The Father of the Quadruplets Reveals: "This Is How We Spent the Eight Months Until Birth"

"We are happy, we have four new emissaries," Boaz Klein, Chabad emissary in the town of Bariloche, Argentina, tells me when I inquire about how they are these days, as the news of the quadruplets' birth impacts and is spread by nearly every possible media outlet.

It's not easy to find a free moment for a conversation with him; he is busy all day caring for the infants, while continuing to handle remotely the management of the Chabad House in Bariloche, which never ceases to function. Currently, they are in Israel, where the quadruplets were born, but he and his wife clearly understand that very soon they will fly back to continue their mission in Argentina – their life's mission.

The town of Bariloche

A Life of Mission

The town of Bariloche, where the Klein family resides, is actually the southernmost point in the world with Jewish emissaries. "To get from Israel to Bariloche requires more than 30 hours of flight, changing planes at least three times, and sometimes even changing airports," Boaz describes. "In fact, each time we fly to visit family in Israel or return abroad, we must undergo a journey of two and a half days. But the interesting thing is that Bariloche, despite being distant from Israel, is full of Jewish travelers and every year thousands of Jews come to us. Usually, these are young people who have finished their army service, many from prestigious units, most of them living in kibbutzim. We have hosted an air force commander, a former Chief of Staff, and other top-ranking figures. They come with a backpack and a sparkle in their eyes, seeking a place where they can open their hearts, without the intensity and pressure that exists in Israel. Of course, there are also Jews from other countries, Americans, Canadians, and more.

"Since we established the Chabad House, hundreds of thousands have visited us, making us very much identified with travel in Bariloche. There's never a time I visit Israel without people shaking my hand, unsure if it's really me. Sometimes they ponder and ask, 'Is it you, the emissary, or someone who looks like him?' Just recently, my daughter arrived at the hospital after the quadruplets were born and encountered someone in the corridors who looked at her repeatedly and then asked, 'Are you Sheina?' When she confirmed, he was moved to tears: 'You are the one who taught my wife to light Shabbat candles and taught me to bless.'"

When Boaz speaks of his children, he notes that he sees them as an inseparable part of the mission. Nine-year-old Sheina and three-year-old Schneur are full partners in all activities and have direct contact with the Israelis who come to stay. "For years, we had a small family," Boaz notes. "We’ve been married for 14 and a half years and have been emissaries for a little over 14 years in Bariloche. Sheina was born five years after we got married, and Schneur six years later. Both were born in Israel with the help of treatments, although mild, but there was always a need for intervention. Each time we were in Israel during the treatment and afterwards for a month after the birth, then we returned to our mission."

Boaz Klein's family

And how did you experience the periods of waiting and anticipation for a pregnancy?

"As Chabad Hasidim, we often write to the Rebbe in sacred letters, and when we wrote to him about our wait for children, we opened the letters and saw an amazing quote: 'Someone who cares for Hashem's children, Hashem ensures that they will have children multiplied manifold, not just one-to-one.' At the time, we did not dream that the words 'multiplied manifold' would eventually be a fourfold blessing; we never thought there would come a day when we would have quadruplets.

"Over the years," adds Boaz, "we also received much encouragement from others we knew who were blessed with children beyond the natural order. I personally know a couple with a very complex combined problem that led the doctor to refuse to allow them treatments because 'the treatments will give you a one-in-a-million chance, and in such cases, treatments are not given.' That woman had strong faith, continued to pray, and even did a special charm. She then naturally conceived without any treatment. This greatly encouraged us. We understood that Hashem is not limited, and when the time comes, He will simply give us, and there’s no limit to the blessing He can give. Of course, the wait was still hard; we are human, and each time we experienced disappointment, we felt ourselves sink into pain. But we tried to strengthen ourselves and others in similar situations. Even now, I feel a special mission to strengthen people. There are so many who are waiting, and it’s important they know there are amazing successes in this field, and Hashem sends visible miracles."

"My Wife Said: 'No Way'"

He cannot forget the day they were informed about the quadruplets. "We were then in Israel, after undergoing some treatment. We already knew that the treatment had succeeded, thank God, and we went to the doctor for an ultrasound to ensure everything was fine. Initially, everything seemed normal, and he said: 'Well, you are blessed,' afterward, he discovered something and then smiled: 'Two are better.' We understood that it was probably twins, but suddenly he looked at the screen and his smile froze. His tone changed suddenly, and he told us: 'Wait, there are three here, actually four,' he became insistent and clarified to us: 'Such a pregnancy is very high risk. It is not possible to proceed like this.' He didn’t even give us room for consideration but clarified that reduction was necessary so that the quantity would not harm the quality. We were still in shock from the news, barely understanding what he was talking about, but in my heart, I already knew I couldn't even imagine the possibility of reduction. I said nothing because I wanted to leave the decision to my wife since after all, it’s her body, and only she can make that decision. But the moment we left the room, she informed me: 'No way,' and I understood that our thoughts were identical. All in all, my wife has special strengths, and during the pregnancy, whenever the question of reduction arose again, she strengthened both of us, saying: 'I’m not touching the blessing that Hashem gave us; whoever gave us the blessing will certainly take care of it.' Incidentally, on this matter, too, we opened the sacred letters of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, and there appeared an amazing letter in which the Rebbe blesses an emissary with many blessings, finally noting: 'It should be abundant in quantity and quality.' We felt it was a special blessing for our situation."

