Event organizers: About 140 family members will come to Kyiv to participate in the meeting in memory of Donetsk airport defenders

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Kyiv, January 13, 2016. On January 16, at 3p.m., a commemorative meeting in honor of Donetsk airport defenders “Legendary Heroes – the ‘Cyborgs’” will be held at the Central House of Officers. The event is dedicated to the sad anniversary of January 19-20, when “concrete broke down” in Donetsk airport, and more than 50 last airport defenders died after it was undermined, said Natalya Sokolenko, “Hromadske Radio” journalist, activist, at a press briefing at Ukraine Crisis Media Center. She said the event is planned to commemorate the fallen soldiers of the 80th separate highly mobile airborne brigade of the 3d Battalion, 81st, 93rd, 95th separate airmobile brigades, 90th separate airmobile battalion, 57th separate motorized infantry brigade and 74th separate reconnaissance battalion.

Kostyantyn Vynnychenko, President of the Combatants Charity Foundation “Unity of sworn brothers”, said that on January 16, about 140 family members of airport defenders will come to Kyiv. “They will meet for the first time over this period, bring a lot of materials, and get acquainted. Same time our country will get a lot of useful information to honor the heroes and praise heroic courage of these people – the legendary Cyborgs,” said Vynnychenko.

Hero of Ukraine Oleh Mikhnyuk’s wife Iryna, a representative of the coordination council of “People helping people” platform, said that in the West on January 16, the fallen Cyborgs’ family members will be included in the base platform. According to her, the uniqueness of this initiative is that the fallen heroes’ family members can directly receive targeted assistance. “The platform offers a profile for each member of the family of the deceased, opens a bank account, and all those willing to provide help can do it directly, bypassing obstacles,” said Iryna Mikhnyuk. Families can also interact and support one another.

In addition, as part of commemorating the fallen heroes, proposals to rename streets in the country in honor of the heroes are considered, said Oleksiy Kopyshynskiy, Head of “All-Ukrainian Alliance of ATO fighters and volunteers”. “We should rename streets in honor of the Heroes, who wrote the history of independent Ukraine in big letters with their blood and their lives,” he said. Kopyshynskiy also announced that on January 22, on the Day of Unity of Ukraine, all Donetsk airport heroes will be honored near Memorial Wall at St. Michael’s Square.

Details of commemorative meeting on Facebook page “Legendary Heroes – the ‘Cyborgs’ “- the last defenders of Donetsk airport”.