I’m Matthew Sampson – A Call to Action

I jumped into the fight for 635 relentless days—day in and day out—pushing through blood, sweat, and exhaustion, standing shoulder to shoulder with the brave souls of Ukraine. But when I laid down my rifle, the fire inside me didn’t burn out—it only grew fiercer. With a total of 729 days in Ukraine since the full-scale invasion, I’ve continued the fight with my voice, because I cannot—will not—remain silent. The world needs to hear the truth, and I’ll be damned if I let it be buried.

Some say I shouldn’t provoke Putin, that I should remain quiet and avoid escalating the conflict. But I refuse to stay silent. This isn’t just about Ukraine; this is about the future of our world and the values we stand for. I won’t be intimidated. I won’t be silenced.

Now, as I settle into Scottsdale, Arizona, my mission remains clear: to speak the truth, to advocate for those still fighting, and to make sure the world understands the urgency of supporting Ukraine’s struggle for freedom and survival.

For nearly 20 years, I’ve devoted myself to defending the ideals that make this country strong. As a U.S. Marine Corps Scout Sniper, I’ve been deployed to the frontlines of Iraq and Afghanistan. I’ve served as a civilian contractor for thousands of days in Iraq and worked with the Department of Energy, navigating some of the toughest and most demanding environments. But it wasn’t until 2022 that my path led me to a mission that would ignite a fire deep within me.

In 2022, the cries of the Ukrainian people reached my ears, and I knew without hesitation that I had to answer. A brutal, terrorist regime—Russia—was trying to wipe out the Ukrainian identity, their people, their culture, their very language. And I couldn’t stand by while that happened.

When I heard the call, I couldn’t turn away. I joined the fight, not just for Ukraine, but for the values that bind us all—freedom, justice, and the right to exist without fear. For 635 days, I stood shoulder to shoulder with the courageous men and women of Ukraine. I fought not only to protect their land but to defend their spirit—their culture, their language, and the very core of who they are. Not only fighting to protect Ukraine, but by extension protecting Europe, the United States and countless nations around the world under threat of Russian tyranny.

Every day, I witnessed the unyielding determination of a people who would rather die than be silenced, than let tyranny erase their identity. And I stood with them, fighting with everything I had to help them defend their right to live freely, to govern themselves, and to determine their own future.

Now, I’m back in America. But my mission is far from over. With a total of 729 days spent in Ukraine, including my most recent trip to the front lines just two days ago in April 2025, I’ve seen the unimaginable. I’ve experienced the raw, unfiltered truth of this war. And I’m here to tell you—this fight is not just Ukraine’s. It’s a fight for us all. For the world we cherish, and the future we want to protect. We cannot turn a blind eye. The time to act is now.