Welcome to the “In Their Merit” page, a memorial page for the people after whom projects of the Derech Ami organization are named. Their lives and their life’s work go hand in hand with the goals of our organization, and we at Derech Ami are proud to carry their names in our various projects, and in doing so to continue their life’s work even after they are gone —
(Tractate Berakhot)
The Safed center of the Students’ Project at Derech Ami is named in his memory.
Son of Gilda and Emil. Born on the 15th of Iyar 5732 (29 April 1972) in Safed. Baruch was a member of the HeHalutz youth movement and took an active part in volunteer work for the community.
He volunteered with the Civil Guard and was commended for his service there. During his National Service in the Beit She’an sector he was an outstanding trainee. He loved horseback riding and served as an assistant instructor on riding trips; he also took part in riding shows and performed before large crowds at rodeos.
Baruch was drafted into the IDF in July 1990 and volunteered to serve in the “Shimshon” undercover unit, which operated to locate and capture terrorists in the Gaza Strip. In this unit he proved himself a fighter of initiative, resourcefulness and joy of life.
On the 30th of Adar 5752 (5 March 1992) he fell in battle. Baruch took part with his unit in an operation to capture armed terrorists south of the village of Bani Suheila, in the Khan Yunis area. The terrorists were hiding in a group of buildings that the force searched. Baruch, who was at the head of the breaching force, was hit at close range by a burst of fire from one of the terrorists and was killed. He was laid to rest in the military cemetery in Safed. He is survived by his parents, two brothers, Asher and Uri, and a sister, Nechama.
The Jerusalem center of the Students’ Project at Derech Ami is named in his memory.
(1950–2007) Shmuel z”l served for many years as principal of the middle school and deputy principal of the “Yavneh” school in Haifa. Shmuel was an educator at heart: he taught a great many students, understood the inner world of each of them, and supported every one in realizing his or her abilities.
He saw his work as a great calling and invested deeply in the success of the school and of its students. Alongside all he accomplished, he was modest and humble. He greeted every person warmly and always judged others favorably.
The Kiryat Gat center of the Students’ Project at Derech Ami is named in his memory.
Rabbi Chaim Avishalom Cohen-Pirhia, who passed away on the 12th of Av 5779, was an Israeli kabbalist known by the name “HaChalban” (the milkman).
He was born in Jaffa to Ezra Eliyahu and Blanca Pirhia-Cohen, a descendant of Rabbi Eliyahu HaKohen HaItamari. His father’s family immigrated to the Land of Israel from Turkey in 1904 and made its living producing cheese and dairy products. HaChalban was considered the last of a circle of kabbalists who studied together in the 1960s, some of whom were known by the trades from which they earned their living; his father was also among that circle. He taught classes in Talmud and Kabbalah at the “Beit Yosef” synagogue in Givatayim.
The Tel Aviv center of the Students’ Project at Derech Ami is named in his memory.
The youngest son of Osnat and Nissim. Born on the 7th of Adar II 5757 (16 March 1997) in Ashdod, brother to Liel, Chaim, Shalom and Metzada. “A pure soul, with a smile that never left his face,” his childhood friends recalled. “Even in neighborhood soccer games he would not let his friends quarrel.”
He enlisted in the Paratroopers Brigade in August 2016, serving his first years in Battalion 202 and excelling at every stage of his service. In light of his abilities and achievements, the elite “Maglan” unit of the Commando Brigade recruited him to its ranks. At his farewell ceremony from the Paratroopers Brigade, he chose to quote the words of American president Theodore Roosevelt: “The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause.”
On the seventh of October, Chen was at his parents’ home in Ashdod. After the first sirens sounded, he mobilized all of Maglan’s forces to the unit’s base in the south of the country, where he personally took part in briefing and dispatching the forces together with the unit’s operations officer and the deputy company commander. Chen then set out with the command team as a spearhead force toward Nahal Oz, engaging several encounters with enemy forces and coordinating with IDF forces along the way, while at the same time directing the unit’s operations. Additional forces reached the site of the engagement during the exchange of fire and came to the aid of the force, and after fierce fighting they brought the engagement to an end.
