The courage, dedication, and honesty of this young man at just 19 years old are impressive. For over 2 years, he has been defending our country and each one of us.

His own words: “After the situation that occurred in Bucha and Irpin, I cannot allow it to happen again on my land, so I decided to go.” We recorded this video with Vasyl on the day of his discharge from the pediatric ward after heart surgery.

Yes, in the pediatric ward, because we first met him 5 years ago when Prof. Oleksandr Romaniuk, a pediatric cardiac surgeon at the Heart Institute, performed his first operation—Ross procedure, implanting an aortic valve. Vasyl was around 15 years old at that time.

A few days ago, Vasyl met with us again, now as a soldier in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, bravely defending us on the hottest fronts alongside his brigade and commander. He shares his story in the video.

We express our gratitude to the team of doctors who are always ready to save our warriors at the first call, and to each one of you who believes and supports.