Taylor Swift‘s ex, Conor Kennedy, helped the people of Ukraine from the frontlines.
The 28-year-old—whose parents are Robert Kennedy Jr. and the late Mary Richardson Kennedy—revealed on social media that earlier this year he enlisted in Ukraine’s International Legion after Russian military forces invaded the Eastern European country in February.
“I know this story is coming out, so I want to say my piece first to make the best of it and encourage others to take action,” he wrote in an Oct. 14 Instagram post, alongside a picture of his friend on the frontlines in Ukraine. “Like many people, I was deeply moved by what I saw happening in Ukraine over the past year. I wanted to help. When I heard about Ukraine’s International Legion, I knew I was going, and I went to the embassy to enlist the next day.”
Conor said that he only told one person in the U.S. about his enlistment and only gave one person in Ukraine his real name. He shared that he didn’t want those close to him to worry and he “didn’t want to be treated differently there” due to his famous family.