His memory will live on in wine. The story of a fallen tanker who returned from Israel to defend the Motherland

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The war for tanker Kostyantyn Mrochka from Volyn began on his birthday, April 9, 2014. The man served in the 14th separate mechanized brigade named after Prince Roman the Great in the Lesyk tank crew. In 2015, after his army service, the fighter moved to Israel for four years, where he worked in construction and founded an eco-farm. Kostyantyn Mrochko repulsed several enemy armored vehicles of the occupiers, and lured several more into the swamp. Konstantin Mrochko. Photo: Alla Mrochko. He also managed to lead a convoy of Ukrainian tanks through a minefield in Debaltseve in Donetsk region, to go through fierce battles in Maryanka and Mariupol in 2014. Nevertheless, the fighter died in an unequal battle in the village of Makariv in the Kyiv region on March 8, 2022. Kostyantyn Mrochka was posthumously awarded the title of Hero of Ukraine and awarded with the “Golden Star” order. After his death, his former employers will name a series of rosé wines in Israel in his honor. The fighter’s mother, Alla Mrochko, told the story of his life for “UP. Life”. Kostya was always very “survival”. The deceased’s mother became a widow at the age of 33. “I dared to leave my two teenage children at home, because Kosta has a sister who is 1.5 years older, and go to Poland to earn money. These were the 90s, very difficult times. Salaries were not paid anywhere. The son and daughter took care of the household: pigs, rabbits, did spins themselves,” said the hero’s mother. This is how she prepared children for independent life. I wanted them to understand that at any moment it simply might not happen. Kostya graduated from a vocational school and became a cook, but decided to become a construction worker. “No matter what my son did, he succeeded in everything,” says Mrs. Alla. In 2014, on his 30th birthday, Kostya went to the front. His mother recalls that neither she nor any other relatives saw the summons. Then he got into the 14th separate mechanized brigade named after Prince Roman the Great. “My Kostya was very ‘survival’. In 2014, when he went to fight in the ATO, the situation was much worse than now. There were no clothes, no food, sometimes they didn’t even have water,” says Mrs. Alla. The hero-tanker with his mother. Photo: Alla Mrochko The woman recalls the stories of her son, when he and his brothers were surrounded by Russians near Debaltseve, the soldiers then had only one way to leave on tanks – a minefield. “Mom, we prayed and our legs didn’t even tremble when we were driving, we were sure that we would get the brigade out,” says the hero’s mother. And so it was, no one died then. The crew carrying Konstantin also hit several enemy battleships and lured a few more into the swamp. Having won the year, Konstantin returned home. He said that it would not end like this, that there would be a full-scale war. At that time, his family fell apart, despite the fact that there was a small son. The mother strongly persuaded her son to go abroad and change his place of residence in order to disperse. The man decided to leave for Israel. He knew how to do everything… He teamed up with local guys and went to earn money. There he stayed with the aunt of a countryman. I planned to stay for 2 years, but stayed for four and a half. In Israel, Konstantin made furniture, swings, and installed electricity. All the years, his mother recalls, he worked for one man. “It was very good for him there, because he was accepted into the family as one of his own. He, together with other Ukrainians and foreigners, built a villa for a local resident,” recalls Alla Mrochko. The employer always consulted with Kostya, she adds. He bought the land, and the Volhynian helped to grow a vineyard. In order for pollination to take place better, the Ukrainian suggested breeding bees. Later, honey also began to be sold. Tanker Konstantin. Photo: Alla Mrochko Matir recalls that they also started planting strawberries there. Kostya called home and asked how best to fertilize it. Mrs. Alla recommended chicken droppings. “I remember, Kostya began to worry about where to get one, it’s so expensive here. I say, get a bird. That’s what they did. The owner supported all his ideas. Another case: the chickens did not lay eggs, he calls again for advice. I say to feed they were fed not with specialized feed, but with food like in Ukraine. Then they sowed fodder beets in Israel, and Kostya made a beet cutter so that they could be chopped. The chickens did start to lay eggs often,” says Alla Mrochko. Konstantin prepared Ukrainian dishes there. It was a kind of exchange of international experience. “And later, he tried to implement everything he practiced in Israel at home. He made me a greenhouse. We