He Died a Hero: Exclusive Interview with the Widow of Ukrainian Soldier Vasyl Oleksyuk

YUSUF INAN - INTERVIEW

Ukraine Another Heroic Story from Ukraine! That's Why Ukraine Will Win the War!

YUSUF INAN: Thank you for accepting our interview request. My condolences to you and your family.

YUSUF INAN: Tell us about your husband, Vasyl Oleksyuk.

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: My husband was born on August 12, 1972, in the village of Havrylivka, Ivano-Frankivsk region. His father, Ivan Oleksyuk, and mother, Kateryna Oleksyuk, worked all their lives but always had time for their children. They taught him everything: to be loving, hardworking, responsible, and just. They valued Ukrainian traditions and love for the Motherland, which they instilled in their children. Unfortunately, his parents are no longer with us, but he left behind three sisters and two brothers.

YUSUF INAN: Could you provide some information about yourself?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: I am the wife of the fallen hero, Lyudmila Yehorivna Oleksyuk. I was born on January 12, 1972, in the Zakarpattia region. It so happened that my parents moved to the Kharkiv region, where we currently live with our family.

YUSUF INAN: What was your husband's profession?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: My husband was a builder by profession; he graduated from a technical college and knew how to do any work related to construction. We say of such people that they have "golden hands," meaning a master of his craft. But over time, he wanted something new and became a farmer. He had land where he sowed and harvested grain, and he mastered the profession of a tractor driver. He studied a lot to be a successful agriculturalist. In the last years before the war, he started beekeeping for the soul; the apiary wasn't large, but it was very interesting to him.

YUSUF INAN: How was he recruited? Was he a volunteer?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: When the war started on February 24, we found ourselves not far from the hostilities. We heard explosions all the time. When he and our son cleaned out the cellar to hide, I didn't even imagine that he had already decided everything. And so, on the morning of the 27th, he packs his things and says that he is going to defend his Country, his family. Without even consulting me; I won't lie that I was happy then, I cried, but he said that someone has to go, and I accepted his decision. And then our son also wanted to go with his dad, to which he said, "You must stay with mom, help, and if necessary, leave home for a safe place. I will go because I am older, because I served in the army, and I know how to handle weapons."

YUSUF INAN: Did he undergo military training?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: I can't name the exact year, but somewhere between 1990-1992, he served in the army. And training in the Territorial Defense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He was not a military man before the war.

YUSUF INAN: Can you tell us about your husband's struggle?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: Actually, I know almost nothing about what happened there at the war; he always said that everything was fine and that he didn't want to burden me with what was happening there. Plus, this responsibility—he didn't want anyone to listen to calls and learn any information. With great difficulty, I found out his location to follow the news of what was happening there. And when he had a 10-day leave, for the first 3 days he just slept, and then he didn't want to talk, saying he would tell me someday.

YUSUF INAN: When and where did your husband die?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: He perished in the village of Blahodatne, near Soledar, Donetsk region. As his brothers-in-arms told us, it was hell there; they were shelled by tanks, there were many wounded, and at night the enemy approached close to their positions. And that night there was an enemy group, there was close combat, and my husband died from a through bullet wound. And the boys carried his body from the battlefield.

YUSUF INAN: How did you find out that your husband died?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: There was no connection there, but every day he ran under shelling to the headquarters to call home via Starlink. And as always, everything is fine; we didn't even know it was such hell there. On the 20th, he couldn't call. On the morning of the 21st, I ran happily to the phone because he used to call at that time, but an unknown voice informed me that my husband died as a hero... For a few minutes, I couldn't say anything; I don't even remember what he told me. Then I called him again and asked him to repeat.

YUSUF INAN: Can you tell us about your family?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: An ordinary rural family. The children finished their studies and started taking care of themselves. There were holidays, there was happiness, there was much that was bright and happy. The children always came to mom and dad, who loved them very much, for holidays or vacation. We were a happy family, married for 28 years. All these years we loved each other; I was always his sunshine. His last SMS on Telegram: "Sunshine, I congratulate you on your birthday, I wish you to be healthy and happy, sorry I got lost in time." My birthday was on January 12; he wrote on the 14th, and 9 days later he would be gone. This cursed war destroyed everything, destroyed our life, our future. Now only memories remain.

YUSUF INAN: How many children do you have? How old are they?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: We have two children... A daughter, who barely made it out alive from the town of Makariv, Kyiv region. In the first days of the war, the town was almost destroyed. My daughter is 27 years old; she worked there. She went to Germany because it was dangerous to come to us then. There she helps volunteers collect first aid kits, food, packs combat boots, and sends them to Ukraine. My son is 23 years old; he arrived from abroad just before the war. He also worked there. Now my son lives with me and continues his father's work. Because the land cannot be empty, one must work, sow grain, look after his bees. A big house that his dad built himself.

