This remarkable Ukrainian was born in Poltava region. He began fighting for Ukraine in 1915 in Naddnistrianshchyna as a member of the Legion of Ukrainian Sich Riflemen. In 1916, he opened the first Ukrainian schools in Volyn. He also erected monuments to Taras Shevchenko in Prykarpattia and Bukovyna. Art critic Mykola Holubets called them «the quintessence of Shevchenko’s poetry, in love with the past and with belief in its greatness».
As the leader of the anti-Bolshevik uprising, Havrylko was arrested by the chekists and burned alive in a steam locomotive furnace in Poltava. The poet Ihor Kalynets concluded: «Shevchenko influenced Havrylko a lot, and the latter, as an artist, not only created the image of the Father of the nation, but he proved to all future generations, both active and lazy, that it is possible to live, create, fight and even die according to the teachings of your spiritual Patron».
The installation of the plaque was initiated by M. Havrylko’s grandson, Honoured Doctor of Ukraine, Academician of Medicine Orest Abrahamovych. The relief was created by Kalush sculptor Ihor Semak. The unveiling ceremony was organised by the Kholodnyi Yar Historical Club, Lviv Polytechnic National University, Danylo Halytskyi Lviv National Medical University and the Lviv Regional Council.
