For the sake of “Azov,” “Vitold” embarked on a risky venture. Vitaliy Slobodenyuk thought he wouldn’t survive at “Azovstal”
Source: Svoi.City
Author: Hanna KURTSANOVSKA
When he was a child, she was like a mother
to Vitalik Vitaliy Slobodeniuk is from the village of Buryaky in the Zhytomyr region. He is the youngest child; he has two brothers and a sister. Natalia says there is a 9-year age difference between her and Vitaliy.
“At first, I really didn’t want a little brother because I was the youngest. Everyone loved me—I was my parents’ only daughter among their sons. And when my dad and I arrived at the maternity ward, I cried so hard when I saw him. At that moment, I thought: ‘Well, that’s it—no one will love me anymore.’ But I grew to love Vitalik so much; I was like a mom to him, and he was always with me. As soon as I had any money, I’d try to buy him everything—toys, candy, and so on. I often took him to Zhytomyr to various children’s amusement parks, to McDonald’s, and to eat sushi. I wanted to show him and give him the things I never had as a child.
We also have two older brothers—one is five years older than me, the other seven—and it always hurt my feelings that they showed absolutely no interest in either my life or Vitalik’s,” Natalia shared.
A childhood
friend became his motivator and role model During his school years, Vitaliy played soccer and went to the stadium with his friends. Unfortunately, there were no other options in the village. After school, he moved to the city of Pryluky, where he enrolled in a technical college to study land surveying. It was there that he began boxing and practicing mixed martial arts. After technical college, Vitaliy enrolled in a part-time program at the Institute of Innovative Education at Kyiv National University of Construction and Architecture, earned a bachelor’s degree, but never worked a single day in his field.
“For about half a year, I worked as a general laborer at a meat processing plant in Zhytomyr, but then I quit and returned to my parents in the village. Vitaliy decided to pursue a military career following the example of his older friend—Ivan Bochkarev, nicknamed “The Witcher”—with whom he had been friends since childhood. “Ivan was a source of inspiration and a role model for Vitalik,” Natalia said.
Vitalik told his parents about his decision in the spring of 2021. Natalia recalls that they were very upset when they heard the news. His mother tried to talk him out of it, especially going to Mariupol, a city close to the front lines.
“But I said then, ‘Let him go if that’s what he wants. Let him try—maybe this is his calling,” Natalia recalls that conversation.
Vitaliy began training relentlessly to complete the Basic Combat Training Course (BCTC). Legends still circulate among the soldiers about how difficult it is to pass on the first try.
“Then there was the medical exam, and they told my brother he had some back problems. So what did he do? He asked a friend to get an X-ray taken in his place. Everything looked fine on the X-ray, and that’s how my brother passed the medical exam. Can you imagine how badly he wanted to join ‘Azov’ that he went along with such a risky scheme?” Natalia said.
We love them for their great sense of humor
“The Witcher” and “Vitold” are from the same village. They became close friends when Ivan was in seventh grade and Vitaliy was in fifth.
“His parents treated me like their own son. My grandmother and dad also loved Vitaly very much. Together at school, together on the street, together at the computer. I came from a poorer family, and his parents always helped me; they never turned me down for anything. I got the same kind of help from Vitalik. Even after we went our separate ways to different cities after school, we still kept in touch, and during summer break we’d meet up in our home village and spend a lot of time together,” Ivan shared.
“The Witcher” recalls that when he saw “Vitold” on the first day of basic military training, a thought flashed through his mind: “When did my friend manage to grow up and mature so much?”
Vitaliy passed basic military training on his first try. He proudly told his sister at the time that out of 110 recruits, only 50 had made it through, and he was among the chosen few. October 7, 2021, marked “Vitolod’s” first day of service in the “Azov” regiment. He served as a gunner in the third crew of an artillery gun within the howitzer artillery platoon. “The Witcher” says that Vitaliy was respected in his unit because he was a great, well-mannered guy with a good sense of humor.
He lay trapped under the rubble for several days—his comrades
rescued him When the invasion began, Natalia wrote to her brother every day.
