[explorersweb.com]

Alexa poznałem osobiście siedem lat temu w Pamirze. Zapamiętałem jako bardzo ciepłą osobę. Nie miałem niestety okazji poznać bliżej, a liczne wspomnienia, które publikują jego przyjaciele, pokazują że jest czego żałować...

Pozwolę sobie wkleić wspomnienie jednego z nich (Nicholas Chee):
I met Alex Goldfarb in 2017 while climbing Khan Tengri. I vividly remember him climbing out of the helicopter while Samie and I were resting at BC after our first rotation on the mountain, the lone passenger from the flight in that day. Went over to help carry equipment and supplies back, and had a distinct first impression that he was slightly standoff-ish. I suppose that makes sense, random person coming over uninvited to help carry your luggage (he did get robbed later that trip, but that’s a whole other story).
Initial rocky start was quickly put to rest after inviting Alex to share our table for dinner; and what an amazing conversationalist he was! Such a sharp wit and always a funny quip on hand. And the stories he told... We still retell his story of crossing the border into Kyrgyzstan in the middle of the night enroute to climb Mt Lenin, and how he decided to don his robes and tefillin (because of course Alex would do that) before crossing no-man’s land. The poor, sleep-deprived border guard wasn’t prepared for the sight of Alex walking out of the dead of night in full regalia and just pointed and exclaimed “A Jew! A Jew!”; he let Alex pass through the border without any further fuss, despite not having all the paperwork... We laughed so hard, I think the rest of the dining tent was annoyed with us...
Spent every meal thereafter with Alex, and he always made it interesting. I let Alex in on my little secret, that I planned on proposing to Samie, if and when we got to the summit... He was so supportive and encouraging. Pushed off from BC for the climb proper soon after, on slightly different schedules, though we’d still cross paths. I remember how Alex always had a bottle of coca-cola on him, extolling how a swig of it gave him strength when he needed it. And how he dug a snow cave to shelter in on the shoulder of Peak Chapayev enroute to Camp 3. He was climbing all on his own... He had this singular resolve and self-confidence, and the fortitude and skill to back it up. We summited the day before Alex made his summit attempt. He was the first person to congratulate us on getting engaged... We were resting in Camp 3 when Alex returned from his unsuccessful attempt on the summit. After packing up to return to BC, we stopped by his tent to say goodbye, but he was sound asleep. We dropped a packet of strawberry gummies into his tent.
Alex got back to BC shortly after us. While waiting for the helicopter to bring us back to civilization, Samie developed some chest pain, muscle strain from the climb. We walked around camp getting several doctors’ opinions, there being at least 5 medical doctors in camp... I distinctly remember Alex suggesting treatment options and medicines she could take. Then he said, with a serious face, “And there is one last thing you could try...”, reaching into his pocket and pausing dramatically. He pulled out the strawberry gummies, “...you could eat some of these!”, breaking into a big smile and laughing.
Climbing Khan Tengri was an experience extremely close to our hearts, and Alex was a such a prominent part of that experience. Though we went our separate ways, we kept in touch. He invited us to join his Ama Dablam winter climb last year, but our schedules didn’t match. I always thought there would be time in the future when we would climb together again. Can’t believe that will never happen now... Had hoped against hope that Alex had just decided to spend some extra time on the mountain, digging himself another little snow cave to shelter in... Alex made the world a brighter place to live in, both as a doctor and as just an awesome human being. The world seems alittle dimmer now, knowing he’s no longer with us...