Mom learned about her death from social networks. Let's remember senior soldier Maria Rybiна.

Every day at 9 a.m., Ukrainians honor the memory of all those whose lives were taken by the Russian-Ukrainian war. Today, let's remember Maria Rybiна.

Defender Maria Rybiна, senior soldier, clerk of the 111th separate brigade of territorial defense of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, returned to the Ratniv community after a shield - she passed away on October 13, 2024, in a medical facility in the city of Sumy. This was reported by village head Vitaliy Biruk and the Volyn news service.

Maria Rybiна was born on August 17, 1992, in Toretsk in Donetsk region. Her father passed away when the girl was nine years old, her mother raised her alone, and Mariika tried to support her mother, striving to earn some money to help her. After school, she completed manicure courses and obtained a profession as a cook. Then she went to study at the Kharkiv Zoo-Veterinary Academy.

Service in the Armed Forces and war

In 2013, Maria Rybiна gave birth to her son Igor. The father of Igor, Volodymyr, with whom Maria lived in a civil marriage, was a military man. In 2014, he returned from a peacekeeping mission in Libya to defend Ukraine. He served as a driver in the medical company. In 2016, he was severely wounded, from which he could not recover - in 2017, Volodymyr passed away.

Maria obtained a full higher education and a master's degree in engineering technology specializing in the processing, certification, and standardization of agricultural products. All graduates of veterinary universities are conscripted. So, in parallel with her studies, the girl completed military training where she received the specialty of a dog handler.

The mother of the defender recalls that after completing the academy, Maria went with friends to field training on March 14, 2016, where she took the military oath. After that, several people from her course ended up in the area of the antiterrorist operation in eastern Ukraine, including Maria. From 2016 to 2022, she was in the ranks of the Armed Forces, despite the fact that she herself was raising a minor child. She was immediately sent to the 65th Kharkiv mobile hospital, and in 2017, she transferred to the 12th specialized battalion attached to the 72nd Bila Tserkva brigade. She served in it until her release in 2022.

Service on the front line

Although she was officially a clerk, during her years of service, she mastered difficult military affairs and performed combat missions no worse than experienced male fighters. Irina Rybiна states that in war there is a staffing list, but there is no profession. Like everyone, her daughter took shooting courses. She could use weapons professionally. She knew what an RPG, mortars, automatic rifles, and anti-tank means were. She constantly reassured her mother that she was a clerk, that her task was to work with documents, but she also went on duty, slept in dugouts, and evacuated civilians and military personnel.

Even when in 2021 she was in Avdiivka with the 72nd brigade (which is 33 km from our home), she always said, "Mom, why are you worried? I'm just handling paperwork as usual!" But when they needed refrigerators because the heat was starting, it turned out she was in the dugouts with the guys and holding the Yasynuvata road to prevent leaving Avdiivka," recalls mother Irina.

Recognition and last days

In 2019, Maria received an award for participating in battles at the Svitlodarsk Duna, and on March 17, 2020, she was awarded the medal "For Courage" for participating in the rescue of civilians and military medics in the area of the city of Zolote.

When the full-scale invasion began, Maria with her brigade was in Kyiv region. Then they moved to the Bakhmut area. There, the girl received a severe concussion. After treatment in the hospital, she ended up near Avdiivka, then in Kurakhove. From there, Maria resigned - to take care of her son and due to health problems.

Her mother and son lived in Toretsk. Her mother was a rather successful private entrepreneur. However, in April 2022, they had to leave everything and evacuate from the city. Maria's commander helped them - he sent them to his relatives in Volyn. After her discharge from service, Maria came there too. However, she did not settle in peaceful life. It was difficult to find a job, plus some people made inappropriate comments about her as a military person and a Donetsk resident. And she returned to service - became a clerk in the 63rd battalion of the 111th brigade of territorial defense. She promised her mother that she would serve in the rear but ended up in Kharkiv region, then in Sumy region, from where fighters made sorties into the Kursk region.

Disappearance and search

Since August 15, Maria Rybiна had not been in contact, and her mother began to search for her. The police joined the search. Among the killed, unidentified bodies during that period in Sumy, Maria was not found. Only later did a medic from the battalion contact her mother and report that her daughter was in the hospital, being treated.