For nearly two decades, Moshe Moreno stood on Israel's Memorial Day next to the grave of his brother Emmanuel, who was killed in combat at the end of the Second Lebanon War in 2006. But since the Hamas massacre he has a second grave to honor, that of his son Itay, who was killed in Zikim.
Just days after Itay fell on October 11, Moshe wrote in a column for Ynet: "Where will I stand from now on Mount Herzl, next to my son or next to my brother?"
He recalls that his father who immigrated from France, before Itay's funeral apologized for bringing his family on aliyah.
Moshe responded: "Dad, we have nowhere to go. This is our place. But unfortunately now I understand what you went through after the fall of my brother Emmanuel, and I need a lot of strength from you to hold on."
Lt. Col. Emmanuel Moreno, a special forces commando, fell at the age of 35. Even now, the IDF has never allowed a photo of him to be published, due to the sensitivity of the operations in which he participated.
Itay was a soldier in the Maglan unit and uncompromisingly committed; when he received an Order 8 call up on October 7 there was no question that he would answer it. His best friend, Master Sgt. Daniel Kastiel, came to pick him up on October 7 to head south, and promised Moshe that he would take care of Itay. The best friends fell together in battle on the beach of Zikim.
Following his son's death, Moshe became like a father to his unit, procuring protective equipment such as ceramic vests to help the soldiers that fought alongside his son.
He also realized that the citizens of Israel must be united in order to succeed against the terrorists.|
"We must be united. While we were busy with a civil war, they were preparing for war. We must stop the hatred and incitement. I sinned in this too. We are one people and blood brothers. Not left, not right, not Ashkenazim, not Sephardim. If we don't understand this, we will all lie down next to each other under the ground on Mount Herzl, regardless of our political opinion. In order not to lie down next to each other, we need to stand by each other," he wrote.
In order to commemorate both his brother and his son, Moshe and the entire Moreno family have launched a campaign to build a synagogue in the central Israel community of Aderet, where Itay grew up. The name of the synagogue is Am Echad, or One People.
He says the synagogue will be a place "of unity, of connection. of one people" as well as "a living symbol of the values that characterized the two heroes: love of country, giving, modesty and unity."
The family hopes that the synagogue will unite all the communities of the moshav under one roof, with a combination of different prayer traditions, Torah lessons, a heritage center, and activities aimed at creating a connection between people like Itay and Emmanuel.
"In his life, he succeeded in everything he did," Moshe wrote about Itay. "There was nothing he wasn't good at. A gifted athlete, the best Negevist in the army, then he enlisted in the Shin Bet, married the lovely Gal, built a home, and was accepted into engineering studies. My perfect boy was also my best friend. He always consulted with me, he always cared about what I thought, he always made sure I was happy. Every year he would hold me on Mount Herzl, and now what? Who will hold me and who will strengthen me? And where will I stand, next to Itay or next to Emmanuel? I love you, and I have no choice but to be strong for you."