He Said Goodbye to His Little Daughter. Days Later, Reserve Sgt. Alexander Pilin Was Killed in Lebanon

Reserve Sgt. Alexander Pilin, z"l, a fighter in the Ga'ash Division (36) headquarters who was killed last Wednesday by an explosive device in the village of A-Taybeh in southern Lebanon, was laid to rest this afternoon (Sunday) at the military cemetery in Haifa. His wife, Dasha, flew last week to Russia for a family visit, and 48 hours after landing there, she received the news that her husband had fallen.

In her eulogy, his wife said: "You were the anchor in my life and an amazing father to our little Emily. Just on Wednesday you said goodbye to her, and a few hours later - you were already gone. I waited eight years for a flight to Russia, and when I arrived - after two days this terrible tragedy happened. I told him maybe I would cancel the flight, and now I am burying him. We built a family, he always had a heart of gold and a smile, and he was an anchor in a stormy sea who knew how to calm me and say that there is a solution to everything. He was an incredible partner and a father who dreamed of opening his own restaurant. Thanks to him, I am an amazing mother, and I will miss the laughter and the endless love he gave me and our little girl. We planned to have more children, we will always remember him, and I will tell Emily that he was a hero".

Pilin, who was 29 when he fell, made aliyah on his own from Ukraine about 14 years ago במסגרת the Na'aleh program, studied at the Aloney Yitzhak youth village, and a few years ago moved to Ra'anana. During his regular army service, he served as a sniper in the Nahal Brigade. In 2018, he was chosen as the President's Outstanding Soldier, and two years earlier he neutralized a terrorist in an attack and saved the lives of his comrades. When he received the award of distinction from the president, he said: "Apparently I did something good".

The IDF representative at the funeral, Col. Erez Weinstock, said: "Dasha and the family, we mourn the loss of Alex, who fell defending the northern border. You enlisted in the Nahal Brigade and served as a fighter in Battalion 932, and returned to the battalion as a fighter and sniper. You always reported for every mission, highly professional and very responsible, with a presence everyone loved. You were a family man, you loved your wife and your little daughter, and we will remember your simplicity - you were all of our king of the kitchen, always lifting morale.

"Alex, I salute a fighter who showed up again and again. We will continue to be there for your good friends. Dasha and Emily, this war has been forced upon us for more than two and a half years, and there are no words that can be said in the face of the pain of his tragic death. We will remember the friendship of Alex the fighter - a man who chose to give of himself for others. We will remember him in every mission. May his memory be a blessing".