Sergeant First Class (res.) Amichai Yisrael Yehoshua Oster was at the height of his trip to the United States when the war against Hamas broke out. Immediately after receiving his call-up for reserve duty, he cut his trip short, boarded a flight and joined the fight in the Givati Brigade’s 5th Battalion. Hundreds accompanied him on his final journey on Tuesday at the cemetery in his hometown of Karnei Shomron.
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Marcy, Amichai’s mother, and a Ynetnews writer and editor, recalled her son as an inquisitive child who investigated and explored every topic he learned. "If he was curious about something, he’d search the Internet and read everything he could. He would work at something until he mastered it. He loved his travels, both far and near and he loved this land, all of it."
Flags on the way to Amichai's funeral
"He loved home, the couch, the big and ugly chair in his room," Marcy added. "He was determined to serve his country and when his reserve unit was full, he transferred to a unit that needed him. Recently, when he was home on a two-day leave, I told him that I felt responsible for the fact that he was fighting in a war. He thought about it for a moment and replied, 'Mom, what makes you think that if you never made Aliyah, that I wouldn't have come here to fight for our country?'"
Amichai’s father, Howard, lamented him. "In the hospital where I work, I get jumpy every time I hear a helicopter landing. I say to myself, 'If it were my son, I would know, right?' And then yesterday, without any noise of a helicopter, I was called to meet two soldiers who informed me of the news that changed my life."
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Sergeant First Class (res.) Amichai Yisrael Yehoshua Oster's funeral
(Photo: Shaul Golan)
"When I think of words that describe you, a few come to mind: humility, modesty, excellence, integrity, commitment, happiness and fun. When you were born in the 37th week, you had breathing issues and spent a few days in the NICU, but you came home as a healthy baby,” he added.
“You didn't know that a challenging year would be coming up, a year in which Mom and I decided to make Aliyah to Israel, a year in which we packed up our entire lives in Cleveland, said goodbye to our family there, and came here to the unknown."
Amichai’s brother, Yonatan, said, "I lost so much more than a brother, I lost one of my best friends. When we were kids, it took us time to get along, but you were more than just an older brother to me for years.”
“We did things together not only because we’re brothers, but because we had fun together. I can’t think about anything bombastic; it was mainly the small things, like editing a video for work at 3am together, and you helping me despite the fact you were no longer a part of it.”