Yevhenii S. Bashkyr

Main Sergeant Yevhen Bashkir (call sign Dale, Topol) was killed on July 9, 2022, while performing his official duties in the Chasiv Yar area in Donetsk region. The warrior was forever 27 years old. Yevhen was born in the village of Osoivka, Sumy region. He graduated from the local lyceum and entered the Bilopillia Professional Railway Transport Lyceum, where he obtained the qualification of a locomotive assistant driver. He was passionate about high-speed driving, cars, and fishing. He had dreamed of becoming a military man since childhood, to protect his loved ones and the native Ukrainian land. In 2015, he began military service in the National Guard of Ukraine. After two years, he signed a contract with the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He went from a soldier to the commander of a separate anti-aircraft artillery platoon of the 13th separate motorized infantry battalion of the 58th separate motorized infantry brigade. He was constantly in hot spots in the Luhansk and Donetsk directions. In 2018, he met his future wife Inna during his service. In November 2019, they got married in Bakhmut. They were always together. "Our happy life changed on February 24, 2022. We were raised at 2 a.m. for an alarm. We thought it was a training, but at 4:30 a.m. it became clear that the alarm was combat, and the column of our equipment set off to the Chernihiv region. At first, we were driving together with my husband, and then we separated. He remained with part of the unit in Vertiyivka, and I went with the other part to the village of Stodoly. We didn't see each other for a week, only phone conversations, and even then no more than a minute: 'Everything is fine, I'm alive.' On March 8, we moved to Nizhyn, and they - to Khvylivka. Then we found out that I was pregnant. His joy knew no bounds, as he very much wanted to become the father of a little princess. After the liberation of the Chernihiv region, we returned to our native Sumy region, but not for long. And here is May - Zhenya, together with the guys, goes to Donbas. These were heavy battles, the enemy's artillery fell silent only for 20 minutes a day. I only received messages: a dot, then a plus - I'm alive. The battalion was withdrawn for recovery in the Cherkasy region, then my beloved managed to come home for the weekend. And then, on June 11-12, I saw him for the last time, and on June 26 they again set off for Donbas... Zhenichka was the commander of the anti-aircraft artillery platoon. He defended his native Ukraine on the outskirts of Bakhmut. An order came from the battalion commander to move the unit to Chasiv Yar and take up combat positions. He called me on the morning of July 9 and said that everything was fine with him, they were moving. Somewhere around 6:30 p.m. he reported that they had moved, he wanted to rest. I called him at 8:55 p.m. and we talked. And at 9:03 p.m. I heard a rustle in the handset and... silence. My heart immediately felt bad. I called a friend at the headquarters, he said that two 'Iskanders' had hit the location of my husband and his unit, and they were looking for Zhenya. On July 9, many people was killed: both civilians and military, my husband and I, because without him this is not life, but an existence for the sake of our daughter... He was a very bright person, cheerful, always smiling and supporting others. He never abandoned anyone in trouble. Always among the first. Recognized as the best commander among the unit commanders in 2020-2021. Without him, I was killed, only the body remained in torment," shared the wife of the fallen commander. Yevhen was repeatedly awarded medals, badges of the commander of the 58th brigade, the commander of the 13th battalion, and the commander of the North Operational Command. The hero was buried in the Alley of Glory of the Baranivske Cemetery in Sumy. At home, Yevhen was awaited by his wife Inna and daughter Zlatoslava, who was born in September 2022, whom he had been waiting for so much and did not have time to see. The defender was posthumously awarded the Order of Courage of the III degree.