'He will be forever 21': Scottish community mourns former pupil killed fighting in Ukraine

A young Ukrainian man who once studied at a high school in south-west Scotland has been killed while serving on the frontline in his home country, prompting an outpouring of grief from both his former school and the local Ukrainian community that welcomed him as a refugee.

Arkadii Petrov, who was 21, moved to Dumfries and Galloway as a teenager with his family after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. He enrolled at Kirkcudbright Academy, where he spent a year completing his S6 studies, before deciding to return to Ukraine to join the fight against Russian forces.

His death was confirmed in a tribute that highlighted the journey of a young man who arrived in Scotland as a displaced teenager and later made what those who knew him described as a deeply adult decision to take up arms for his homeland. He was killed in action in the east of the country.

Peter Kormylo, archivist at the Ukrainian Prisoner of War chapel in Lockerbie, where Petrov was a regular attendee at services, said the loss had shaken the wider Ukrainian community in the south of Scotland. He described Petrov as a courteous and serious young man who had arrived in the region with his mother and three younger siblings — one brother and two sisters — after fleeing the war.

Kormylo recalled meeting Petrov on several occasions and spoke of a thoughtful individual whose quiet demeanour belied a strong sense of purpose. He said the young man had always been determined to return to Ukraine and fight, a conviction that never wavered during his time in Scotland.

One memory in particular stood out. Kormylo described finding Petrov alone in the chapel after everyone else had left, sitting and writing what appeared at first glance to be letters but were in fact prayers. He said the scene revealed a young man of unusual depth, someone who reflected seriously on his responsibilities and ultimately felt compelled to fulfil what he saw as his patriotic duty — something, Kormylo noted, that many Ukrainians have chosen to do since the invasion began.

The news of Petrov's death, Kormylo said, had been difficult for the whole community to absorb. He noted that Petrov was just 21 years old, a life cut short at its very beginning, and said the phrase "he will be forever 21" captured the tragedy of a young man whose future was taken from him.

Kormylo also reflected on the circumstances that brought Petrov to Scotland. He arrived at around 16 or 17 years of age, a refugee alongside his mother, at a time when the family could not have known what lay ahead. In Scotland, Petrov grew from a teenager into a young adult, forming his own views and eventually reaching a decision that Kormylo characterised as profoundly mature. Despite the uncertainty of displacement, Kormylo said, Petrov held a firm belief in Ukraine's eventual victory.

The archivist said the Ukrainian community in the south of Scotland was deeply upset, adding that the pain of the loss was felt widely. The Lockerbie chapel, which has long served as a focal point for Ukrainians in the region, had been a place of comfort and connection for Petrov and others displaced by the conflict.

Tributes also came from Kirkcudbright Academy, the school Petrov attended during his time in Scotland. Anthony Tuffery, the school's rector, said everyone at the academy was saddened to learn of his death, describing him as a polite, respectful and hardworking young man.

Tuffery noted that Petrov had been at the school for only a single year while completing his final year of secondary education, but said his character had clearly left an impression on those around him. He extended the school's deepest sympathies to Petrov's family and friends, saying their thoughts were with them at an incredibly difficult time.

The reaction from both the school and the chapel illustrates the reach of Petrov's short life, touching institutions and individuals across a rural corner of Scotland as well as the Ukrainian diaspora that has settled there since the war began.

His story also reflects a broader pattern that has emerged since 2022, in which Ukrainians who fled abroad — including young people who had begun rebuilding their lives in countries such as the UK — have chosen to return home to serve, sometimes at enormous personal cost.

For the Ukrainian community in Dumfries and Galloway, Petrov's death is a reminder of the human price of the conflict, felt not only on the battlefield but in the quiet communities far from the front line where refugees have sought safety. The chapel in Lockerbie, which has offered practical and spiritual support to Ukrainians since the early days of the war, now also becomes a place of mourning for one of its own.

Petrov leaves behind his mother, his brother and his two sisters, along with a community in Scotland that came to know him during his year at school and his regular attendance at services. His decision to return to Ukraine, made as a young man barely out of his teens, is one that those who knew him say was rooted in a deep sense of duty and an enduring belief in his country's cause.

As news of his death spread, the prevailing sentiment among those who spoke about him was one of sorrow for a life ended too soon, and respect for a young man who chose to act on his convictions. The words of the Lockerbie archivist — that Petrov will be forever 21 — serve as both a tribute and a lament for a former Scottish school pupil who answered the call of his homeland and did not return.