After completing 14 months of active reserve duty, 24-year-old Eyal Katz from Moshav Meo'na in northern Israel set off on a long-anticipated trip to South America. What began as a personal journey quickly turned into a mission to honor fallen soldiers in the war following Hamas’s massacre on October 7.
“A year and two months under emergency call-up made me feel like I had to reclaim my life,” Katz told Ynet. “I’m a professional photographer and videomaker, so I planned a big trip with a personal bucket list. But along the way, I realized I had a deeper need — to commemorate my fallen friends.”
That realization struck when Katz tried to buy a drone from a man named Mike, who had recently lost a close friend. “It broke me,” he said. “I knew this was my calling — to memorialize the fallen through my craft.”
Just before boarding his flight, Katz traveled across Israel meeting bereaved families he had never known. “I knocked on doors, hugged strangers, listened to their stories — and left with memorial stickers and Israeli flags,” he said. He flew out with 12 kg (26 lb) of photography gear and another 5 kg (11 lb) of commemorative items.
His first stop was Argentina, where he hiked the “Sheep Trek,” a rugged 30 km (18.6 mi) trail of mountains, forests and lagoons leading to a stunning ice cave. There, on a warning sign outside the cave, Katz placed a memorial sticker for Lt. Adar Ben Simon, who was killed in battle at Zikim on October 7.
“Adar was a commander in the Home Front Command,” he said. “When terrorists breached the base, she got the new recruits into safe rooms. She was killed in the fighting but saved 120 soldiers. It’s an unbelievable story of heroism.”
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Katz waved the flag given to him by Ben Simon’s family and took a photo. Just 90 minutes after he left, the ice cave collapsed. “It had stood for millions of years — and I went there specifically to honor Adar. Then it collapsed. It’s hard to process,” he said.
Katz is also distributing memorial stickers to other Israeli backpackers across the continent. “I give them a sticker, a hug and they promise to pass it on,” he said. “I’ve created an Instagram highlight reel showing these stickers at lagoons, on hiking trails, train stations and hostel walls. I’ve even arrived at places where I found three stickers I had given to others. That’s when I feel like I’m on a mission.”
When asked how foreigners react, Katz said he’s aware not everyone might approve. “Some may feel it’s out of place but to me it’s meaningful. It’s not just a sticker — it’s a memory,” he said.
“When I explain it to locals or Europeans, they understand. We’re such a small nation. Every loss hurts. That’s not something people in other countries can fully relate to and that makes this project so special,” he added.
Traveling solo and avoiding the typical Israeli backpacker circuit, Katz said the journey hasn’t been easy. “I carry nearly 30 kg (66 lb) on my back — photography gear, a tent, sleeping bag, cooking equipment. Sometimes it’s full-on survival.
“On one trek in Chile, I almost got swept away by a freezing river,” he recalled. “I love being around Israelis but personal growth happens when you step out of your comfort zone.”
He’s structuring his route around his bucket list — not convenience. “When I traveled alone, I chose what interested me, not what was easy,” he said.
He also shared his future goals: seeing glacier calving and learning to surf. “I’ve already checked off ten wishes and there are more on the way,” he said proudly. “Each one I fulfill, I think — ‘this could’ve been a dream of one of the fallen who never got the chance.’”
First published: 13:42, 04.29.25