Alexander Singer was born on September 15, 1962 in White Plains, New York to Max and Suzanne. In August 1973 the Singer family came to Israel for a year to celebrate the bar mitzva of their eldest son, Saul. Their stay was extended for four years and the boys studied at schools in Jerusalem until their last year in the country, when Alex and Shaul went to live on Kibbutz Kissufim and studied at the regional high school there.
Upon their return to the US the Singers moved to Chevy Chase in the Washington DC area. In September 1980 Alex began studying at Cornell University. He spent his junior year at the London School of Economics and wrote his thesis based on the letters he wrote to his family during a trip through Europe, including the Soviet Union.
On December 31, 1984 Alex formally made aliya. Six weeks later he was drafted into the IDF and volunteered for the paratroopers. After completing officer's course he was assigned to the Air Force but insisted on being given a combat role until he became a platoon commander in the Givati Infantry Brigade. In August 1987 he was moved with his new platoon to the Lebanese border next to the security zone in southern Lebanon that is patrolled by Israel. On September 15, Alex's 25th birthday, he and 11 other men were dropped by helicopter onto a very rugged ridge in the foothills of Mt. Hermon, about a mile into Lebanon. They were to set up an ambush to try to intercept terrorists on their way into Israel. Unexpectedly, they landed among a group of about 30 terrorists who had hidden themselves among boulders. Alex's commander, Ronen Weissman, was the first to be hit by their fire. When Alex, who was the second officer on the mission, landed he was told that Ronen was not answering the radio. Alex took a medic and went to help Ronen. When Alex reached Ronen, he too was shot and killed at the same spot. Some time later, not knowing what had happened to the two commanders, another soldier from the platoon, Oren Kamil, was sent to help them. He too was shot and killed at the same spot. Outnumbered, and without their officers, the remainder of the small Israeli force continued to return fire until they were reinforced and the band of terrorists retreated, unable to continue their mission to attack settlements in Israel.
Alex was buried on September 18, 1987 at Har Herzl in Jerusalem. The family established The Alex Singer Project, a non-profit organization dedicated to educating, inspiring, and activating the next generations of Jewish thinkers and do-ers around the world by showcasing Alex's exemplary passion for Judaism and Israel in life and in death.
