Cohen, Ronen

Lucky and Ezra. Born on the 14th of Cheshvan 5737 (14.11.1976) in Kochav Michael, a brother to Nir and Tal. A cheerful, beloved boy, golden in curls, with redheads on his face and a mischievous smile. Ronen began his studies at the Nitzan Elementary School in the Hof Ashkelon Regional Council, continued in the Sha’ar Hanegev Secondary School and two years later continued at the Kfar Silver Agricultural School in the Land of Israel. Already in his early years he had fascinated his teachers with his smile, his fluency, his neatly arranged and beautifully decorated notebooks. He always convinced that he was right and insisted on his own until he got what he wanted. In high school he was accepted and loved by all, served as defense counsel for students in their struggles and debates with teachers or with other children, and served as a “wall” for his classmates. Ronen liked to travel when he drove his ATV, traveled and used to surf the Hermon every year. At the end of March 1995, Ronen joined the IDF in a decision to serve in the Golani Brigade following his father, and volunteered for the Golani Intelligence Unit. Already at the beginning of the consolidation, he dislocated his leg and was put on an ambulance, and it was determined that he had not undergone the formulation. Ronen persisted, avoided the medical treatment, continued the formulation and completed successfully. After finishing the course and a course of squad commanders, he received the pin of the Intelligence Corps he wanted so much, and Ronen served in Golani’s Intelligence Corps for two and five and a half months. During this period he served three times in Lebanon, at the Reihan outpost in the northern Gaza Strip. Ronen fell in battle in Lebanon on August 10, 1997, in the area of ​​Reihan outpost in the eastern sector of the security zone in southern Lebanon, during an encounter with a terrorist squad. Ronen insisted on going out with his teammates. They advanced in a complicated and tortuous way and prepared for an ambush when they encountered a squad of terrorists who managed to penetrate the forces deployed in the area. Ronen was shot at close range and instantly killed. He was twenty years old when he fell. He was brought to eternal rest in the Kochav Michael cemetery. Survived by parents and two brothers. Chief of Staff Amnon Lipkin-Shahak wrote to the family in a letter of condolence: “Ronen served as a combat soldier in the engineering division of the Golani Brigade and was described by his commanders as a soldier with a high personal level who stood out as an example to those around him. To achieve the goal and carry out the tasks entrusted to him with dedication and skill. “The commander of Ronen’s unit wrote to the family:” Ronen has served in the unit for the last two and four months and fulfilled his role in the best possible way. Ronen contributed to his friends and commanders from his experience and professionalism, and stood out as a soldier of high values, whom he drew from his parents’ home. Ronen, motivated and dedicated to the cause, volunteered first for every mission, both during training and during ongoing security operations. “Three months after the fall of Ronen, then-President Ezer Weizman donated a Torah scroll to his memory that was placed in a synagogue. The Ronen Park, which he established in his memory at Moshav Kochav Michael, a jeep tour was held in his memory on the routes he used to travel in. He fell in his memory at the Reihan post, which was transferred to the Mitzpe Adi outpost.