Hillel Schwartz, the brother of the late Ezra who was killed in a terrorist attack in Gush Etzion, immigrated to Israel following him • "Some tell me he lives through me"
Hillel Schwartz next to a monument in memory of his brother
Photo:
Courtesy of "Journey"
"Remembrance Day is important, special and exciting, but almost every day for me is a day of remembrance," says Hillel Schwartz, Ezra Schwartz's brother who was killed in a shooting attack near the Gush Etzion intersection in November 2015. Ezra, an 18-year-old Jew from Boston, came that year to study Sitting and volunteering as part of a travel organization.
On his way to a volunteer day at the Oz and Gaon Reserve in memory of the three boys who were abducted and murdered, a terrorist started firing at their car at Alon Shvut Junction, killing him and two other people.
"I was 13 when Ezra was murdered. The first time I heard about the murder I was at school and my dad came and told me. It was the worst day of my life," recalls 19-year-old Hillel.
He and his brother were very close, despite the five years that separated them in age.
"He would help me with homework, give advice on sports, and basically anything a brother needed from his older brother. He always played with me and was always an example to me and my little brothers."
When he finished high school, Hillel decided to follow in his brother's footsteps.
He arrived in Israel last August as part of a "journey" program in which he studies at the Bnei Akiva Yeshiva in Jerusalem, participates in Zionist educational activities and volunteers in various organizations for Israeli society.
"When I told my parents I would come here and participate in the same program they were happy for me because they knew it was what would make me happy. There was no fear or apprehension on their part, and I welcome that every day. I am not one hundred percent like him, but I try to incorporate his values into my life. "Some tell me he lives through me, so I feel I have a responsibility to continue on his path."
In recent months, Hillel has visited Gush Etzion several times, a monument erected on the spot where his older brother was murdered, and the "Oz and Gaon" reserve, where Ezra is commemorated with another monument.
Ezra Schwartz is buried in the United States, so Hillel will not go to the grave on Memorial Day. Instead, he will come with his friends to a yeshiva at the Don family home, who lost Yaakov, a teacher and educator in Gush Etzion, in the same attack. .
There's no other way to get there, and every time something breaks in me a little.
But alongside that, I also connect there, it almost feels like it's there. "
Hillel Schwartz will lay a wreath in memory of his brother at the IDF Martyrs' Remembrance Day Ceremony and the Victims of Hostilities at the Yad LaShiryon site in Latrun. This is the largest international Memorial Day ceremony in Israel, broadcast live in English, with Hebrew, Russian and French Around the world. Ofer Gutman, CEO of Masa: "The late Ezra and his brother Hillel are the best Jewish youth from around the Diaspora who choose to come to Israel and contribute to society. The Masa family cherishes the memory of the organization's graduate, the late Ezra, who was murdered while busy "In doing good for Israeli society. May the memory of the fallen be blessed."