An American killed in Ukraine was moved to volunteer by his heritage, a friend says.
Mr. Young’s family did not immediately respond to messages and calls on Sunday.

A longtime friend of Mr. Lucyszyn’s, Corey Mesimer, 29, of Myrtle Beach, S.C., confirmed on Sunday that his friend’s family had been informed that Mr. Lucyszyn was killed in battle.

Mr. Lucyszyn, 31, felt a responsibility to travel and fight in Ukraine because his grandmother was born there, and he felt close to his heritage, Mr. Mesimer said.

“That was something that he needed to do; he felt very strongly about it,” Mr. Mesimer said by phone on Sunday. “And even talking to him while he was over there, he felt like it was something that he needed to do for the country of Ukraine.”

Mr. Mesimer said that Mr. Lucyszyn, whom he described as the “life of the party,” had been living in Myrtle Beach for the past two years and that the two had played on the same paintball team there, the Carolina Rage.