Israel Defense Forces Capt. Yogev Pazy was killed on November 17 fighting Hamas terrorists in the northern Gaza strip.
Age 22, Pazy served as a platoon commander in the Nahshon Battalion of the IDF's Kfir Brigade. Originally from the Negev's Giv'ot Bar, he was killed alongside Staff Sgt. Noam Eitan, 21, from the same battalion.
Pazy was the nephew of former IDF chief of staff Gadi Eizenkot, who also lost his son and another nephew earlier in the Hamas-Israel war.
Before enlisting in the IDF, Pazy dedicated a year of service as a
shinshin
, a young emissary on behalf of the Jewish Agency for Israel and the iCenter, in Chicago.
He worked in the Chicago Jewish community from 2020 to 2021, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Pazy taught Hebrew to students at Solomon Schechter Day School and at Shir Hadash Synagogue, and worked during the summer at Camp Beber in Wisconsin--all to help connect young Jews to Israel. He also played a pivotal role in establishing Shevet Sufa, Chicago's first Israeli Scouts (
Tzofim
) chapter in Chicago, in 2021.
In a poignant tribute held in November, Shevet Sufa commemorated Pazyi's legacy, and renamed the 7th
grade age group he once led after him:
Shivat Yogev
.
During his stay in Chicago, Tobi Perlen and her family hosted him, an experience she called "a gift."
"Yogev quickly became our fourth child and eldest sibling to our three children," she said. "The State of Israel meant everything to him, and helping to defend its sovereignty was a reward, not a burden. He was a uniquely special human who positively touched everyone in his orbit."
