Thread by @PowerUSAID

I'm enormously sad to share the death of Valeriia "Lera" Maksetska—proud Ukrainian, beloved @USAID implementing partner & brilliant, compassionate leader on building social cohesion & fighting disinformation.

She was killed by the Russian military just shy of her 32nd birthday.

Born & raised in Donetsk, Lera answered Russia's 2014 invasion by working on the humanitarian response. She survived the shelling of Donetsk, moved to Kyiv, and started working with USAID—where she became beloved as “a brave woman with a kind heart.”

Lera, a trained medic, could've left Kyiv when the invasion began, but stayed to help others. Only when her mom Irina ran out of medicine did she evacuate. As Lera, Irina & their driver Yaroslav waited in a car for a Russian convoy to pass, a tank fired on them—killing all three.

Lera’s death is devastating for @USAID, @Chemonics & all who knew her. We celebrate her fierce dedication to Ukraine & joyful spirit. As Lera wrote when Kyiv was attacked, she was angry at the awful violence “but so proud to be a Ukrainian & live someplace where beliefs matter.”