Karin Cherchil, a friend of the late Hadar Hoshen 's Cinnamon Rolls Recipe

“A Place at the Table” is a commemorative project that documents the favorite dishes of those lost on October 7 with the help of their families and friends.

“Cinnamon rolls are so warm and comforting… like Hadar,” says Karin Cherchil, whose best friend, Hadar Hoshen, was murdered on October 7. Their friendship was very close, but far too short.

Karin will never forget the first time she met her Hadar. It was at the airport, just before a big trip to South America with her friend Livnat Levy. “I remember what Hadar was wearing — and her flamboyant energy, which was so uniquely hers,” says Karin. “She was funny and loud from the start, but it was a happy kind of loud. The kind that made sure everyone saw her and knew she was there. I’m grateful for the privilege of having been her best friend for the past year and a half.”

When they happened to meet again several weeks into the trip, they started traveling together along with Hadar’s friend Livnat Levy. Throughout the trip, Hadar was there for Karin — steady, comforting, and full of care. “She would talk to me, cry with me — and then wipe my tears and say: Everything is good, everything is fine. And within a second, her joy for life was contagious,” Karin shares. She learned the true meaning of friendship from Hadar. “No matter how hard things got for me, she never let me fall apart,” Karin adds. In May, the three friends returned to Israel together. “We came back as sisters from South America…. We had so many dreams.”

On October 7, Hadar and Livnat were at the Nova festival. Karin, who had planned to join them, decided at the last minute not to go. When the sirens began, she didn’t even realize the party her best friends were attending was in the south. Still, she messaged them right away to check if they were okay — and they replied immediately. Karin was the last person to speak with them. “At 7:45 a.m., Hadar sent me a message: ‘My beautiful one.’ I answered her, and that was it. That was the last message. Around 8 a.m., I felt like I had lost them… but I didn’t want to believe it,” she shares. 

When the rocket barrage began, Hadar and Livnat got into Livnat’s car and drove to the nearest shelter — near Re’im. Terrorists surrounded the shelter, opened fire, and threw grenades. Hadar and Livnat were killed immediately. They were both 27 years old. It took two weeks before their bodies were identified.

Hadar was born in 1995 to Galia and Avtalion Hoshen, and was the sister of Hillel, Dor, Nathan, and Yinon. Her mother recalls that from a young age, Hadar’s signature was her constant smile — along with her joy for life and deep optimism. Even after her father died of cancer nine years ago, her mother says, Hadar insisted on staying positive. After high school, she completed her national service in Los Angeles, where she worked as a counselor at a Jewish school. When she returned to Israel, she earned a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering and management, and later completed a course in cybersecurity. In the last months of her life, she worked as a project team leader at Cloud Edge.

“Cinnamon was her favorite spice,” says Karin, as she spreads the cinnamon-rich butter filling over the rolled-out dough. She remembers how, in the large suitcase Hadar packed for their trip, she brought everything — including test tubes filled with spices from Israel. But cinnamon stood out. She brought it in generous quantities and added it to almost everything she cooked, sweet or savory. Karin believes Hadar’s love for cinnamon probably began during her time in the U.S., and she recalls a photo she cherishes — taken in Los Angeles, before they even met — where Hadar is joyfully eating a Cinnabon. “She documented everything,” Karin says. “She always used to say, ‘You’ll thank me for documenting everything like this.’ Who could have imagined how chilling that sentence would become.”

If Hadar were here now and saw the cinnamon rolls, she would probably scream with excitement, says Karin, who is a pastry chef.  “She’d say, ‘My sister, I’m proud of you. I’m so happy you made this for me.’” Karin never had a chance to make the cinnamon rolls for her friend, but knows she would have loved them. 

She feels Hadar’s presence all the time. Sometimes, Hadar appears in her dreams. The last dream was especially powerful, she says. Just like Hadar always promised not to let her fall apart, in the dream Hadar told her to be happy — and gave her a big hug and a kiss.