“I couldn’t sleep at night; all I could think about was Vitalik and how, at 21, he could stand up to such evil. He had a fighting spirit; he stood up for himself and his comrades. At first, he served as an artilleryman on a howitzer while there were still weapons to fight with, then he joined the infantry. The city was surrounded, without power or communication, without food or reinforcements—that’s when things got really tough. Pressure from all sides, gunfire that didn’t let up day or night. My brother told me that they were receiving messages from the Russians telling them to surrender. And there were those who defected to the enemy,” Natalia said.
On March 23, the family lost contact with Vitaliy. It wasn’t until April 3 that he was able to write to them.
“My brother wrote from his comrade ‘Grenka’s’ phone. He said he was wounded—a piece of shrapnel was deeply lodged in his lower back, and they hadn’t been able to remove it. He described how it all happened. He and his comrade were running from three Russians; along the way, he lost his backpack containing his documents and phone. The young man suffered a concussion and fell, while my brother was shot. Then they made their way to the school. They were found, and an enemy tank began firing at the building. The ceiling collapsed on the boys; Vitalik and his comrade lay there for several days because they couldn’t walk. Then their comrades found them and evacuated them to “Azovstal,” where they received medical care,” says Natalia.
Olenivka–Donetsk–Horlivka–Makiivka–Torez
At Azovstal, all the optimism that had fueled “Vitold” at the start of the full-scale war had vanished. Vitaliy thought that right here, amid the ruins of scrap metal, his life would end, since the Russians were mercilessly shelling the plant—from the sea, the sky, and the ground.
“Once his wound had healed a bit, my brother started visiting the guys at their positions, bringing them food and water. Then he joined the fighting himself. Since early May, I’ve lost contact with my brother again, but thanks to that same ‘Hrenko,’ I knew he was all right,” she said.
Vitaliy Slobodenyuk from “Azovstal” was taken prisoner by the Russians on May 18, 2022. From the Olenivka penal colony, he was able to call his parents three times, reassuring them that he was alive and well.
The last call was on July 22. In September, “Vitold” was transferred to the Donetsk Pretrial Detention Center; a year later, to Horlivka; and in April 2023, to the Makiivka penal colony. According to the latest information, he is currently in prison in Torez.
Author: Hanna KURTSANOVSKA
When he was a child, she was like a mother
to Vitalik Vitaliy Slobodeniuk is from the village of Buryaky in the Zhytomyr region. He is the youngest child; he has two brothers and a sister. Natalia says there is a 9-year age difference between her and Vitaliy.
“At first, I really didn’t want a little brother because I was the youngest. Everyone loved me—I was my parents’ only daughter among their sons. And when my dad and I arrived at the maternity ward, I cried so hard when I saw him. At that moment, I thought: ‘Well, that’s it—no one will love me anymore.’ But I grew to love Vitalik so much; I was like a mom to him, and he was always with me. As soon as I had any money, I’d try to buy him everything—toys, candy, and so on. I often took him to Zhytomyr to various children’s amusement parks, to McDonald’s, and to eat sushi. I wanted to show him and give him the things I never had as a child.
We also have two older brothers—one is five years older than me, the other seven—and it always hurt my feelings that they showed absolutely no interest in either my life or Vitalik’s,” Natalia shared.
A childhood
friend became his motivator and role model During his school years, Vitaliy played soccer and went to the stadium with his friends. Unfortunately, there were no other options in the village. After school, he moved to the city of Pryluky, where he enrolled in a technical college to study land surveying. It was there that he began boxing and practicing mixed martial arts. After technical college, Vitaliy enrolled in a part-time program at the Institute of Innovative Education at Kyiv National University of Construction and Architecture, earned a bachelor’s degree, but never worked a single day in his field.
“For about half a year, I worked as a general laborer at a meat processing plant in Zhytomyr, but then I quit and returned to my parents in the village. Vitaliy decided to pursue a military career following the example of his older friend—Ivan Bochkarev, nicknamed “The Witcher”—with whom he had been friends since childhood. “Ivan was a source of inspiration and a role model for Vitalik,” Natalia said.
Vitalik told his parents about his decision in the spring of 2021. Natalia recalls that they were very upset when they heard the news. His mother tried to talk him out of it, especially going to Mariupol, a city close to the front lines.
