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Before Russia’s full-scale invasion, 25-year-old Iryna Masna was a student at the Zhytomyr College of Culture and Arts. In 2021, she moved to Poland. When the war escalated in February 2022, she began volunteering at a support center for Ukrainian refugees there.
After returning to Ukraine, she enrolled at the Zhytomyr Medical Institute to train as a nurse.
In March 2024, Iryna Masna, operating under the call sign “Prymara” (Ukrainian for “ghost”), joined the 12th Special Forces Brigade “Azov.” Since October 2025, she has served with the 20th Liubart Operational Brigade of the 1st Azov Corps of the National Guard of Ukraine.
Her first truly intense experience came in the summer of 2024 in the Serebryanskyi Forest. While working alone at a casualty evacuation (CASEVAC) point, a group of combat engineers detonated a mine at the casualty transfer site, leaving several men badly wounded. “Prymara” and another medic divided the patients: he took the less severely injured, while she handled the more critical cases. Inside the moving evacuation vehicle, she struggled to insert catheters and control bleeding.
One soldier, his leg badly torn, insisted she first give pain relief to his comrade suffering from severe burns. She followed his request, and later second-guessed herself intensely. “I made a terrible mistake then,” she said. “I’m thankful both are alive, but I realized the man with the thigh wound needed urgent blood control, and I didn’t properly assess whether he was in shock.” The episode became a defining lesson; she has never again allowed herself to become rattled in high-pressure moments.
Across her service, Iryna has worked as a medic at triage points, a CASEVAC and MEDEVAC evacuation specialist, and a tactical medicine instructor for fellow troops.
Not every life she helps save results in a message of thanks. Not all the wounded track her down later through messengers or mutual contacts. Yet every note that does arrive serves as a quiet confirmation that she is exactly where she is meant to be.
Today, “Prymara” continues serving as both a frontline medic and an instructor. For her dedication to saving lives, Iryna Masna has been awarded the “For Saving Lives” medal.
Journalists interested in interviewing Iryna Masna can arrange online or in-person interviews through the brigade’s press service.
Peaceful events are planned in 28 cities across Ukraine to raise awareness of the defenders of Azovstal and other soldiers still in enemy captivity.
On January 10, events will be held in Okhtyrka, Chernihiv, Zaporizhzhia, Vinnytsia, Dnipro, Shpola, Volochysk, Pavlohrad, and Lviv.
On January 11, events are planned in Kyiv, Krolevets, Pivdennoukrainsk, Kremenchuk, Mykolaiv, Korop, Korosten, Obukhiv, Ovruch, Dolynska, Cherkasy, Kharkiv, Lozova, Uzhhorod, Berdychiv, Kropyvnytskyi, Rivne, Chernivtsi, and Odesa.
The events are organized by families of prisoners of war from the Mariupol garrison. Recently released Ukrainian captives also often join these actions.
Tetiana is the mother of four-year-old Nazar. Before russia’s full-scale invasion, she and her husband enjoyed an ordinary family life in Ukraine – a home, plans for the future, and dreams they shared.
Her husband, Vitalii, was a career officer, a captain in Ukraine’s Armed Forces. After graduating from the military academy, he dove straight into service. For him, it wasn’t just a job; it was a deliberate calling, a lifelong commitment to protecting his country, his family, and their son’s future.
When his father died, Nazar was just one year and six months old. The boy has no memories of him, but he’s growing up hearing stories, looking at photographs, and learning that his dad was a Hero of Ukraine, a man defined by honor, responsibility, and duty.
Vitalii’s death upended Tetiana’s world. With him gone, she lost her pillar of support, her sense of security, and the happy life they had built. “Three years have passed since my loss. The pain has not gone away – it has become part of my life. I am still living with this loss and every day I am learning to live in a reality that I did not choose. The only thing that kept me from breaking down and forced me to move forward was our son. He became the force that keeps me going despite all the pain,” she says.
By prior arrangement, journalists can speak with Tetiana online.
For reference: The Children of Heroes Charitable Foundation supports children who have lost one or both parents due to the war. The foundation provides tailored immediate aid, including humanitarian assistance, psychological and medical support, along with educational and developmental opportunities that continue until the children reach adulthood.
Serhii Herasymenko had spent 15 years immersed in martial arts before russia’s full-scale invasion. An international master of sports in kickboxing and a European champion, he stepped away from his professional career in 2019, unable to earn a living from the ring.
When the war erupted, Herasymenko and his wife threw themselves into volunteering in Kyiv. He tried to enlist right away, but his documents were stuck in Chernihiv, then under heavy russian assault.
Once the city became accessible, he made his way there and joined the 63rd Separate Mechanized Brigade. In early 2024, the soldier transitioned to infantry, assuming the role of platoon commander. On July 28 that year, Herasymenko suffered devastating injuries: advancing on a position in the Lyman sector with his unit, an enemy drone strike shattered a bone in his arm and cost him his leg.
After a grueling series of operations, treatment, and rehabilitation, Herasymenko turned his focus to preparing for a veterans’ boxing tournament. He went on to compete in the event, held at Kyiv’s Palace of Sports. Today, he coaches boxing while continuing to train on his own.
You can reach out to Serhii Herasymenko for an interview, either online or in person in Kyiv, by arrangement.
Sofiia Zalozna, now raising her six-year-old daughter Myroslava alone, first fled conflict in 2014. To escape russia’s aggression in the Donbas, she moved to Volnovakha in Donetsk oblast (the city that has been under russian occupation since March 2022).
In 2017, she joined the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine. There, she met the man she would marry. Their daughter Myroslava was born in 2019.
The young family left the service in 2020 and relocated to Poland, seeking stability. In January 2022, they chose to return to Ukraine, with plans to eventually move to another country. But before they could, the full-scale invasion began.