When the couple was informed about the quadruplets, they decided to stay in Israel until the birth. "When we asked our private doctor – Dr. Nili Yanai, if we could fly to Argentina, she responded: 'Travel abroad? You’re not leaving my area code,'" remembers Boaz, "so we stayed here with great excitement, counting the days until birth and praying for complete health for my wife and the babies."

And how did the months of pregnancy go by?

"Medically speaking, everything went smoothly, thank God; all the tests were normal, and the pregnancy developed properly. But clear, it wasn't easy for my wife—any woman who has experienced pregnancy knows how challenging it can be, and here it was eight months of struggling to take another breath, push more food, and find a position to close her eyes. She once told me she felt like someone working a shift job where her shift keeps extending and never ends. Throughout this period, we kept our focus on doing everything optimally, to give the babies a chance to survive, extend the pregnancy as much as possible, and allow my wife to rest and care for herself. When challenges or fears arose, we reminded ourselves of the statistics that say once in 700,000 births, quadruplets are born. We strengthened ourselves by knowing that if Hashem entrusted us with such a project, He trusts us and will certainly accompany us."

Did you share with your surroundings that quadruplets were expected?

"We only shared it with my mother, and she was amazing and encouraged my wife all the time, saying she would certainly be the best mother for the babies. My mother also helped us a lot with the older children when my wife was hospitalized in the high-risk maternity department. Friends and family who met us assumed there were probably twins, but no one dreamed of quadruplets." 

Four Healthy Babies

Boaz cannot forget the day of the birth. "It wasn’t actually the due date, and we never thought the birth would be that day," he reveals. "My wife was hospitalized in a high-risk ward; it was after the holiday season where she was alone in the hospital for many long days. We really waited for the holidays to pass for the children to return to their institutions, so I could visit her and sit with her leisurely. That day, the plan was to spend several hours together. At some point, my wife asked me to go home to meet the children returning from school, but I decided to stay a bit longer. Providence arranged that I was in the department at those moments because shortly after, the doctor, the department head, approached us and informed my wife: 'We're going to operate today, did you eat anything?' My wife replied she had just finished eating, but the doctor said, 'No matter, we'll operate anyway,' and also explained: 'This is not emergency surgery, but we’ve seen the babies have reached good weights, and since we don’t want to encounter complications later, we prefer to operate today.'"

From that moment, things moved quickly: "Within a few hours, doctors entered the room to prepare my wife for surgery. I accompanied her to the operating room, initially, there was silence and suddenly the sound of crying was heard, and a baby came out, another cry, and a baby girl came out, then another baby and another baby girl. They all weighed around a kilo and a half, but thank God, they were healthy and whole. Naturally, they were admitted to the neonatal unit. This is also the place to thank the dedicated medical staff of Sheba Hospital, who really went out of their way to give us the best possible conditions, and even during the period before the birth, the doctors accompanied us with great professionalism and empathy. We did not hear even a hint of their opinion about our pregnancy. We truly had a positive experience."

In the neonatal unit, the four babies were treated, some initially needed respiratory support. The doctors clarified to the excited parents that once the babies reached their target weight, they would be discharged. "Two were released first, then another baby, and finally the fourth baby," Boaz elaborates.

Continuing the Mission

How does your life look now after such a drastic change?

"The truth is we're still trying to adjust to the new status," Boaz laughs. "It's common to say that usually with the fourth child one changes cars, but we need to jump straight to an eight-seater. Practically speaking, caring for the infants absorbs us completely, it's around-the-clock work and it doesn’t stop. But thank God, the people of Israel are mobilizing to help, we have amazing family members and dear friends who never stop asking what we need and also come in person to help and take care of things. Every help of this kind makes it much easier for us. We are now patiently waiting for the Brit of one of the sons. We already celebrated for one, and the second needs to gain a few more grams in weight to undergo the circumcision."

And what do the older siblings of the quadruplets say?

"Sheina and Schneur are thrilled, they so much wanted little siblings, and when they found out these were quadruplets, they cried out of joy. The smile doesn’t leave their faces; they just can’t digest it. By the way, we have many friends who found it hard to believe when they found out about the quadruplets. I received many cautious messages trying to verify if it was true, and they apologized in advance if they misunderstood."

And, of course, one cannot help but ask – what about the mission in Argentina? Do you plan to continue?

"Is that even a question? The new family composition not only won't burden us, but on the contrary – we now have help with four more small emissaries," he answers humorously, and after a moment becomes serious: "Of course, we’ll need to make some slight changes in activities and certain adjustments, but it is clear to us that soon we will return there. We’re just waiting for the babies to grow a little more, and we will all fly together to Argentina. We are really looking forward to it."