Hundreds of mourners gathered in Kyiv on Tuesday to bid farewell to Vitalina Yarovenko, a 20-year-old university student and volunteer medic killed by a Russian strike while assisting those injured in an earlier attack.
The funeral procession, marked by attendees dressed in white and embroidered shirts as requested by Yarovenko's family, moved through the city center.
Yarovenko, a fourth-year psychology student at the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, had been volunteering with the Hospitallers, a medical organization that provides aid at the sites of Russian attacks. On Saturday, she responded to a missile strike in Kyiv’s Darnytskyi district. As she and other volunteers were treating the wounded, a second strike hit the same location, according to her relatives and friends. Ukrainian officials have previously accused Russia of employing a "double tap" tactic, using a second missile to target first responders.
At Independence Square, a minute of silence was observed for those killed defending Ukraine. Yarovenko's mother, Nataliia, addressed the crowd, expressing both profound grief and immense pride in her daughter's actions.
Another volunteer working alongside Yarovenko, 25-year-old Eva Royce, was also killed in the attack. Her remains were severely burned, and identification was still pending.
Friends recalled Yarovenko's commitment to Ukraine, noting her plans to enlist after university and her prior involvement in fundraising for the military, volunteering at a military hospital, and organizing youth military training. They remembered her vibrant personality and sense of humor.
Serhii Beskrestnov, a presidential adviser and family friend, expressed his grief, stating, "But when it happens away from the front, to people who are helping ... I don’t know. I have no words right now."
According to Ukraine's air force, Russia launched 220 aerial weapons across Ukraine that night, including 35 missiles and 185 drones. Ukrainian defenses intercepted only a small fraction of these. Kyiv authorities reported at least nine deaths and 33 injuries in Kyiv from the attacks that night, highlighting Ukraine's ongoing need for Western-supplied air defense systems, particularly against ballistic missiles.
Yarovenko was later buried at a military cemetery in Kyiv, a rare distinction for a civilian. Her mother spoke of the need for Ukrainians to persevere through the war to protect the country for future generations.