Cornish Guardian (Bodmin & East Cornwall)
Funding appeal after shock death of Ukrainian refugee
AUKRAINIAN man who moved to the UK after Russia’s invasion has been found dead at the home of his sponsor.
Dmytro Tipakov, 38, died suddenly and the woman who hosted him is trying to get him repatriated so he can be buried in his home country by his family.
Jen Burnett, 56, welcomed Dmytro – known as Dima – into her Mevagissey home in December 2022 and found him dead last month. While his death remains unexplained, it is understood to have been related to his epilepsy.
Ms Burnett said Dima was not fluent in English but he’d been learning while working as a chef at The Sharksfin restaurant in the village and became known for his “huge smile” and friendly nature.
“I treated him like my son and he was just an amazing, amazing man,” she said. “He was such a lovely man. He was Eastern Orthodox, so very religious, and spent a lot of time working with the church in Ukraine. Although he wasn’t able to get to the church here as often as he would have like because there is only one in Cornwall.
“He loved being outside. He was always cycling, especially up and down the hills which he didn’t like as much but he would be on the beaches or take a bus to Charlestown or into St Austell to go around the shops.”
She said had he spoken more fluent English he would have likely been friends with everyone due to his positive and friendly nature.
“People didn’t know him as much as they might have if he had spoken more English but a lot of people knew him by his smile,” she added. “At The Sharksfin they used Google Translate and he had a great sense of humour and they would talk to him a lot through translation or even miming.”
Dima came to Cornwall at the request of his family when the Russia-Ukraine war broke out. He had applied to join the Ukrainian Army but was rejected on medical grounds due to his existing medical condition.
“One of the reasons I want to send him home for burial is that cremation is allowed in the Orthodox religion but it is not as accepted as an actual burial and his family, they really want him back there. I keep thinking about his mother who put him on a plane to go to safety and now he’s coming home to be buried.”
Jen, originally from Minnesota, has two daughters of her own who are a similar age to Dima’s age when he died and she “can’t imagine” the pain his mother is feeling.
In an online fundraiser to cover the cost of a repatriation flight, she said: “At this time, I am asking for donations of any amount to help pay the cost of sending him home. Any and all money donated will go directly to pay the cost of his repatriation and burial.
“If more money is raised than needed for these costs, it will be sent to his mother, Ludmilla, to support her as she grieves the loss of her son.”
It has raised £3,300 towards a target of £6,000 and can be found at www. justgiving. com/ crowdfunding/DimasBurialFund
❝❝ At The Sharksfin they used Google Translate and he had a great sense of humour and they would talk to him a lot through translation or even miming
Jen Burnett