Senior soldier Maryna Aleksiuk, call sign “Maryna,” was killed on May 8, 2022, at the Azovstal Iron and Steel Works in Mariupol. She was 43 years old.
Maryna was born in the village of Portivske. After finishing school, she trained as a painter-plasterer in Donetsk. She worked as a landscaping specialist at a recreation center in Mariupol. In 2015, she signed a contract with the Azov Regiment. She served as a мастер in a repair workshop of an anti-aircraft missile division and as a clerk in the rear services of the Yurivka garrison.
“Mykhola and I met in 2018. I returned to the regiment, and we met while on duty — she was relieving me. She was so beautiful I was speechless. I offered her coffee, and we talked half the night. Maryna told me how she joined Azov. In 2015, the eastern district of Mariupol came under fire for the first time. At that time, the Azov Regiment was stationed at their recreation base. The staff lost their jobs. Maryna sat on the steps and cried because she had two young children. The chief of staff saw her and предложив to join the regiment. She signed a contract. Maryna was strong-willed — she was looking for ways to take revenge,” recalls her civilian partner, Mykola Ivanchenko.
Later, Mykola transferred from Azov to the marine infantry in Berdiansk. They last saw each other a few days before the full-scale invasion.
“I was with our children. I asked Maryna to switch places because a mother should be with her kids. She already knew they wouldn’t be allowed to leave Azovstal — all databases had been leaked to the occupiers. She said: ‘I love you. Take care of the children…’ Then communication was lost. It was March 6. I evacuated our three children to a safe place. My heart felt empty. But a week later, there was a brief connection. Maryna wrote: ‘Alive, all is well.’ I dropped to my knees and cried with relief,” Mykola remembers.
On May 8, after 4:25 p.m., contact with Maryna was lost.
“I didn’t know she had died at that moment. May 9 was my birthday — I wrote to her that I was waiting for her at home. On May 16, the patronage service informed me she was gone. Maryna died in a large fire — about 60 people were there. Only fragments of six bodies were found. Maryna’s body was not recovered,” he says.
“Maryna was the best in every sense. We dreamed of a house in Sumy region, where there is clay for pottery. She planned to make ceramic dishes. The children are with me forever. Maryna lives on in our memories. When making decisions, we often ask ourselves: ‘What would Mom do? What would she advise us?’” Mykola adds.
Maryna Aleksiuk was posthumously awarded the Order “For Courage,” 3rd class.
She is survived by her two young daughters, her civilian partner and his daughter, a sister, and two brothers.
At 9:00 a.m. — the national minute of silence. The Donetsk Regional Military Administration and the Memorial of Heroes platform honor fallen defenders from Donetsk region.