About the Project
"Learning to Live On" is a documentary-memorial media project aimed at preserving the names of fallen defenders through the voices of their mothers, wives, children, brothers, and sisters. Each episode is a separate story: of service, choice, sacrifice, and the memory that remains.
The project fulfills memorial, social, educational, and documentary functions. In the long term, it serves as a platform for preserving the true oral history of the Russo-Ukrainian war, inaccessible to falsification.
Project Episodes
1. Serhiy Pishchalka — Officer of the 93rd "Kholodnyi Yar" Brigade
A young lieutenant who will forever remain 24. He managed to send his wife and young daughter to safety—and died the next day while on a combat mission. A conversation with his mother, Nataliia.
2. Anton Sivachenko — Defender from Rubizhne
A warrior, engineer, and polyglot. A participant in the ATO since 2016. He died on November 14 near Bakhmut—just a few days before his own wedding. A conversation with his mother, Alona, and grandmother, Olena Fadiivna.
3. Oleksandr Kosmyn — Sniper and Father of Three
Twenty years of life together, three children, war, and loss. His wife, Alona, talks about the man for whom family was the ultimate value.
4. Andriy Dyachenko — Defender from Bilohorodka
From his school years—through the Maidan and ATO—to the hottest sectors of the front. His mother, Olena, preserves the memory of her son, a man with an open soul and a sincere smile.
5. Serhiy Lisovskyi — Marine
A fighter of the 36th Marine Brigade. His mother, Olena, shares memories of his childhood, his path to service, and the support of the community.
6. Vladyslav Atamanyuk — A Story Through a Wife's Eyes
Tetiana Gryshyna went through loss and PTSD and found the strength within herself to help others. Her path is an example of resilience.
7. Ihor Otsabrik — Hero of Bakhmut
He saved his brothers-in-arms until the very end. His wife, Kateryna, and his mother are two voices united by pain and the memory of a man whose love for his family equaled his devotion to his country.
8. Bohdan Karvatko — Hero of Ukraine
A Major of the National Guard and Hero of Ukraine. He died while covering his comrades. His mother, Olha, talks about the last call on the day the full-scale invasion began.
9. Andriy Kotlyarskyi and Serhiy Zhuravel — Two Voices of One Community
Two fellow villagers who became symbols of the Bilohorodka community. Through the memories of relatives and childhood photos—the human dimension of war.
10. Kyrylo Rachynskyi — The Path of a Capital Defender
His brother, Oleksiy, tells the story: on February 24, 2022, Kyrylo consciously stayed in Kyiv to defend the capital. A story about choice and self-sacrifice.
11. Hryhoriy Belov — Through a Mother's Eyes
Liubov Belova recalls her son's childhood, his love for his daughter, and his final battle. A living memory that continues to shape the family's strength.
12. Leonid Ponomarenko — A Story of Maternal Love
He loved cinema, cared for his family, and stood up for the defense of Ukraine without hesitation. His mother, Halyna Koval, speaks about a loss that is impossible to accept but one she must live with.
13. Dmytro Belkov — The Struggle for Truth
He voluntarily went to the front, leaving five children at home. After his death, his mother, Liubov, began her own struggle—for the truth about the circumstances of his loss.
14. Ihor Shastun — Warrior of the Azov Regiment
A defender of Mariupol. His mother, Nelya Shastun, speaks about her son's childhood dreams, his decision to fight, and his final days in the besieged city.
15. Oleksiy Kushnarenko — A Brother's Memory
His brother, Valeriy, recalls their education, family, the front, and the last call from near Bakhmut. A story about a brotherly bond where memory becomes a way to maintain a presence.
16. Volodymyr Khodokivskyi — A Living Family History
A mother and son recall not just the front, but the garden, the home, family traditions, and unfinished business. Through simple things, a grand portrait of a man emerges.
17. Mykola Oryshchenko — A Spiritual Testimony of the Family
From the first days of the full-scale war, he took up arms despite an injury. Testimony from his father (a clergyman), his wife, and his children about spiritual strength and family unity.
18. Vitaliy Kusik — The Love That Holds On
Their love began in their youth. After her husband's death, his wife, Olya, was left with two children and a love that never ended.
19. Serhiy Sitnichenko — "Everything Will Be Fine"
A sergeant, an auto mechanic with golden hands, and a reliable brother-in-arms. He always said: "Everything will be fine." Through the family's memories, we see a man who knew how to give hope.
20. Serhiy Hryshchenko — Devotion at the Cost of Life
He stood up to defend Ukraine without hesitation. He did not seek glory but made a choice that changed the fate of others. A reminder of the true price of freedom.
21. Yevhen Tyshchenko — Where the Father Lives
He left behind a son who is growing up with the story of a hero dad. About a paternal legacy that is passed on not through words, but through presence in every detail of life.
22. Dmytro Savych — Forever 24 Hero
He died at the age of 24 near Izium. Through the voices of parents, sisters, friends, and brothers-in-arms—a collective portrait of a generation that consciously stood at the forefront of history.
23. Vasyl Patyk — Through a Wife's Eyes
He went voluntarily, was wounded, went through rehabilitation, and returned to the front. His wife, Oksana, speaks about mature love, service, and the strength of a woman who preserves memory.
24. Oleksiy Kozub ("Markus") — A Mother Waits
He forever remained 26 years old while defending Ukraine at Azovstal. His mother, Nataliia, speaks about the occupation, the loss of their home, and a love that does not yield to time.
25. Serhiy Chornyi — A Path of Struggle and Principles
An activist, volunteer, participant in the Revolution of Dignity, and a volunteer soldier since 2014. His wife, Marta Yuzkiv, talks about a man who always stood for truth and freedom.
26. Dmytro Orlov — Community Memory
His story became part of the collective memory of the Bilohorodka community. A conversation with Olha Orlova about the social duty to remember and why it is a part of our future.
27. Viktor Kuzmin — A Love Story Stronger than Loss
His wife, Viktoriia, recalls the journey from friendship in their home village to a life together alongside his military service. About a love that does not end with death.
28. Bohdan Boishko — Courage That Became a Legacy
He died defending the Kyiv region in the first days of the full-scale invasion. His name is among those who stopped the enemy on the outskirts of the capital. About responsibility and the legacy of courage.
29. Azov Stronger than Steel — A Mother's Voice Speaking for a Hero
Nelya Shastun—mother of Ihor Shastun, defender of Mariupol—speaks for the second time in the project. This time, her testimony goes beyond personal tragedy: it's about brotherhood, resilience of spirit, and memory, without which a future is impossible.