YUSUF INAN: What did you feel when you heard the news of your husband's death? How did your family feel? Can you describe your feelings at that moment?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: I couldn't believe it; I was sure it was a mistake, that this couldn't be. I started calling him, but there was no connection. I had several numbers of his brothers-in-arms, but they were also unavailable, and when I got through to one, he was in the hospital and said that the guys said it was definitely him. But I still didn't believe it and called him for two more days. Even when they brought the body, there was still hope that it was a mistake until they opened the coffin. It is impossible to describe these feelings; it's as if you died with him in an instant, stood right here and died. For those two days, hope flickered, and then that's it, you see him in the coffin. It's just some kind of horror, terrible hopelessness, not enough air. I wanted to scream, why? How did this happen? Why him specifically? And a hundred more times why? The whole family is heartbroken, a sea of tears and burning pain. It is impossible to describe all these emotions. And this pain hasn't gone anywhere, and I am sure it won't go anywhere. The children are also taking this loss hard. I don't know how my family will survive this loss because everything hurts because everywhere you see his work, his hands. Because we are confused and don't know how to live on without him.

YUSUF INAN: Who was present at the funeral?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: The whole village met him on their knees, forming a corridor. They saw him off standing, also forming a corridor along the entire street, and threw flowers under the feet of the brothers-in-arms carrying the coffin.

YUSUF INAN: Where is your husband's grave?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: The grave is here in our village of Novonadezhdyne, in the Kharkiv region. Now he is forever 50....

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YUSUF INAN: Do you go to the cemetery?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: The first 40 days almost every day, unless I didn't go due to the weather. And now also often; when I feel that I can't take it anymore and I need to go to him, I go. Two months, but like in a fog, there isn't even a full realization of everything yet.

YUSUF INAN: What was your husband like?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: My husband was a hardworking, sincere, and kind person. He loved his family and children very much. There isn't a single fellow villager whom he didn't help with a word or deed; he left his own affairs to help others. That is why his death was such a shock for the villagers. All his life he was learning something, was purposeful and persistent; of such people they say that he can do anything if he wants.

YUSUF INAN: Did you have a dream after your husband's death?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: Yes, just recently I had a dream that I see him, he is all gray-haired. There is some room, I ask where is he, and a voice tells me in your old house (it hasn't existed for 17 years). I say I want to go to him, and they tell me you can't go there, because if you go, you will never see him again. I didn't understand anything, because I will never see him anyway.

YUSUF INAN: Did any of your husband's friends also die?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: I don't even know, I know that there were many wounded from his company, whether anyone else died I don't know. I know that a young man from the second company also died that night; they were there too.

YUSUF INAN: What do Ukrainians think about the soldiers who died in the war?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: That they are all heroes and angels protecting us in heaven. And we are all grateful to them for our lives. That is why in every village or city they meet them on their knees.

YUSUF INAN: When the occupation began, many Ukrainians left for other countries. Didn't you think about such a thing?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: To another country, no! But we were planning to go to Western Ukraine. In the summer, the front was 20 km on one side and 40 km on the other side of the village. Suitcases were packed, the fuel tank filled, and if not for our titans, we would have had to flee. Thanks to their heroism, the enemy didn't reach us, and they drove him away from Izyum.

YUSUF INAN: Are any of your friends and neighbors going to other countries?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: Specifically from our village, there were several families who went abroad, but everyone has already returned.

YUSUF INAN: Do those who left for other countries want to return to Ukraine?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: Actually, the majority wants to go home, many acquaintances have returned, there are still those who are afraid to go home. They are waiting for the end of the war, but they also plan to go home.

YUSUF INAN: Are there any dead in the war in your family and among neighbors?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: In our family, no, but there are dead in the village. And many boys from our village of different ages are now fighting.

YUSUF INAN: Russian attacks continue. Is your territory safe?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: For now, we do not have completely safe territory, especially the Kharkiv region, which is under shelling almost every day. For now, we live more or less calmly, if the front line doesn't change. Although, of course, something can fly in at any time.

YUSUF INAN: Do you have a message for world leaders and the peoples of the world?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: Yes, I want to thank them for helping us. For not leaving us alone with the enemy. And if the world can, please do everything possible to end the war sooner! It is Putin sending prisoners to us, while the flower of our nation is dying. And if the whole world unites, can they really not stop one person? I believe in our victory as my hero believed.

YUSUF INAN: Thank you for your answers. Do you have anything else to say?

LYUDMILA OLEKSYUK: Thank you very much. We are grateful to Turkey and you for your help and support. Glory to Ukraine.

YUSUF İNAN / PEACE AT HOME, PEACE IN THE WORLD (*)

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(*)  As Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of modern Turkey, once said, 'Peace at Home, Peace in the World.' This timeless principle serves as a guiding light for nations striving for harmony, coexistence, and global stability.