Funding Issues for Memorials
The family of Ukrainian actor and soldier Maksym Nelipa is unable to have a memorial installed on his grave at the expense of the city of Kyiv because he was buried at Baikove Cemetery. A municipal program that funds memorials does not apply to that location. To pay for the memorial themselves, the family has launched a fundraiser seeking 150,000 hryvnias.
Maksym Nelipa died on May 12, 2025, and his farewell ceremony was held on May 23 of the same year at the Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute's Center for Culture and Arts. He was buried with honors at Baikove Cemetery, which is notably excluded from the city's program for funding headstones. This program is, however, active at several other Kyiv cemeteries:
- Lisove
- Berkovetske
- Pivdenne
- Sovske
- Lukianivske Memorial
Andrii Nelipa, a family member, expressed frustration with the situation. He stated:
"But that's not as important as another problem: the Kyiv authorities cannot provide Maks with a memorial and a headstone—the standardized Cossack cross with a color photo on the tombstone, as Kyiv usually does for defenders."
He also emphasized his confusion over why the burial locations of Kyiv's defenders are not all considered, given that Maksym Nelipa was a prominent Kyiv citizen and a recipient of the Order of Merit.
Fundraising and Family Efforts
Andrii Nelipa reported that the family has already ordered a concrete base for the memorial but was informed that installation is impossible due to an error in the paperwork. He added:
"We are not blaming anyone, not complaining, just informing. This is the situation. Until we see this matter through to the end, we cannot focus on anything else."
As of now, the family has raised a portion of the necessary funds and is asking friends, colleagues, acquaintances, and admirers of Maksym Nelipa for help to 'worthily immortalize his memory.' This case highlights a broader bureaucratic challenge faced by many Ukrainian families who have lost loved ones in the war. The lack of a support program for burials at the prestigious Baikove Cemetery is causing distress among families seeking to honor their fallen relatives properly.
The situation surrounding Maksym Nelipa's burial underscores systemic issues in funding memorials for prominent individuals who died for Ukraine. The Nelipa family's fundraising effort may serve as an example for others facing similar difficulties in securing memorials for national heroes. The importance of such initiatives points to a need for a review of policies regarding memorial funding for the country's defenders.