UCU Helps Ukraine: Olexander Kozachok

Olexander Kozachok, a paratrooper, is a native of the town of Stebnyk, Lviv region. He is 23 years old and is the only son of his parents. After the announcement of the first mobilization, he signed a five-year military contract and went to war.

Olexander had been through the hottest spots of the war, which will certainly be called Russo-Ukrainian in the history books. He was in Slovyansk; in Izium, he was stopping the Russian aggression from spreading to the Kharkiv oblast; he served in Luhansk Airport. It was a bitter irony that his tragedy occurred in Shchastia (the Ukrainian for happiness), in December 2014. The militants fired from a grenade launcher at Sashko’s checkpoint, and a grenade fragment hit him in the head. By all human laws, he didn’t stand a chance. But despite horrible wounds to the skull and brain, he survived. He is currently unable to speak, although he understands everything...

He can write «Glory to the Airborne» with his left hand. He can speak with his eyes so that you understand you’ve never had a really serious conversation before. Sitting in a wheelchair, he squeezes a volunteer’s hand tightly as if to say «Do not go!..» And this actually is it, if you do not count the little daily progress in rehabilitation. Olexander has endured five operations, two of which involved trepanation of the skull.

So, obviously, Olexander needs money for rehabilitation and for the metal plates that the doctors will implant in his head (if you look at the picture more closely, you will realize what it is about). The guy loves the patriotic symbols, he listens when someone is reading, he draws. Above all, Sashko needs our prayers, sincere and warm, the ones that work wonders. For the doctors are saying that he has all the chances of full rehabilitation. The only thing is to find the right clinic (likely a foreign one) and his young body will start to overcome the condition. The Ukrainian diaspora has found rehabilitation clinics in Switzerland and Germany for Olexander. But the trip would be expensive, and his family does not have the money.

The relatives are taking care of Olexander, with his God-mother being the most active. Currently, he is in a military hospital in Lviv.

To contribute toward Olexander's treatments and therapies, please visit your branch or contact the call centre at 1.800.461.0777 to make a donation.

Lots of photos of the injured soldiers we are helping can be found on our Facebook page in the album UCU Helps Ukraine.

Read the stories of some of our other heroes:

Victor, Serhiy, Olexander, Andriy, Anton, Oleksij, Yevhen, Yurij, Serhij, and Ruslan.

Questions and inquiries about this initative can be directed to the UCU Helps Ukraine committee: Kateryna Litvinjuk klitvinjuk@ukrainiancu.com, Michael Zienchuk mzienchuk@ukrainiancu.com, and Roman Mlynko rmlynko@ukrainiancu.com