Support Heroes of Odesa

Alan Bautista is organizing this fundraiser.

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Hello,

My name is Alan Bautista. I am a retired ER physician and former Naval combat surgeon serving in Afghanistan in 2004. I provided medical support for NATO military exercises in Ukraine in 2001 and returned to Ukraine in 2023 and March 2024 to observe operations and help deliver humanitarian assistance. On my recent trip to Odesa with my friend, Whitney Tilson, we had the privilege of meeting Oleksandr Gostyschev, Sergiy Tetyukhin, and Volodymyr (Vova) Kasyan.

Oleksandr (Alex) was the former deputy police chief of Odesa then served in the Ukrainian armed forces since 2014. Among his many heroic deeds, Alex first commanded a unit which helped liberate Mariupol from enemy forces. He was also involved in the evacuation of wounded comrades from Amvrosiika. He also led a company clearing enemy soldiers from Hostisshchev in Ilovaisk. When we met Alex in February, he was back on active duty as commander of the Tsunami Assault Regiment of the Fury Brigade.

Whitney and I spent 2 days with Sergiy. He was, from the start, very amicable and a pleasure to be with. Sergiy was with us as our guide, interpreter, and driver. Among the many hats he wore, Serhiy started as an economist working with several international institutions. He later spent years on the Odesa city council, moving up to Director of Economic Development, Director of Transportion, and, finally, First Deputy Mayor of Odessa before stepping down from that position in 2023 and joining his best friend, Alex, in the Fury Brigade.

Vova served in the military as an expert marksman and taught basic weapons training. He left the military in 2022 and now works trouble shooting water and energy supply failures due to ongoing Russian missile attacks on Odesa. He is still very active procuring and delivering much needed supplies to frontline troops. He also provides security to foreign visitors On a previous visit by Whitney and on my last trip, Vova provided security and drove us across the border into Moldova.

On March 15, barely 2 weeks of our meeting, both Alex and Sergiy were killed in a barbaric Russian missile strike. A residential area of Odesa was first struck and as Alex and Sergiy rushed in to provide aid, the Russians viciously attacked again in a “double tap” strike. 18 civilians were also killed along with scores wounded.

The beautiful city of Odesa is a UNESCO world heritage site located on the Black Sea. Unfortunately, it regularly comes under Russian missile and drone attacks killing and injuring scores of innocent civilians.

Oleksandr leaves a wife, Irina, who is currently on the front lines of Donbas fighting as a sniper.

Sergiy leaves his wife, Tetiana, and his two sons, 17 year old Oleksandr and 12 year old Ivan.

As an ER doctor in the Bronx, NY, I’ve become accustomed to seeing lives lost. The brutal deaths of Alex and Sergiy, though, have profoundly affected me. Sergiy, who was such a gracious host, was so proud showing Whitney and I his hometown of Odesa. On our rounds, Sergiy was well recognized by residents and warmly greeted wherever we went. As air raid sirens sounded over the city he still managed to take us to his favorite coffee stand in a beautiful park near the sea.

I would like to start a fund that would provide monthly economic support to Irina, Tetiana, Ivan, and Oleksandr. I would also like to include their close friend Vova. He also has two sons, 17 year old Akim and 5year old Klim. Sergiy was Klim’s godfather.

My goal is to raise $16,200 so that I can send them $100-150 per month to the three families for the next 3 years.

Your support would be greatly appreciated.

Yours truly,

Alan Bautista

Sergiy Tetyukhin, Whitney, parliamentarian Oleksiy Goncharenko, and myself at the Odesa Education and Culture Center.

Tsunami Regiment commander, Oleksandr Gostyschev

Volodymyr Kasyan and his son, Akim.

Sergiy presenting Whitney his armored vest prior to Whitney’s planned drive to Kherson.

Vova and I at the Ukrainian/Moldovan border before handing me off to Evgeniy.

1)This my friend Vova at the grave of Alex along with Alex’s widow, Irina.

2)Irina and Vova.

3) Tatyana with the money I recently sent.