Last week, the Horlivka Institute of Foreign Languages hosted another annual series of events under the traditional name of History and Civic Education Week.

This year, the events were dedicated to the twelfth anniversary of the start of the Russian-Ukrainian war, which, according to the Law of Ukraine "On the Principles of the State Policy of the National Memory of the Ukrainian People", is defined as the war for the Independence of Ukraine against the aggression of the Russian Federation, which began on February 19, 2014.

The Week of History was opened by a lecture by Professor, Doctor of Historical Sciences of the Ukrainian Catholic University Vadym Zadunayskyi on the topic “The Use of Cossack Themes during the Russian-Ukrainian Confrontation (1991-2025)”. Until 2014, Vadym Zadunayskyi taught for a long time at the Vasyl Stus Donetsk National University and is a long-time friend of historians of the Institute of Historical and Cultural History. The lecture was attended by teachers, students, employees of the institute, as well as colleagues from the Bakhmut and Chasovoyar local history museums, educational and cultural institutions of the Bakhmut region, and interested members of the community. The issues presented by the lecturer and his deep knowledge of the topic greatly interested the audience and raised many questions.

A logical continuation of the declared theme of the Week was a meeting with military personnel and volunteers - students and graduates of the institute. Military personnel Yaroslav and Oleksandr talked about their personal path in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the specifics of their activities, determined the relevance of the profession of historian and knowledge of the English language in modern Ukrainian realities. Military chaplain Dionysius focused on the mission of service aimed at supporting military personnel and their family members.

During the meeting, the moderator, head of the Department of Domestic and Foreign History, Halyna Dokashenko, shared with all those present the good news: a graduate of the institute, Bachelor of History Denis Mukhin, a serviceman of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, who was listed as missing for seven months, returned from captivity during the last exchange, and his friends and classmates had already managed to visit him. At the same time, servicemen, graduates and students of the GIIM who sacrificed their lives in the war for the Independence of Ukraine against the aggressor country were remembered and honored.

The meeting with military personnel and volunteers – students and graduates of the institute – took place in a warm, touching and at the same time poignant atmosphere. Since teachers and students from Bakhmut and Chasovoyarsk schools were invited among the attendees, the event ended with a presentation of the history specialty and a demonstration of a video from the participants of the Student History Circle, at which the students showed their ability to discuss a historical topic in English.