Chaim was born on 29 April 1911 in Radomyśl, Poland to Shimon and Zipporah. He was educated in Frankfurt and later in Vienna and then emigrated to Israel in 1933. He continued his studies in Haifa and worked for a living as a construction worker. His work made his studying difficult so he went to study Hebrew at the University of Jerusalem. After completing his education he went to work for three and a half years at the potash factories in the Dead Sea. During WW2, volunteers began to be recruited to the Hebrew infantry units of the British Army, so Chaim resigned from his job and enlisted. He was sent to Italy, leaving behind his wife and young baby, and was working in mine clearance. Chaim set out with several soldiers from their Battalion to install a 4 metre wide path in the minefields, which separated them from the German positions, in order to allow tanks to pass.

Following this action, soldiers from his battalion in three Churchill tanks attacked a fortified German position, La Giorgeta on the Villanova front. Before the first tank, Chaim and three friends ran with him to mark the path cleared of mines. German fire from machine guns and mortars was aimed at the soldiers, and Chaim was hit in the neck and died on the spot.