An Aldi official has died after traveling to fight with the Ukrainian army. Oleksandr Zavhorodniy, known as Alex, worked at the store in Sandyford, Ireland, before heading to his homeland after the Russian incursion,
He had lived in Ireland for over 20 years but decided to fight for his country. He was reportedly a sniper for the Ukrainian army when he was killed, reports the Irish Mirror.
A gofundme page set up by his friends has already collected more than 21,000 euros to cover funeral expenses and help them financially. Anna Neilande, who organized the campaign with other friends, posted: “Our dear friend Alex died on March 30.
“As you know, he spent over 20 years in Ireland, where he found his second home. His heart, however, remained in Ukraine, and that is why he chose to return there…to protect his country and his people.
“When Alex arrived in Warsaw, he gave everything he had at the time to people in need (women and children). When he arrived at the military unit, he remained positive and did his best to calm his worried family and friends with a joke and send some funny pictures of it.
“His kindness and sense of humor will be missed by all of us, even in the most difficult of situations. This fundraiser is to try and help his family, who are now mostly displaced and devastated far from home. .
“They won’t be able to attend his funeral in his hometown of Ohtyrka. Nonetheless, we want to make sure his family can give Alex the memorial he deserves to honor his memory and bid his final farewell.”
Father-of-two Alex, 45, died on March 30 when Donbass came under heavy shelling. His youngest teenage daughter and his ex-wife were able to leave Ukraine safely, and his eldest is living abroad. Some friends said Wednesday they believed Oleksandr was deployed as a sniper for the Ukrainian army when he was killed.
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