Russia Killed Them: Cultural Figures

With the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the ABO media development agency created the project "Memorial: Killed by Russia." The Memorial preserves the names of civilians and military personnel who died as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. "We created this memorial so that you can learn about everyone who was killed by the Russian army," the media says.

Svidomi in collaboration with "Memorial: Killed by Russia," tells about cultural figures who were killed by Russia.

29-year-old Anastasiia Borovyk died in Kamianka, Zaporizhzhia region — on August 26, Russians fired rockets at residential buildings. Anastasiia's 8-year-old and 2-year-old sons were also killed by shelling.

Borovyk was the head of the cultural sector of the "Centre of Culture and Leisure" of the Kamianka Settlement Council. Oleksandr Starukh, Zaporizhzhia Governor, noted that neither she nor her colleagues cooperated with the Russians when they occupied Kamianka.

In 2021, Anastasiia Borovyk graduated from the Department of Theory and Methods of Teaching Art Disciplines of Berdiansk State Pedagogical University. Her major was secondary education in musical art.

Cultural figure Liudmyla Linovska died on August 5 due to the shelling of the village of Novovorontsovka in the north of the Kherson region. The missile hit her home at around 4 a.m. Her husband and two sons were also at home. They survived.

49-year-old Liudmyla Linovska worked for many years in the culture department of the Novovorontsovka settlement community. From the beginning of the full-scale invasion, she remained in the village and helped the elderly residents.

In the Kherson regional center of folk art, Linovska is talked about as a star of the Novovorontsovka region, a talented leader and choirmaster.

"She did a lot for the development of culture in her native land," colleagues note.

"Liudmyla founded music ensembles, a choir. She was a real leader, an "engine" and the brain center of all cultural institutions of the former Novovorontsovka district," added Olena Shmarkovska, a representative of the village council.

On March 1, 2022, Valeriia Yutina, an artist and volunteer from Nova Kakhovka, was killed during the shelling of the Kharkiv Regional State Administration. Her body was not found until March 22. All these days, the relatives did not lose hope that the girl was alive.

"She was found on the 22nd day after the explosion in the Kharkiv RSA, and before that, she loved tea with honey, walking, loud companies, theaters, music, all kinds of adventures, and helping people in need. In fact, she spent her last days helping people. She joined the ranks of volunteers to make every effort to end the soul-destroying war, which has no meaning," said friend Artem Kocherhin.

Yutina graduated from Dovzhenko Lyceum No. 1 and the Kharkiv State Academy of Culture. Most recently, she worked as a director at the Palace of Culture.

"Our whole city applauded the theatrical production "The Guardian," which was invented and staged by Valeriia. From now on, she is our eternal heavenly Guardian!" said the administration of the school which the director graduated from.

The 38-year-old artist Serhii Zakhliupanyi was killed by Russian soldiers in Hostomel. The family lost contact with him on March 4. On March 21, relatives found out that Serhii had died.

"March 21 is the worst day of my life. They called us and told us the terrible news that Serhii had been shot by the invaders. They found him near the garages, our friends and neighbors who gathered there recognized him," wrote Nataliia Zakhliupana, Serhii's mother.

It later became known that the Russians had tortured the man before killing him and then shot him five times.

Serhii was an artist, he exhibited his works, in particular, at the Andriivskyi Descent in Kyiv. He had a YouTube channel where he shared his worldview. He received his higher education at the Kyiv National University of Construction and Architecture.

As a result of a missile strike on Vinnytsia on July 14, over two dozen civilians were killed. Among them is Halyna, the wife of the dean of the Lviv Academy of Music, Yaroslav Oleksiv. The couple's son, 8-year-old Roman, was with his mother at the time of the explosion. The boy was taken to the hospital with multiple injuries.

"Unfortunately, my Haliusia died, we are fighting for Romchyk and praying," wrote Yaroslav Oleksiv.

Halyna Oleksiv was a musician. She studied at Vinnytsia Children's Music School No. 2. After that, she graduated from Vinnytsia Leontovych College of Culture and Arts.