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Friends and colleagues of Staff Sgt. Jonathan Dean Haim gathered recently in central Israel to dedicate a new ambulance in his memory, months after the 25-year-old lone soldier was killed during military operations in the Gaza Strip.
Haim, a combat engineer in the Israel Defense Forces’ 603rd Battalion, died Dec. 8 in an explosion inside a mosque in southern Gaza. He was posthumously promoted from sergeant to staff sergeant. The blast also killed another soldier, Maor Cohen Eisenkot, the nephew of former IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot, and wounded three others.
Born Jonathan Dean Jr. in Hilton, New York, Haim was raised in a Christian family. As a college student, he began exploring Judaism after studying the Holocaust, a journey that led him to formally convert and embrace the faith. He adopted the Hebrew name “Haim”—meaning “life”—to reflect his new identity as a Jew. In 2020, he immigrated to Israel with help from Nefesh B’Nefesh, a nonprofit that supports Jewish immigration.
He settled in Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv, and pursued a master’s degree in disaster and emergency management at Tel Aviv University and later at Reichman University. As part of his studies, he trained in first aid with Magen David Adom, Israel’s national emergency response service, and soon became a devoted volunteer. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he assisted in testing and vaccination campaigns and was known as a frequent blood donor.
Though not obligated to serve, Haim enlisted in the IDF as a combat soldier in 2022 at age 23, joining as a lone soldier—a term for those serving without immediate family in Israel. He remained close with his MDA colleagues and had planned to return to emergency medical work after his military service.
“He always wanted to give and be part of something,” said Dror Wein, a friend and former MDA instructor. “He never sought attention. He just wanted to do good, all the time.”
Haim’s commitment to service extended beyond the battlefield. He volunteered with Holocaust survivors, supported low-income families and took part in community outreach efforts. Friends described him as charismatic, generous and deeply connected to the Jewish people.
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Many of his friends last saw him on Oct. 6, the day before the Hamas-led attack on Israel that launched the current war. He was buried in his hometown of Rochester, New York, according to his family’s wishes.
In a final message to a friend, sent about a month before his death, Haim expressed a desire to continue serving. “I want to give more,” he wrote.
Earlier this month, MDA colleagues honored his legacy by launching a new ambulance bearing his name. “It’s exactly what Yonatan would have wanted—to bring people together around the mission of saving lives,” Wein said.