December 28, 2022
Military serviceman Yuri Kravchenko, nicknamed “Staryi” (“Old”), was killed on December 28, 2022, while carrying out a combat mission in the area of the city of Kostiantynivka in Donetsk region. On November 4, the defender turned 50 years old.
Yuri Rostyslavovych was born in the village of Liubashivka, Odesa region. He received a secondary education. In civilian life, he worked as a driver. He enjoyed fishing and dedicated his free time to his family. From May 2017, he participated in the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO) / Joint Forces Operation (JFO). Later, he returned to civilian life.
With the onset of full-scale war, Yuri once again set out to defend his country from occupiers. On February 26, 2022, he joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He served as a senior rifleman in the 28th Separate Mechanized Brigade named after the Knights of the Winter Campaign. Together with his comrades, he took part in the liberation of Mykolaiv and Kherson regions, and then their unit was transferred to defend the Bakhmut district of Donetsk region.
“He loved his family. He was a hospitable host. He loved and was loved. He had two children. He was a good, hardworking person with a cheerful disposition. He had many plans, but it was not meant to be… In the summer of 2022, he was wounded in Kherson region, but even without fully recovering, he returned to his comrades. ‘I can’t do otherwise, little sister, you’ll understand,’ he used to tell me. My brother was a support for both the family and friends. Now we have simply become orphans,” said the soldier’s sister, Natalia Mironiuk.
Yuri was buried in the Alley of Glory at the cemetery in his native Liubashivka.
At home, he was awaited by his sister, civilian wife, son, daughter, and grandson.