Heroes do not die: Vitaliy Stognev

"We were ready to kill enemies with shovels, to gnaw on them if necessary," said Olha Mykolaivna, wife of the fallen soldier Vitaliy Stohnev, who went to war at the age of 58 despite the resistance of the military enlistment office.

Vitaliy Stohnev, a fighter with the 1st Battalion of the 123rd Territorial Defense Brigade, died on October 21, 2022, near the village of Novopoltavka in the Kherson region.

PHOTO provided by Vitaliy Stohnev's wife

His wife Olha told us frankly about what he was like, how he stood up to the challenge at a critical moment - as a real man and as a Ukrainian.

With her memories, Intent continues the series"Heroes Do Not Die" about our defenders...

From Vradiyivka to Kyiv

"We met in 1989 in Vradiyivka," says Olha Mykolaivna. They lived together in love and harmony for thirty-three years. He was the family's pillar of strength, a real host - gentle and kind, but with a backbone.

This is the same Vradiivka in Mykolaiv region where mass protests took place in 2013, which started the Revolution of Dignity. People live here who are not silent.

Vitalii was serving his military service in Sevastopol. It was there that he proposed to Olga. In 2013, the couple celebrated 25 years of marriage and painfully recalls how many Russian flags there were in Crimea then - over every military unit. Since 2014, they have not visited the peninsula again, promising themselves to return only when it becomes Ukrainian again.

He was her "sunshine"-that's how she greeted him on every trip.

PHOTO courtesy of Vitalii Stohniev's wife

The family moved to Kyiv, and their son Dmytro entered the KNEU. They lived well, but a full-scale invasion began.

PHOTO courtesy of Vitalii Stohniev's wife

"I immediately said: I will not leave Ukraine," Olha recalls. "On the third day of the war, my brother called from Crimea and said: "Be patient, it will be over soon, we will 'liberate' you." In response, she shouted: "Sasha, you will not pass here. We will all stand and fight as best we can."

Took the TCC by storm

Vitaliy was already 58 years old. He had diabetes and had recently suffered a severe case of covid. He did not tell his wife that he was going to join the army. His high school friend served in the TRO, and they talked a lot about the army. Vitaliy gathered his documents, passed the military qualification examination, and only then told his wife - he didn't want to worry her.

PHOTO courtesy of Vitaliy Stohnev's wife

First, they went to the military enlistment office in Pervomaisk, where he was not accepted. Then there was an attempt through Mykolaiv, then Kyiv, but the man was returned home again. Vitaliy waited three days and went to the military commissariat in Pervomaisk again. Eventually, they gave in to his insistence and took him into the army.

He said: "At least one man from each family must go to the front," and he stood his ground.

A brick in the foundation of the army

"During their service, they talked every day," Olha Mykolaivna recalls.

"He was reluctant to talk about the war, saving her from anxiety, but he talked a lot about his plans - he wanted to expand his farm and get new birds. Unfortunately, this was not to be.

PHOTO courtesy of Vitalii Stohniev's wife

My husband was very handy and knew how to make anything with his own hands. In the army, there was always work for him to do - to fix something, repair it, make the necessary equipment," she adds.

"He was one of those ordinary soldiers who make up the foundation of our army: those who bite into their native land, dig trenches, build dugouts and compensated for the lack of tools in the early days of the war with their ingenuity and hard work.

PHOTO courtesy of Vitaliy Stohnev's wife

"Perhaps my husband did not perform a high-profile feat," says the soldier's wife, "but for me he is a real hero, a real man, a head of the family, a father, a Ukrainian and a defender of the country. I am proud of him and feel support from my family and friends in the village. Few of his peers joined the army. He didn't hide or stay at home - he went to the military registration and enlistment office himself, no matter what. It is thanks to such people that Ukraine lives and will live forever."

***

The memory of Vitaliy Mykolayovych Stohnev is not only the pain of loss. It is an example. An example of a man who made a conscious choice in adulthood and joined the ranks when his homeland called him. His life is about quiet, honest work, love for his family and unconditional loyalty to Ukraine.

PHOTO courtesy of Vitaliy Stohnev's wife

It is on such people that the state is supported in the most difficult times. These are the names we must keep in our memory, pass on to our children and write into the history of our struggle for freedom.

Антон Терехов