“But I said then, ‘Let him go if that’s what he wants. Let him try—maybe this is his calling,” Natalia recalls that conversation.
Vitaliy began training relentlessly to complete the Basic Combat Training Course (BCTC). Legends still circulate among the soldiers about how difficult it is to pass on the first try.
“Then there was the medical exam, and they told my brother he had some back problems. So what did he do? He asked a friend to get an X-ray taken in his place. Everything looked fine on the X-ray, and that’s how my brother passed the medical exam. Can you imagine how badly he wanted to join ‘Azov’ that he went along with such a risky scheme?” Natalia said.
We love them for their great sense of humor
“The Witcher” and “Vitold” are from the same village. They became close friends when Ivan was in seventh grade and Vitaliy was in fifth.
“His parents treated me like their own son. My grandmother and dad also loved Vitaly very much. Together at school, together on the street, together at the computer. I came from a poorer family, and his parents always helped me; they never turned me down for anything. I got the same kind of help from Vitalik. Even after we went our separate ways to different cities after school, we still kept in touch, and during summer break we’d meet up in our home village and spend a lot of time together,” Ivan shared.
“The Witcher” recalls that when he saw “Vitold” on the first day of basic military training, a thought flashed through his mind: “When did my friend manage to grow up and mature so much?”
Vitaliy passed basic military training on his first try. He proudly told his sister at the time that out of 110 recruits, only 50 had made it through, and he was among the chosen few. October 7, 2021, marked “Vitolod’s” first day of service in the “Azov” regiment. He served as a gunner in the third crew of an artillery gun within the howitzer artillery platoon. “The Witcher” says that Vitaliy was respected in his unit because he was a great, well-mannered guy with a good sense of humor.
He lay trapped under the rubble for several days—his comrades
rescued him When the invasion began, Natalia wrote to her brother every day.
“I couldn’t sleep at night; all I could think about was Vitalik and how, at 21, he could stand up to such evil. He had a fighting spirit; he stood up for himself and his comrades. At first, he served as an artilleryman on a howitzer while there were still weapons to fight with, then he joined the infantry. The city was surrounded, without power or communication, without food or reinforcements—that’s when things got really tough. Pressure from all sides, gunfire that didn’t let up day or night. My brother told me that they were receiving messages from the Russians telling them to surrender. And there were those who defected to the enemy,” Natalia said.
On March 23, the family lost contact with Vitaliy. It wasn’t until April 3 that he was able to write to them.
“My brother wrote from his comrade ‘Grenka’s’ phone. He said he was wounded—a piece of shrapnel was deeply lodged in his lower back, and they hadn’t been able to remove it. He described how it all happened. He and his comrade were running from three Russians; along the way, he lost his backpack containing his documents and phone. The young man suffered a concussion and fell, while my brother was shot. Then they made their way to the school. They were found, and an enemy tank began firing at the building. The ceiling collapsed on the boys; Vitalik and his comrade lay there for several days because they couldn’t walk. Then their comrades found them and evacuated them to “Azovstal,” where they received medical care,” says Natalia.
Olenivka–Donetsk–Horlivka–Makiivka–Torez
At Azovstal, all the optimism that had fueled “Vitold” at the start of the full-scale war had vanished. Vitaliy thought that right here, amid the ruins of scrap metal, his life would end, since the Russians were mercilessly shelling the plant—from the sea, the sky, and the ground.
“Once his wound had healed a bit, my brother started visiting the guys at their positions, bringing them food and water. Then he joined the fighting himself. Since early May, I’ve lost contact with my brother again, but thanks to that same ‘Hrenko,’ I knew he was all right,” she said.
Vitaliy Slobodenyuk from “Azovstal” was taken prisoner by the Russians on May 18, 2022. From the Olenivka penal colony, he was able to call his parents three times, reassuring them that he was alive and well.
The last call was on July 22. In September, “Vitold” was transferred to the Donetsk Pretrial Detention Center; a year later, to Horlivka; and in April 2023, to the Makiivka penal colony. According to the latest information, he is currently in prison in Torez.
This is an automatic translation generated by DeepL.
