On the day of the Russian invasion, Svitlana accidentally woke up in the night, turned on the TV, and learned that war had begun. Her son was already on his way to Mariupol at that time to defend the city. Svitlana stayed with her family near Kyiv, where she was very afraid for her daughters. The woman also tried to maintain contact with her son, who was surrounded in Mariupol. However, later, after the fighting, he was taken prisoner.

After that, Svitlana constantly went out to remind people about the prisoners of war. In 2023, she learned from russian sources that her son had been sentenced to prison. She began to actively work for the release of those illegally convicted, gathering information and supporting other relatives of prisoners of war.