On Thursday, 27 August, Lviv will hold a city farewell ceremony for the defenders Maksym Izhov, Vasyl Shpik and the woman defender Tetiana Kucheriava, who were killed while defending Ukraine from the Russian occupiers. The city authorities call on residents and visitors of Lviv to join the farewell and to refrain at this time from entertainment and celebrations.
The funeral rite will begin at 11:00 at the Garrison Church of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul. At approximately 11:30, a citywide farewell ceremony will take place on Rynok Square. The burial will be held at Lychakiv Cemetery, at the Field of Honourable Burials No. 87 on Pasichna Street.
Maksym Izhov (04.03.1992 — 11.10.2025) was born in the city of Mukachevo, Zakarpattia region. He studied at Mukachevo Lyceum No. 5 of the Mukachevo City Council of Zakarpattia region. He worked as a shop assistant at the leased enterprise “Halytskyi Market”.
His relatives remember Maksym as cheerful, optimistic, kind, energetic and fair. He was passionate about ballroom dancing, music, fishing and sport, particularly football, and in his free time he enjoyed playing mobile games. In 2025 he rose to the defence of Ukraine from the Russian occupiers, defending the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the state in the Donetsk sector as part of the 81st Separate Airmobile Brigade of the Air Assault Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Maksym Izhov is survived by his wife, son, friends and family.
Vasyl Shpik (13.01.1968 — 20.08.2026) was originally from the village of Sukhovolia, Lviv region. He studied at Sukhovolia Lyceum of the Zymnovodivka Village Council of Lviv district, Lviv region, and did his compulsory military service. He worked as a current repair worker at Secondary Comprehensive School I–III degrees No. 55 of the Lviv City Council.
According to his loved ones, Vasyl was a just, determined, strong-spirited and optimistic man with a strong-willed character. He loved his work, preferred an active lifestyle, did sport, particularly tennis, and in his free time took care of the household and spent time in nature picking mushrooms. In 2023 he rose to the defence of the Motherland from the Russian invasion. He served in the Donetsk sector, first as part of the 10th Separate Mountain Assault Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and later in the 143rd Separate Mechanised Brigade of the Land Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He was awarded the medal “War Veteran”. Vasyl Shpik is survived by his wife, two sons, two grandchildren, sisters, a brother and family.
Tetiana Kucheriava (24.02.1987 — 26.08.2026) was born in the settlement of Shevchenkove, Kharkiv region. She graduated from Shevchenkove Secondary Comprehensive School No. 2, and received her higher education at the National Technical University “Kharkiv Polytechnic Institute”. She completed training at the military department at the Military Institute of Tank Troops of the same university and from 2011 served in the Armed Forces.
Her relatives describe Tetiana as a kind, positive, optimistic, caring and goal-oriented person. She loved travelling, spending time with her family, was interested in psychology and obtained a Candidate of Psychological Sciences degree. With the onset of the Russian-Ukrainian war, she rose to the defence of the Motherland, mastered driving a tank and constantly improved her military skills. In 2015 she became the first woman tank operator in Ukraine.
In 2016 Tetiana served as deputy commander of the humanitarian project of the Civil-Military Cooperation Directorate of the Armed Forces of Ukraine “Evacuation 200”, where she carried out tasks involving the exhumation, transportation and transfer of the bodies of fallen Ukrainian servicemen to their families. Later she passed on her practical and combat experience to cadets of the Hetman Petro Sahaidachnyi National Army Academy. She was honoured with departmental awards of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine and the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Tetiana Kucheriava is survived by her son, husband, mother, sister and family.