Chai, Oded

Son of Esther and Yehiel, was born on January 7, 1928 in Jerusalem. He had a profound and original thought and had many talents, in the life of the spirit, as in practical life. He bought his early education in the Gan Asher College in Talpiot and the local elementary school. In his tenth year, he was transferred to the Tachkemoni School, where he graduated with honors. Among the schools he discovered great activity and published many interesting lists in the class brochures. From the “Tachkemoni” school he moved to the Hebrew Gymnasium in Rehavia, first in a real track and only in his last year – in the humanitarian track. From the age of 7 he was a member of the Scouts movement and became a central guide in its ranks. He was active in the Haganah at the age of 14. At the age of 17, he left school and volunteered for the Jewish Brigade, and only there did he discover his full spiritual and organizational ability in his dedicated work among the refugees in Holland and Belgium. With the dissolution of the Jewish Brigade, he volunteered to remain illegally in Europe on behalf of the Hagana. He moved to Italy, where he prepared and examined the talented Haganah officers in Israel. In June 1946 he was the commander of the “Record” department somewhere in the Alps, and later became commander of the “Frumka” kibbutz. There was no end to his activity and devotion to work. Oded exchanged identity with a Holocaust survivor, Joseph Seroka, and thus enabled him to reach the Land of Israel, which was closed to Holocaust refugees and thus solved the issue of “desertion” from the British army. In this way, some 150 Holocaust survivors immigrated to Israel, who maintain contact with them to this day. Oded published his impressions of his work there in Davar Hashavua. Upon his return from Europe, he was enrolled as a student at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in the Department of Humanities, but he did not abandon his duties in the Hagana and was ordered to organize the Hagam (Extended Physical Education) classes at the school. He also served as commander of several activities in southern Jerusalem, in Beit Safafa and Tzur Bahar, where he was assigned to the Gadna Brigade, He received the company “Jonathan” under his command. In the course of the truce, he guided the course of the brigade commanders and when the fighting broke out, he was sent to the headquarters of his company to capture Khirbet-Hamama, near Ein Karem, but the mission was successful, but Oded fell on it on the 3rd of Tammuz 5707 (July 10, 1948). He was buried in Sheikh Bader Aleph. On the 28th of Elul 5710 (10.9.1950) he was laid to rest at the military cemetery on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem. Yosef Seroka, who immigrated to Israel from Europe under Oded Chai’s name, called his son Oded in his name.