In the village of Oriv in Lviv region, a farewell ceremony is taking place for the fallen defender Ihor Stronchak. The event has coincided with the Feast of the Protection of the Most Holy Mother of God and the Day of Defenders of Ukraine, which for the village is also traditionally the parish feast day.
It is reported that contact with Ihor Stronchak was lost on 19 August 2025. The family and community of Oriv hoped until the very end for his return. Later, the identification of the bodies of fallen servicemen confirmed that the soldier had been killed while defending Ukraine.
Stronchak Ihor Yaroslavovych was born on 22 February 1979 in Oriv into a large patriotic family. Fellow villagers remember him as a calm, level-headed and hard-working person, whose opinion was respected both in the village and beyond. At the beginning of the full-scale invasion, he was working abroad, but he returned home and joined the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, where his brother was already serving.
According to his loved ones, Ihor Stronchak deliberately refused to remain abroad and went to serve in order to fulfil his civic duty and to protect his family, Oriv, Lviv region and Ukraine. He was killed in August 2025. His portrait was placed on the so-called Wall of Hope in the Church of the Protection in Oriv, next to the photographs of other fallen defenders of the village.
When news of his death became known, the hearse carrying the coffin of Ihor Stronchak was met at the Heroes’ Crossroads by his relatives, representatives of the authorities of Truskavets and Drohobych district, as well as numerous residents of Oriv who came by bus to honour the soldier. After a joint prayer and the singing of the State Anthem of Ukraine, the funeral cortege passed through the villages of the community and the town of Truskavets, where people lined the roadside to pay tribute to the defender who is returning forever to his native village.
The body of Ihor Stronchak will be buried at the Oriv cemetery, near the graves of other fallen defenders and his ancestors. The report states that today, 1 October, at 19:30, a parastas service will be held in his family home, and the funeral is scheduled for tomorrow, 2 October, at 12:00.
The community of Oriv extends its condolences to the family of the fallen defender and prays for the repose of his soul.