Meridian Aviator Gives Back to Ukraine

A Ukraine-born Navy aviator who now lives right here in Meridian is working to bring hope to his family and to the Ukrainian people back home. Twin States News sat down with him and found out how he plans to help.

A story of a hometown town hero inspired Lt. Cmdr. Anton Leonardes to create a patch that represents hope.

“There was a story about a pilot in Kyiv. Kyiv, Ukraine where I grew up. He rose, stood

up to the challenge of defending the homeland, defeating so many fighter jets from the city

and I took that story, and I ran with it.”

The money Anton receives from selling his patch will be sent back to Ukraine. Lt. Leonardes has several family members still living in Kyiv including his mother.

“People start talking closer and closer and asking if your mother is, okay? I don’t know

100% if she is okay, but I did talk to her. The most important thing is to stay positive.”

Ever since the Russian invasion, Lt. Leonardes talks with his mother as much as possible:

“So, talking every day to her, it really gets goosebumps on the back of my neck when she was going to the metro for shelter, to hear the raids going off for the sirens, it almost like … you can’t even comprehend the situation, it’s surreal”, said Cmdr. Aton.

Lt. Leonardes has sold at least 1,000 patches so far, he says the support is overwhelming.

“It’s not about trying to help a single person. It's about spreading hope and how my whole life was based on it. This realm of what I could do. I went into the ready room where we go before our flights before we brief and just drew something of a concept in the last 30 years of my life. What should I do? What can I do?

To find out more about the patches to help the people of Ukraine you can visit Hope Patch (webflow.io).