Vitalii Yu. Prokopchuk (Shket)

Vitaliy Yuriyovych Prokopchuk was born in the village of Zdomyshel, Ratne district, Volyn region. While studying at school, he simultaneously attended the Ratne MNVK in Volyn region, where he obtained the profession of a tractor driver-mechanic. Later, he acquired the specialty of a locksmith at the VAVT training center "Lutsk Automobile Plant." From 2011 to 2013, he served under contract in the Lutsk Border Guard Detachment of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine. In 2014, he graduated from the Lutsk Institute of Human Development of the Open International University of Human Development "Ukraine" and received a bachelor's degree in "Physical Education, Sports, and Human Health." He worked in seasonal jobs. In 2018, he signed a contract with the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He served in the ranks of the 14th Separate Mechanized Brigade named after Prince Roman the Great. He completed a military training course for officers at the Military Institute of Telecommunications and Informatization, specializing in "Military Management of Military Communication Units." He participated in the Joint Forces Operation (JFO). During the full-scale war, Vitaliy continued to defend Ukraine from the occupiers as part of his brigade. He held the position of communication chief - commander of the control platoon of the anti-tank artillery battalion of the brigade artillery group. He participated in the defense of Kyiv and Zhytomyr regions. Lieutenant Vitaliy Prokopchuk was killed on March 2, 2022, near the village of Klocheve, Zhytomyr region. During the execution of a combat mission, an enemy shell hit the vehicle in which the officer was located. "My husband was a true patriot of his state, a devoted and loyal son of his country, who always believed that victory would be ours. He was a caring father. He spent almost all his time in areas where fighting was taking place, but he was always eagerly awaited at home. For me, he was a new breath of life, with which I began to live again and feel like a woman. Caring, kind, cheerful, sensitive, and sincere," said the wife of the deceased. The officer was buried in the village of Shmenky in Volyn. For personal courage and selfless actions demonstrated in the defense of the state sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, and loyalty to the military oath, Vitaliy Yuriyovych Prokopchuk was posthumously awarded the Order of "For Courage" III degree.