The defender needs rehabilitation

Roman Hulych, call sign KILLER, is a war veteran who lost his lower limb in battle. He now needs specialized rehabilitation to restore his overall physical condition, learn to balance, and prepare for prosthetics.

"I am a soldier of the 419th Separate Motorized Infantry Battalion of the 42nd Brigade. I was mobilized on August 14, 2024, and served in the Kharkiv region. On March 1, 2025, around 6:45 a.m., near the village of Shestakove, I sustained a severe gunshot and shrapnel injury.

It was just another morning at war. But it became the day that changed my entire life.

As a result of the explosion, I suffered shrapnel wounds to my right arm and left leg, and I lost my right leg – amputation at the upper third of the thigh. A tourniquet was applied right there on the battlefield. Unfortunately, in such cases, time works against the wounded. In Kharkiv, my leg was amputated, and the other wounds were treated and stitched.

On March 8, I was transferred to Lviv in moderate condition. The wounds healed relatively quickly, but phantom pain reminds me of them every day. There’s still numbness in my right hand. Still, the desire to get back on my feet is unbreakable – even if not my own feet anymore.

To return to active life, I urgently need specialized rehabilitation at the "Western Rehabilitation and Sports Center" of the NSCIS. This will help me recover my overall physical condition as quickly as possible, learn to maintain balance, prepare for prosthetics, and train the muscles I still have. This is my chance to regain control over my body – and over my life.

Unfortunately, this rehabilitation requires funding – 90 000 UAH. And I have to ask for help so that I can stand again, move again, live again – not just exist after being wounded.

My story is not unique. But it is real. The war isn’t somewhere far away – it’s here. It takes away parts of our bodies, but it doesn’t take away our human dignity. My goal is to recover and not lose myself in this new body".