grow grapes and strawberries in it,” says the hero’s mother. She adds that the son never hid anything from the family. He said that if a full-scale war started, he would go to fight. He had already prepared his relatives for it in a month and returned to his native Volyn from Israel himself. Hero of Ukraine. Konstantin Mrochko. Photo: Alla Mrochko Kostya was very desperate No one saw the summons again in February 2022, says Konstantin’s mother. Only the military commissariat came and asked where the son was. And at that time he was helping with the evacuation of relatives from Kyiv. The man went to the front in the first days of the full-scale invasion. There he found two faithful friends Mykola and Roman. They were even given one call sign for three: “Fagot”. That was the name of the tank in which they fought. Konstantin and his brothers fought for the liberation of Kyiv Oblast. The mother recalls her son’s words that it was unbearably difficult and dangerous. “I remember our last conversation, I said, be patient, my son, you will be replaced, the new boys have left. He replied that this will not happen, there are 18-year-old children there. We have already fought, and what will they do here? They will be killed immediately.” , – says Mrs. Alla. At the beginning of March, very heavy fighting continued in the Kyiv region, near the village of Makarove, where Konstantin was stationed. It was a gray area, recalls the hero’s mother, and was constantly under fire. Everything was mined there. Mother of the Hero Alla Mrochko One of the battles proved fatal for Konstantin, when the invaders did break through the defenses near the village of Makarovo and wanted to enter Kyiv. “Kostya was very desperate. As it turned out later, he and his comrades simply went blindly at the enemy. When my son died, there was another one along with his tank. The Russians fired at them, the armored vehicles were on fire. Kostya’s tank, unlike the other one, didn’t explode, there was no ammunition inside. But it didn’t save his life,” emphasizes the mother of the deceased. Everyone died in the second car. Two mechanics and the commander survived in Konstantin’s tank. “I don’t know how everything happened. Whether he was alive or not, but he was definitely stunned,” adds Mrs. Alla. On March 9, Kosta’s family was notified of the death. The day before, they were preparing a program for him. The man died at the age of 37, just as his father died at the same time. “At that time, the nights were very cold, even down to 12 degrees below zero. The son complained that his skin was very windy. And because of this, it was simply impossible to bend his arms,” ​​says the victim’s mother. She also adds that two nights before, she had a very painful stomach area in the navel area. “It was so overwhelming that there are no words,” she recalls. “I heard then that this happens to mothers before they lose their child. I couldn’t believe it.” On the day of the tragedy, relatives hid their eyes from Mrs. Alla, she kept asking what happened, they did not answer anything. The woman realized that something had happened. Hero-defender Konstantin. Photo: Alla Mrochko. Then she saw from the window that people were standing near her gate, in particular, her friend’s son, who works at the Military Commissariat. When she saw that tears were dripping from his eyes, she said: “Don’t tell me anything. I will never believe you. My Kostya will live, he is a “survivor” under any circumstances.” Alla Mrochko never buried her son. His body burned with the tank. The whole family has been trying to return his remains for a year. It didn’t work out. On the anniversary of Buchi’s release, March 31, 2023, President Volodymyr Zelensky presented Konstantin’s relatives with the title of Hero of Ukraine and awarded him the Order of the Golden Star. Kostya wine is now drunk in Israel After the death of their son, Konstantin’s family did not stop communicating with his employers and friends in Israel. That’s how the woman found out that a drink was named after him there. “The live wine “Kostya” is dedicated to the memory of our dear friend Kostya Mrochka. He was the support of our organic farm “Lev-Adam”, a strong man with a big heart and unparalleled skill”, – they write on the back of the drink’s label. Israeli wine named after Kostyantyn Mrochko. Photo: Alla Mrochko The label for the wine “Kostya” The vineyards from which the drink was made were planted by the deceased Hero together with the youth who worked with him on the eco-farm. “Unfortunately, Kostya will never have the privilege to enjoy it. The memory of his strong hands and gentle heart lives on in this wine, in its unique refreshing taste,” the drink producers add. Read also: “If not me, then who?!” The story of the life of an orphan who died for Ukraine

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