In memory of soldier Maksym Yerpulov (call sign "Magnet").
A serviceman from the 80th Separate Airborne Assault Galician Brigade was killed in October 2023 while defending Klishchiyivka in the Donetsk region.
5 Maxim Yerpulov was born and raised in the town of Merefa in the Kharkiv region. After finishing school, he graduated from the Kharkiv National Academy of Urban Economy. He worked as a driver and was passionate about car repairs.
6 As Maxim's mother, Larysa Yerpulova, recounts, her son decided to defend the country on March 8, 2023: that day he went to the recruitment office.
7 - For me as a mother, it was, on one hand, the most terrifying gift I could imagine for International Women's Day, - recalls Larysa with tears in her eyes. – But on the other hand, it was the most magnificent and courageous, because my child chose not to stay at home but to stand up for his Motherland, for his family.
8 Maxim became a serviceman of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, a driver of an airborne assault unit. From the very beginning to the end, he was stationed at "zero" positions.
9 - My son was a skilled driver. He could not only expertly handle any vehicle but also understood the internal mechanisms of many machines. Naturally, they put him behind the wheel right away, - his mother notes. – Maxim evacuated the wounded from the battlefield. The guys said he saved about 70 comrades. And when there were many wounded and killed in the unit, he took up arms and went to repel the Russian attack.
During his service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Maxim received two combat wounds but returned to duty after treatment.
- Where he defended the country, the situation was always extremely difficult. Fighters held back the enemy at the front day and night. It was very hard to survive because it was simply hell... He was awarded the Order of Courage III degree (posthumously) and the medal "To the Unbreakable Heroes of the Russian-Ukrainian War," - says Larysa.
0 The serviceman has a daughter, Maria, who closely resembles him. The girl is 14 years old.
1 - The hardest part was telling my granddaughter that her father had died. She was the first to sense that something had happened to him... He wanted nothing more than for his girl to be safe, for the enemy not to touch her home, his family, - emphasizes the mother. – Even while at the "zero," he was in touch with his daughter almost daily. Despite the exhaustion and the horror surrounding him, he would smile and tell stories about his comrades, about their combat life, then, catching his breath, he would say: "It's tough, but we will endure, we will defeat them!”
2 According to Larysa, on his last birthday, September 17, Maxim celebrated in a dugout with his comrades, who lit birthday candles for him to blow out and make a wish.
3 - This episode was even captured in a video story on his Instagram page. With tears in his eyes, he said that for the first time in 33 years, he was celebrated this way, and that it was probably a good sign. He wished for Victory and peace… But almost a month later, he was gone… My son was a true warrior, a man of his word, brave, and strong in spirit, devoted to Ukraine until the very end.
4 5 Since October 10, 2023, Maxim Yerpulov was considered missing in action. Later, his death was confirmed through DNA testing. The soldier died while saving wounded comrades on the battlefield.
6 Relatives created a petition on the President's website requesting that Maxim be posthumously awarded the title of Hero of Ukraine.
Eternal glory to the Defender!
Photos provided by the family of Maxim Yerpulov