Ron Feingold vividly remembers the time he first met his commander in the IDF, Chen Bouchris. It was December 24, 2017. Ron, then 23, arrived in Israel from the U.S. as a lone soldier to volunteer for combat service.
Chen, an 18-year-old platoon commander, greeted him and later became his commander in the paratroopers training base.
"He was my first commander," Ron recalled. "The age difference between us didn’t matter at all; he was a true leader; someone you could follow blindly. That’s what made him so special to me. A handwritten letter he gave me that day is still with me."
Now, nearly eight years later, Feingold and Bouchris’ fates are forever intertwined as Feingold has chosen to honor his commander by naming his firstborn daughter after him.
Ron met his wife Samantha during his military service and the couple returned to the U.S. after he had been discharged but kept visiting Israel occasionally. They married in 2021 outside Jerusalem and knew they wanted to move to Israel when they started a family.
However, with the outbreak of the war in Gaza and Samantha six months pregnant, the couple faced issues with their Aliyah plan. "We realized there was chaos in Israel. We knew we wanted the birth to take place there, but flights were canceled and we didn’t know what to do," Ron recounted.
Then the devastating news of Chen’s death arrived. "That was the moment I knew I had to get to Israel immediately. In the letter Chen gave me, he wrote, 'In my opinion, each of us must feel that we not only account for our actions at the moment of death but that we should be ready to stand before ourselves and say, 'This is what I’ve accomplished' at every moment we live.’"
"That message drives me to be at peace with the decisions I make every day, to think about how I can contribute constantly. There was no other option for me – I had to get to Israel and be assigned to any role needed in the reserves," Ron said.
After their efforts, the couple succeeded in making aliyah, and this past February Samantha gave birth to their firstborn daughter in Israel. The couple chose to name their baby girl Tzofiya-Chana, in memory of Chen, who was killed on October 7.
"The word 'Tzofiya' appears in the national anthem and in the Proverbs’ 'Eshet Chayil' poem. It means to 'watch over Zion,'" Ron explained. "Regarding her second name, we initially thought of 'Anna,' after my wife’s grandmother, but after Chen’s death, my wife suggested the name 'Chana' instead. Although she didn’t have the chance to meet Chen, she knows how much he meant to me."
Last week, at the Bouchris family home in Ashdod, Ron, Samantha and baby Chana had their first meeting with Chen’s mother, Osnat. "It was very emotional," Ron shared. "Chen’s sister, Masada, told us about his aspiration to be an IDF commander and said that he was able to fulfill that dream thanks to us – his soldiers.
“Osnat immediately connected with Chana, hugging and kissing her. Chana enjoyed herself a lot, fascinated by Chen’s picture and trying to grasp his face with her little hands."
‘I saw Chen in her’
Major Chen Bouchris enlisted in the Paratroopers Brigade in 2016 and was assigned to the 202nd Battalion. He later attended the officers' training course, finishing it with honors. He also completed the company commanders' course with distinction and returned to his unit as a commander. As he neared the end of his role, he was appointed the commander of a combat platoon in the elite Maglan Unit at the age of 26.
On October 7, Chen awoke to the sound of sirens at his parents' home in Ashdod and decided to head to the unit's base on his own. Once there, he began preparing the troops to head to the Gaza border area.
At 12:10 p.m., Chen's force encountered seven terrorists in Kibbutz Nahal Oz. They managed to eliminate five of them, but Chen and two of his comrades – Captain Yiftah Yavetz, the Maglan Unit’s operations officer, and Staff Sergeant Afik Rosenthal, a combat medic – were killed in the skirmish. Before his death, Chen managed to send the terrorists' location to his troops and call for reinforcements, hoping to save as many lives as possible.
Chen was the youngest of five siblings, three of whom are serving in the ongoing war: his sister Masada, who served as a Caracal Battalion combat soldier and is now a reservist in a classified role in the Southern Command; his brother, Major S., an officer in the naval commandos; and his brother, Major H., serving in the Navy reserves.
Osnat, Chen’s mother, said: "I don’t have grandchildren of my own children yet. For me, this meeting gave me a new family and a granddaughter who’s a true princess. I was deeply moved when they came; Chana filled me with light. I saw Chen in her."