Canadian volunteer medic has died in Ukraine, family says
CBC
A 28-year-old Canadian volunteering as a medic during the Russian invasion of Ukraine has died, according to his father.
Grygorii Tsekhmistrenko was from Ukraine, but was a Canadian citizen. He lived in Kinistino, Sask., for years with his parents before moving to Port Alice, B.C., on Vancouver Island, his father, Vitalii Tsekhmistrenko, told CBC News from Kyiv.
"He wanted to build a house on the water after the war," his father said.
Tsekhmistrenko, known as Greg to friends, died some time between the night of Jan. 14 and the early hours of Jan. 15 in Bakhmut, according to a volunteer soldier who spent time with Tsekhmistrenko during the war.
The soldier said he's now on his way to Kyiv for Tsekhmistrenko's funeral.
When asked to confirm Tsekhmistrenko's death, Global Affairs Canada said it couldn't provide any information "due to security considerations."
Vitalii Tsekhmistrenko said he and his wife had travelled to Kyiv from Canada to spend Christmas with their son. They were all together for the holidays.
Tsekhmistrenko's father said he came to Ukraine in January 2022 as hints of war started to show in the news. When Russia invaded Ukraine, he became a volunteer medic.
Instagram posts from 2022 show Tsekhmistrenko fundraising for medical supplies.
Through tears, Lusa Tshibangu told CBC News she and Tsekhmistrenko celebrated their friendship anniversary every year on Dec. 3. The two met at a church camp in Indiana in 2013, but really got close in 2018, she said.
"We first started out with candles and then cupcakes," she said from her home in Fort Worth, Texas. "But this year, because of the war…" she trailed off.
The two weren't able to celebrate, but she said Tsekhmistrenko never forgot. "He kept reminding me every single day before, saying, 'Don't forget our friend-iversary.' "
She said Tsekhmistrenko told her he was already thinking of going to help Ukraine's efforts against Russia back in the summer of 2021 and that she tried to talk him out of it.
"It is his country, and so he knew from the get-go — no matter what happened — he would go and fight for Ukraine."