They were staying with Sofiia’s parents in Kharkiv oblast when the shelling started. For weeks, they sheltered in basements, fearing russian troops would enter their village.
Sofiia eventually fled to Poland with their daughter. Her husband remained — and enlisted in Ukraine’s Defense Forces.
He was killed on July 31, 2022, in Velyki Prokhody, Kharkiv oblast, after detonating three anti-tank mines. He was 27.
“Time just stopped,” Sofiia recalls. “We were supposed to see each other soon. He dreamed of coming home on leave, holding our daughter… He never got the chance to be a real father, even though he loved Mira with all his heart.”
Sofiia Zalozna is available for interviews, in person in Irpin, Kyiv oblast, or online, by prior arrangement.
For reference: The Children of Heroes Charitable Foundation offers sustained support to children who have lost one or both parents due to the war. Its programs include urgent personalized assistance, humanitarian aid, medical and psychological services, and long-term educational opportunities until the children reach adulthood.
The serviceman with the callsign “Kupa” grew up in Dnipro, the son of musicians — his mother taught piano, his father guitar.
He was following in their footsteps, studying at a music school himself, when a visit to the military enlistment office ten days before his 18th birthday changed his path. He enlisted for mandatory service in Ukraine’s National Guard in the spring of 2021 and liked it so much that he signed a contract that same fall.
When the full-scale invasion began in February 2022, “Kupa” was serving with his unit in the Dnipropetrovsk oblast.
After a year on the front lines, he was transferred to the 13th National Guard Brigade Khartiia, where he served as a combat medic until the summer of 2024. The work was relentless: providing urgent care to the wounded around the clock. The toll eventually caught up with him. He was hospitalized, left temporarily unable to speak from the cumulative effect of multiple concussions.
During his recovery, he was offered a new role: training to operate drones and ground robotic systems. Today, “Kupa” commands an unmanned aerial systems unit within an infantry company. He leads a team, plans missions for ground robots, and approves their deployment. In his spare moments, he still finds time for music.
“Kupa” is available for interviews, online or in person, by prior arrangement through the unit’s press officer. Journalists may also request photo or video footage of ground robotic systems in operation for illustrative purposes.
Markiian Krasno joined the Ukrainian army a year before russia’s full-scale invasion, a decision that would place him on the front lines from the earliest days of the war. On February 24, 2022, he and his unit defended the Kyiv region before rotating to positions along the border, where russian forces were pressing forward.
Away from combat, Krasno found an unexpected way to support his fellow soldiers – through food. In rare moments of downtime, he began cooking for his unit. When circumstances allow, he marks his comrades’ birthdays by baking cakes or roasting meat, turning makeshift kitchens into small spaces of normalcy amid the war.
In 2024, Krasno recorded and shared his first cooking video on social media. To his surprise, it quickly went viral, prompting him to continue documenting his culinary work from the front lines. He now runs a food-focused blog and is looking ahead to new ambitions, including launching a cooking show and publishing his own recipe book.
Interviews with Markiian Krasno can be arranged online or in person by prior agreement.
Before russia’s full-scale invasion, a serviceman known by the call sign “Morok” worked as a tattoo artist. In the summer of 2022, he volunteered for the armed forces and was assigned to a rifle company as a grenadier. He saw combat in some of the war’s fiercest battles, including Bakhmut and Soledar, where he was wounded in 2023.
While undergoing medical treatment, Morok was reported by his commander as absent without official leave. As a result, he did not serve for the next year and a half. After completing his recovery, he returned to civilian life, resuming his work as a tattoo artist and volunteering.
During this period, Morok was invited to join Yasni Ochi (Clear Eyes), a drone unit within the 13th Khartiia Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine. He now serves as an operator of an unmanned ground vehicle, bringing his experience back to the battlefield in a new, technology-driven role.
Interviews with Morok can be arranged online or in person, subject to prior coordination with the brigade’s press officer.
Volodymyr Sorochan is originally from Kherson. In 2014, he joined the Ukrainian military and served in Crimea. After russia annexed the peninsula, he remained loyal to his oath and relocated to mainland Ukraine with his comrades. He later continued his service under contract with the 36th Brigade.
Volodymyr encountered the start of the full-scale invasion while on duty near Mariupol. He was captured in April 2022 after attempting to escape the Azovmash plant in Mariupol. He spent nearly three years in russian captivity. There, he endured daily beatings and constant hunger. The former prisoner recalls receiving meager portions of slop instead of proper food.
On October 18, 2024, Volodymyr was returned to Ukraine. After receiving treatment and undergoing rehabilitation, he returned to civilian life. He now maintains a blog where he shares his experiences. He has also finished writing a book in which he recounts his story.
Journalists can speak with Volodymyr Sorochan online or in person in Lviv by prior arrangement.
The 25-year-old soldier who goes by the call sign “Siesha” serves with Ukraine’s National Guard. He was born in Kharkiv and holds Israeli citizenship. When russia’s all-out attack began, he crossed into Slovakia without official authorization, bypassing wartime restrictions that bar men of military age from leaving the country without a permit, before continuing to Israel.
There, Sesha spent much of his time working for a military company operating under contract with the Israel Defense Forces. In 2024, he decided to return to Kharkiv. For roughly a year after coming back, he remained a civilian, weighing his next steps as the war dragged on.
That changed in the spring of 2025, when Siesha enlisted in the 13th Khartiia Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine. He now serves as an operator of ground-based robotic systems, contributing to Ukraine’s expanding use of unmanned technologies on the battlefield. Looking ahead, he says he plans to build his future in Ukraine.
Interviews with Siesha can be arranged online or in person, subject to prior coordination and approval by the brigade’s press officer.
