“If not me, then who?!” The story of the life of an orphan who died for Ukraine

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Oleksandr Korovnyi lost his mother when he was 7 years old. The boy was taken to live with his grandmother. And when Sashka turned 9, she also died. So the little boy ended up in a boarding school, where he lived and studied. Oleksandr should not have gone to the front, because he is an orphan. However, the 28-year-old man could not do otherwise. “All my friends are fighting, and I want to,” Sashko said. And still got his way. He defended his native Donetsk region, where he was born and grew up. And he died there, fighting for his country. “Ukrainian truth. Life” tells his story. Oleksandr Korovny was born and lived in Slovyansk until the beginning of the war. After finishing the boarding school, he entered the chemical and technological college and graduated with honors. Sashko continued his education at the Donbas Pedagogical University at the Faculty of Physics and Mathematics. At the same time, he mastered the English language perfectly. Oleksandr Korovny Since the boy was an orphan, there was no one to support him financially. And it was difficult to live on one scholarship. So, in order to be able to study, Oleksandr had to combine the university with part-time jobs. In particular, he worked part-time as a bartender. So he managed to finish university, after which the young man got a job at the company. When Russian rockets began to destroy Slovyansk, Sashko, like most residents, was forced to leave his hometown. That’s how he ended up in Western Ukraine. He first came to Khotyn, Chernivtsi region. The mother of his comrade, who had already fought and was wounded, lived there as a displaced person. And then the woman saw an ad published by Mykola Brovan, a resident of the Khmelnytskyi region, on the “Shelter” website. He offered free housing to people who had lost their homes and needed a roof over their heads. Thus, in June, Oleksandr Korovnyi arrived in the village of Kochubiyiv, Kamianets-Podilskyi district, and began to live in the house of Mr. Mykola, who actually replaced his father. Sashko in the village of Kochubiyiv, Kamianets-Podilskyi district “He became to me like a son” 69-year-old Mykola Brovan divorced his wife in his youth – such are the vicissitudes of life. So Sashko became like a son to a single man. “Sasha never mentioned his father, and it was not convenient for me to ask. He was very modest, few words, but every word of his had weight. He was so sensitive, kind, decent. A man of his word – if he promises something, he will certainly fulfill it. Such you can’t help but love and respect a person. He became like a son to me,” says Mykola Brovan, who sheltered Oleksandr Korovny. The man came from Sloviansk to Kochubiiv literally empty-handed: with a small bag containing only documents. He didn’t have any things with him. Because his only goal was to take up arms as soon as possible and repel the Russian onslaught. 69-year-old Mykola, who sheltered Sashka, immediately asked to go to the front. When the great war began, Oleksandr immediately turned to the military commissariat to be taken to the front. But he was refused, because the boy is an orphan. Then several more times, the young man tirelessly asked to defend his native country, and his perseverance did work: in August 2022, Sashka was mobilized. After military training, Oleksandr Korovny joined the “Azov” assault battalion. So the defender began to perform combat tasks near Bakhmut – exactly where he wanted. Because all his friends from his native Slavyansk also fought there. There, near Bakhmut, the Hero died in a battle with the invaders on January 18. “Don’t worry, Uncle Kolya. My comrades are fighting, and I’ll be sitting in the rear? No, it’s not about me” – these are the words Sasha told me when I hinted to him that maybe you shouldn’t go, – cries Mykola Brovan . – But it was impossible to hold the boy. Rushed to the front line with all his might. His neighbors also told him that maybe he would not have gone to fight, because he had the right not to go as an orphan. But Sasha said: “If not me, then who?!” The whole street escorted Oleksandr to the front. After all, people loved the polite and always smiling young man. “I had a premonition that he would not return. That is why I asked not to go to war. And he answered me: “Don’t worry, you will remember me only with kind words.” And that’s how it happened. But it’s a pity that these kind words are addressed to a person who has already died,” said Mr. Mykola, wiping away his tears. Oleksandr Korovnyi was buried in his native Sloviansk, in which he was born and which he defended until his last breath. The Hero rests near his mother’s grave. Oleksandr together with his brothers Golden hands and a sincere heart Living in the Khmelnytsky region, Sashko did not sit idle: he constantly helped his uncle Mykola in the garden, in the household, and in the kitchen. He cooked with special love, so borscht and other dishes turned out to be incredibly tasty. “He was very hard-working, he loved gardening. He took care of flowers extremely carefully – I have a yard full of them, many varieties. And Sashko literally plucked dry leaves from every bush. Likewise for vegetables – he loved that everything grew neatly and evenly. And when he dug , then not a single weed remained behind him, he cleaned everything. I once asked him if he would be able to work in agriculture, making a living from it. And he answered: “Nothing is difficult for me, Uncle Kolya. I retrain very quickly and easily.” And Sasha’s soul is so kind that he was ready to give his last. Once my phone broke down. I took it in for repair, and they told me that you can throw it away, the device is no longer usable. And when Sasha appeared to me, he offered to give me his phone for use. Can you imagine? However, I refused, because why do I need such expensive equipment. Then he took my broken one and fixed it in literally 20 minutes! Such golden hands! I still have it I use the phone,” the man recalls. Having lived in the Khmelnytskyi region in the family of a completely unknown man for three months, Sashko once admitted: “We were tricked that bad people live in the west, evil people from Bandera. But I saw and felt with my own eyes that here it is not at all the way they scared us with Russian propaganda . I realized that there are beautiful people here. And that all of Ukraine is beautiful!” Mykola Brovan, who wholeheartedly sheltered Oleksandr Korovny, bitterly longs for his loss. After all, the man lived his short 28-year life as a Man with a capital letter. And died as a Hero of his country. “For me, he became not only a migrant tenant, but also a native person, really a son,” Mr. Mykola wipes away tears. “Sasha had serious plans for his life. And the war took away both his plans and his life. I can’t believe that Sasha won’t cross the threshold of my home and say, as before: “Uncle Kolya, I’m back.” Pity and sadness envelops the heart. He will remain in my memory as a kind and sincere person. Heroes do not die. They fly off into eternity with cranes.” *** On the “Shelter” website, caring Ukrainians can offer housing for displaced persons by posting a corresponding ad. So IDPs can find temporary shelter in any region of Ukraine or abroad, for a few days or for a longer period . The filter system will help you easily choose an option that meets your criteria and quickly contact the owner. This is a completely volunteer initiative. It was launched on the first day of the full-scale invasion by People’s Deputy of Ukraine Halyna Yanchenko. Later, the “Shelter” program received state support. Homeowners , who sheltered displaced persons, receive compensation from the state for the payment of communal services – 900 hryvnias per person per month. There are now about 16,000 ads on the site. The page has been translated into 40 languages. Viktoriya Yarizhko, specially for UP. Life

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