Idaho resident Jimmy Hill spent the last few weeks of his life in Ukraine doing what his sister Katie Hill said he did best: being a peacemaker and bringing people together. Just a few days ago, a 68-year-old man was killed by a Russian bomb, and his sister shared the story with reporters on Saturday. (Hill family photo)
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SALT LAKE CITY. Idaho resident Jimmy Hill spent the last few weeks of his life in Ukraine doing what his sister said he did best: being a peacemaker and working to bring people together.
“He went out to stand in the store and in line for bread with the Ukrainians. He brought cookies and chocolates for the nurses. He found a woman with four small children who lived near the hospital to share food, use her internet when he worked, and (was) trying to find a way out of Chernihiv for her and others,” Katya Hill said of her 68-year-old brother.
She said he was trying to find buses to help friends leave the country when a Russian bomb fell nearby, killing him.
“My brother Jimmy was the victim of a tragedy that happened in Ukraine,” Katya Hill said during a Zoom conversation with reporters on Saturday morning.
Although her brother’s death has been confirmed by the US State Department, Katya Hill said her family is still waiting for more details from the government, including what happened to her brother’s body and where it is located.
Jimmy Hill was in Ukraine while his life partner Irina Teslenko was being treated for multiple sclerosis. Katya Hill said she had spoken to her brother about delaying Teslenko’s treatment and leaving the country before the start of the war, but he did not believe the war would really come to Ukraine and decided to stay by his partner’s side while she received treatment.
“He was sure that the invasion would not happen, that the world would not allow it, and he fought so hard for such treatment. He didn’t want to delay,” Katya Hill said. “Then the bombing started.”
During the first few weeks of the war, Katya Hill said that her brother informed her about crimes against civilians. She said that he was a forensic psychologist and lecturer at several universities in Europe, including in Kyiv, Ukraine, so he collected and shared evidence of these crimes.
He remained positive through more than 20 days of bombings, utility shutdowns and food restrictions, Katya Hill said, and he was able to communicate with his family in the US frequently thanks to hospital internet access.
Katya Hill said she heard bomb explosions in the background while talking to her brother on the phone. Jimmy Hill told her that the bombs were used specifically to kill civilians, she said, and that the bombing would stop for a few hours, just enough for people to come out to try and get supplies, and then the bombs would be dropped on people. waiting in line.
I can’t explain what the connection is between two human beings who fall in love and have such a strong bond with each other that they will go through everything. … This is a beautiful love story, but, unfortunately, it has a tragic end.
– Katya Hill, Jimmy Hill’s sister
After the war broke out, Katya Hill said her brother talked about hosting Ukrainians on his Airbnb properties in Idaho and Montana and building a “little Ukraine” with his friends. He went with his girlfriend Katrina to find information about the buses that were taking people out of the country through a safe corridor on the day of his death.
Speaking to Jimmy Hill’s family and others involved in Teslenko’s care, Katrina said that Jimmy Hill saw more than 1,000 people waiting for buses and decided to return to Teslenko at the hospital when the bomb went off. She also shared that she lost her hearing in one ear during the explosion that killed her friend.
Katya Hill said that her brother met Teslenko while teaching forensic psychology at universities in Europe, and they had a strong bond with each other. He wanted to do everything possible to stop the progression of Teslenko’s disease.
According to Katya Hill, Teslenko is still in the hospital and friends are trying to find a way to help her leave the area safely. Katrina told Teslenko’s mother that Jimmy Hill had been killed, but at that moment they didn’t want to tell Teslenko. Katya Hill said she assumed Teslenko had learned what had happened by this point.
“I can’t explain what the connection is between two people who fall in love and have such a strong connection to each other that they will go through everything,” Katya Hill said, “and of course my brother sacrificed his life for her. … It’s a beautiful love story, but unfortunately it has a tragic end.”
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Russia-UkraineIdaho