Volodymyr O. Zemlianyi (Zoma)

Zemlyanyy Volodymyr Oleksandrovych (call sign Zhyoma) was born on June 1, 1978, in the city of Sievierodonetsk, Luhansk region. He graduated from the Donetsk Law Institute of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine. He worked as the head of the information and reference support sector at the main service center of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Luhansk region. He participated in the Anti-Terrorist Operation in Donbas. In his free time, he loved to spend time with family and friends. He enjoyed traveling around his native Ukraine. Shortly before his death, he proposed to his beloved. He dreamed of having a child and returning to his hometown. During the full-scale Russian invasion, on April 18, 2022, Volodymyr joined the ranks of the Territorial Defense Forces. He became a fighter in the 128th Separate Brigade of Territorial Defense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He held the position of squad commander. "Two weeks before his death, he was on vacation, proposed, and gave an engagement ring... A loving husband and father. A reliable friend. A responsible person, a Hero of Ukraine, who did not hesitate to leave his main job and went to defend his homeland," said the fiancée of the fallen, Yana. "On April 18, he was called up for military service. And on September 18, during a tank shelling in the Volnovakha district of Donetsk region, Volodymyr was mortally wounded. Colleagues say that no one has ever seen Volodymyr downcast; everyone always felt his positivity. A true Ukrainian, a hero of our difficult times, of independent, free Ukraine, who stood for truth and justice," noted the Lysychansk City Military-Civil Administration. Volodymyr is survived by his father, beloved woman, and son.