The ceremony began with a minute of silence. Special tribute was paid to Oleksii Yukov, the founder and leader of the Platsdarm search group, who was killed on August 5. Participants also honored the memory of all Ukrainian defenders and civilians killed by Russia during the war.
Today, the youth of the Donetsk region are defending Ukraine, evacuating people from shelling, treating the wounded, restoring electricity and water supplies, educating children, developing communities, and creating new initiatives. Much of this work goes unnoticed by the wider public. That is why it is so important to recognize these young people by name, thank them for their dedication, and show that their efforts are seen and appreciated.
Together with the Head of the Donetsk Regional State Administration, participants and winners in 11 categories were honored by Acting Commander of the Operational Command "East" Serhii Perets, First Deputy Head of the Security Service of Ukraine in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions Oleksandr Pikhota, Head of the Main Directorate of the National Police in the Donetsk Region Mykola Matviienko, Head of the Veterans Policy Department of the Donetsk Regional State Administration Artur Nasibian, Head of the Main Directorate of the State Emergency Service in the Donetsk Region Yakov Nemykin, cardiac surgeon Dmytro Uzun, Director of DTEK Donetsk Power Grids Oleksii Dehtiarov, Chairman of the Coordination Humanitarian Center Yevhen Koliada, Head of the Donetsk Regional Organization of the Ukrainian Red Cross Society Liubov Berezhna, Acting Rector of Mariupol State University Tetiana Marena, and Head of the Department of Family, Youth, and National Patriotic Education Events of the Donetsk Regional State Administration Liliia Zolkina.
"I had the honor of presenting honorary certificates and letters of appreciation from the Donetsk Regional State Administration, as well as awards to the winners of the 'Strength of Managerial Decisions' category.
These meetings are always special to me because every award represents a young person who, despite extraordinarily difficult circumstances, chose not to put life on hold but continued to work, study, serve, rescue others, volunteer, and support those around them.
I would also like to thank soloist Yuliia Koroliova and the 'Towards the Sun' concert field ensemble, the Military Orchestra of Operational Command 'East,' Kyrylo Pariienko, Kseniia Sylaieva, and Kateryna Akulova for the musical part of the ceremony. You brought truly special emotions to this day.
My sincere gratitude goes to every participant in the competition for your dedication and courage to take action. The Donetsk region has strong, talented, and active young people. Our responsibility is to listen to them, support them, and create opportunities for their growth.
I am proud of you. With people like you, the Donetsk region will undoubtedly recover and become even stronger," Vadym Filashkin emphasized.