On the occasion of the Metallurgist and Miner's Day of Ukraine, Iryna Mizina received a letter of thanks from Metinvest Group's CEO. She has been working as a crane operator at Kamet-Steel's blast furnace shop since 1997.
"For personal contribution to increasing production efficiency" – behind these official lines lies the story of a wonderful woman, whose life has become intertwined with heavy industry, unbreakable faith, and boundless love for Ukraine and its defenders. She is also an extraordinarily beautiful woman who, despite the hard work and constant worry about her son, a defender, remains an embodiment of femininity and unsurpassed beauty.
Her career began right after graduating from vocational school, when the 17-year-old came to the plant for her industrial placement programme. The choice was not random: Iryna's parents also dedicated their lives to metallurgy. Her mother worked as an open-hearth furnace gas-electric welder her entire life, and her father was a foreman for the repair of refrigeration units. Despite the numerous opportunities to change her field of work, Iryna never wanted to leave the blast furnace shop.
She has now been operating multi-tonne cranes in the cast house for 28 years, transporting large-sized loads and ensuring the continuous operation of the blast furnace shop. During maintenance periods, her experience and expertise become absolutely irreplaceable. The number of people on site increases, additional obstacles appear, and non-standard tasks arise. Under such conditions, moving loads requires exquisite precision:
"The crane operator's work requires continuous concentration of attention throughout the entire shift. Even a small mistake can have fatal consequences," explained Iryna. "We bear enormous responsibility for the lives and health of people, and for preserving equipment. Effective crane operation is only possible with ideal coordination with personnel working in the cast house – blast furnace operators, slingers, and maintenance teams. Any misunderstanding can lead to disruptions or accidents. However, our team is wonderful, and we understand each other from a half-word. I am convinced that the blast furnace shop has the best team. Here you always work with inspiration. Humanity and support are what we value most of all. Everyone will always help, support, and sincerely sympathise with you. The blast furnace shop is about friendship, reliability, trust, where everyone is like one entity – both managers and workers standing shoulder to shoulder, always together. It is impossible to leave such a team, no matter how hard the work may be."
Iryna's life is not limited to work alone. She actively participates in sports. Cycling and the gym help her "relax" after hard work. But the years of war have become a real test for the woman.
Since 2022, her only son, 23-year-old Vladyslav, has been on the front line. He has suffered numerous injuries and concussions, and despite his young age, he already has grey hair. Since childhood, he had been dreaming of becoming a border guard. He studied at a military academy, but when the full-scale war began, he suspended his education and joined the defence of the country.
He told me: "Mother, who else if not me? At least, I studied military matter. In 2014, during the ATO, young boys like me gave their lives to give us the opportunity to grow up. Now it is our turn. And I will do everything I can so that Ukrainian children can become adults," shares Iryna about her conversation with her son. "Each day is a test for me. I cannot call him myself, because it is very dangerous. I am always waiting for him to call. There were cases when Vladyslav's unit fell into an ambush and was surrounded. They even said goodbye to life. Yes, I am constantly on edge... But we have a rule: when he calls I have no right to cry. We talk about good things, we make plans for the future, we laugh and joke. I understand that what hurts them and the other boys at the front most is when their loved ones cry."
Despite constant anxiety for her son, Iryna does not give up. She is waiting for her Vladyslav to return while actively helping the military, maintaining contact with her son's fellow soldiers and colleagues from the blast furnace shop, who are now on the front line. The woman even became a godmother to the son of her fallen colleague:
"The child was born after his father's death. I had not even known my colleague's wife before this, but I was searching for this serviceman. It so happened that she asked me to become the godmother of their child. Today, the baby is three years old. Of course, he will never see his father, although he very much resembles him – the same little eyes and smile. And it gives me pleasure to give him a bit of warmth and attention from myself."
Every day Iryna makes at least small donations to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, because she believes that changing this world must start with oneself. She believes that everything will change for the better; the main thing is to do everything possible to make it happen. The woman continues to help the military, work hard, supporting the steel front of the country, and studies at university majoring in ferrous metallurgy. But most of all, she dreams of finally meeting and embracing her son, a hero, and together with him seeing a happy future for Ukraine.
