An alley in memory of fallen heroes planted in the park near the circus
In the park on Horodotska Street, near the circus, the families of fallen defenders planted an alley of linden trees. The wives and families of the defenders planted 12 trees in memory of their heroes. Later, the trees will be marked with tokens with information about the soldiers. The saplings were planted as part of the spring campaign “Give the City a Tree.”
The 12 trees were planted in honor of 12 soldiers from different brigades and units who defended Ukraine. The memory alley was laid in the park on Horodotska Street, next to the circus. Small-leaved linden trees were planted here, the same ones that already grow in this park.
“This is an alley in memory of the fallen soldiers. Unfortunately, there are trees here for those who have not yet been returned home, who we are still waiting for. We are fighting for their memory, we want to show people the value of every day. These are our relatives and friends, and this alley will be more about life and memory.
We are united together because it is easier to live it. We share our emotions, we support each other. Most of the soldiers are buried at the Lychakiv Cemetery in Lviv, so we stick together and help each other,” said Bohdana Sprynchane, wife of the fallen soldier Oleksandr Sprynchane.
Iryna’s husband Oleksandr was not a soldier, he worked in IT. However, in the first days of the full-scale invasion, he voluntarily mobilized. He did not want to be at the headquarters, so he transferred to the unit that was moving to the East, heading a rapid response team. Oleksandr died on December 5, 2022, near the village of Dibrova, Luhansk region.
“I decided to plant a tree because my husband Oleksandr was always so cheerful. I have a story from my brothers-in-arms. When they were incommunicado, they chose names for themselves based on the Indian motif. Everyone could choose what they associated with themselves. Sasha chose an evergreen tree, and for me it will be a symbol of continuing his memory here. I also want to plant a tree in the mountains, because that was his element. It is very memorable and very important to me,” said Iryna Farion, wife of the fallen defender.
Nicole Tsapenko, wife of Hryhoriy-Hayko Stepaniuk, who died in Donetsk region, said her husband always wanted to plant a tree.
“He had a dream of planting an oak tree and a cherry tree. When he was studying in the UK, he brought back acorns of British oaks, but it so happened that they were lost. He always told me that he wanted to plant a tree, so now it’s my duty to plant a tree for him, and I think it won’t be the last tree. But today we are starting with a linden tree.
It’s a very nice location, a truly memorable alley with easy access to the townspeople, where many people can come, walk, relax and remember who made it possible for them to do so,” said Nicole.
The trees that were planted in the park on Horodotska Street are 8 years old and older. They were purchased by the families of the fallen defenders and planted as part of the spring campaign “Give the City a Tree”.
“We are constantly approached by people, unfortunately, this is the situation in the country and many people want to immortalize the memory of their loved ones in this way. We were looking for a place where we could plant a dozen trees at once. The relatives of the victims are uniting with each other, they want to do it together, to have a memorial location with many trees,” said Oksana Sofiyanchuk, a gardener in the Halych district of Lviv.
This is not the first memorial alley to be laid in the city. Trees in honor of the fallen heroes were previously planted in the Iron Water Park, there is also a park in Vynnyky and sakura trees in Sykhiv, near the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
“People unite around such initiatives. This is actually a very good form of commemorating a relative who died. And in the eyes of the people who plant trees, you can see sadness on the one hand, and faith in life on the other, because now the buds and leaves are blooming and this gives hope,” says Oksana Lutsko, deputy head of the Department of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Lviv City Council.