother, and son. The defender was buried in the village of Shevchenkove in the Kharkiv region. Viktor is survived by his parents, Maria Oleksiyivna and Anatoliy Viktorovych, brother Ivan, grandmother Natalia Ivanivna, relatives, friends, and comrades.