He flew high above the Carpathians in the peaceful skies of Ukraine, and after the invasion, he stood up to defend it. Paraglider Mykola Tonievych was killed in the war with the Russian occupiers.
He was born on December 2, 1988, in the village of Selyatyn, Chernivtsi region. While studying at school, he became interested in sports, taught himself various tricks, mastered a somersault, and despite all the circumstances, he never forgot about sports in his life. He graduated as a radio mechanic, and at the age of 18, he served in the airborne assault troops. After returning from the army, he constantly jumped with a parachute and adored the feeling of freedom that this process gave him.
To earn money to build the house he dreamed of, Mykola traveled to work and saved money. The first thing he bought was a long-awaited sports motorcycle to conquer the Carpathian peaks, on which his nephews loved to ride with their uncle. But in 2014, the invaders’ offensive began, and he went to defend Ukraine in the ATO zone. Despite his service, he always found time for sports: he continued to jump, trained constantly and involved his comrades in this. After serving for a year in Luhansk and Donetsk regions, he returned home and started working again. He bought a car, converted it into a sports car and started building a house. He did all the construction work on his own, putting all his love and soul into the house. After his military service, he bought a paraglider that took him high above of his native land.
On April 8, 2022, after the start of the full-scale Russian invasion, Mykola was mobilized. He got into the airborne assault troops, which he wanted to join. After completing training in Lviv and Zhytomyr, he and his comrades fought in the places of Donetsk and Luhansk regions that he had already known since the ATO. Together with the brigade, he was constantly in the hottest spots of the front line, and took a direct part in the liberation of Kharkiv region. Mykola was away from home for 11 months. When he took a vacation, he came to his native village to spend time with his family and get treatment. During his service, he tore ligaments in his leg and needed surgery.
After returning to service, he was sent to Zaporizhzhia region, where he continued to defend Ukraine from Russian invaders. His comrades recall that he never left the battlefield if someone needed help. He always pulled his colleagues out and carried them as long as necessary. But ironically, on August 22, 2023, near the village of Verbove in Zaporizhzhia, 34-year-old Mykola Tonievych was killed, and due to constant shelling, the body of the Hero was taken away only a week later…
After the victory and liberation of Ukraine from the occupiers, he wanted to invite his comrades to his home, teach them paragliding and skydiving. And, of course, he dreamed of moving into his own house, which his sister Myroslava will now complete in his memory. At home, the Hero’s family was waiting for him: mom Valentina and dad Dmytro…