Maj. Chen Bouchris fell in battle at Kibbutz Nahal Oz on the 22nd of Tishrei 5784, 7 October 2023, aged twenty-six. He was laid to rest in the military cemetery in Ashdod. He is survived by his parents, two sisters and two brothers.
The Gaza Envelope center of the Students’ Project at Derech Ami is named in their memory.
The members of the emergency response team of Shlomit left their homes at half past six on the morning of Simchat Torah 5784, 7 October 2023, and set out for the neighboring community of Pri Gan to defend it. Each and every one of them was a hero: with their own bodies they saved all the residents of the community, and in the end they fell in the exchange of fire with the terrorists.
Son of Yael Julia and Zion. Born on the 29th of Nisan 5753 (20 April 1993) in Kfar Saba, brother to Shalhevet and Ortal. On 14 March 2013 he enlisted in the IDF and served in the infantry. Uriel married Nechama, and the couple had two children: Yaara and Gefen. Maj. Uriel Bibi fell in battle on the 22nd of Tishrei 5784 (7 October 2023), aged thirty. He was laid to rest in the military cemetery in Kfar Saba. He is survived by his wife, his children, his parents and his sisters.
Son of Brigitte Pircha and Arik Shmuel. Born on the 23rd of Kislev 5747 (25 December 1986) in France, brother to Sarah, Elisheva, Hillel, Betzalel and Miriam. He immigrated to Israel with his family in 1992. Reuven Yehia Avraham married Tzofia, and the couple had four children: Be’er, Shaked, Eitan Chaim and Sinai. Master Sgt. Reuven Yehia Avraham Shishportish fell in battle on the 22nd of Tishrei 5784 (7 October 2023), aged thirty-six. He was laid to rest in the military cemetery on Mount Herzl. He is survived by his wife, four children, his parents and five brothers and sisters.
Son of Hadassah and Yaakov. Born on the 7th of Sivan 5751 (20 May 1991) in Netivot, brother to Naor, Lidor and Or. Bechor Chai married Neora, and the couple had three daughters: Karmi, Alma and Shaked. Sgt. First Class Bechor Chai Sweid fell in battle on the 22nd of Tishrei (7 October 2023), aged thirty-two. He was laid to rest in the military cemetery on Mount Herzl. He is survived by his wife, three daughters, his parents and three brothers and sisters.
Son of Oshra and Yitzhak. Born on the 8th of Sivan 5742 (30 May 1982) in Berechya, brother to Itamar, Eldad, Uriah, Daniel, Yoter and Noam. Aviad Gad married Dana, and the couple had six children: Noa, Uriah, Maayan, Tohar, Dror and Uri. Master Sgt. Aviad Gad Cohen fell in battle on the 22nd of Tishrei 5784 (7 October 2023), aged forty-one. He was laid to rest in the civil cemetery in Berechya. He is survived by his wife, six children, his parents and six brothers.
The Technion center of the Students’ Project at Derech Ami is named in his memory.
Michael Shein z”l (1946–2020) passed away in April 2020. A graduate of University College London and a member of the Bar of England and Wales, he was the founder of the law firm Michael Shein & Co. A modest man, a pursuer of justice, beloved by all who had the privilege of knowing him.
The Ashdod center of the Students’ Project at Derech Ami is named in his memory.
Shimon Greenbaum was a dear man, kind-hearted and loved by all. A father of four and grandfather to many grandchildren. A devoted family man who led his family toward excellence and wholehearted giving.
An entrepreneur, a businessman, a great manager and a gifted man. Together with his father and his brother he founded the Sela Logistics company. Shimon was a man who always gave, donated and cared for anyone he possibly could. He did so in his own way, with modesty, humility and complete naturalness. It was always important to him to give to those who truly needed it, from food and shoes to an air conditioner or medical equipment. He spoke little and did much. This page was built in his memory, to continue his unique path of true giving, from one heart to another. He passed away on Shabbat, the 4th of Shevat 5775, January 2015, at the age of 63.
The Petah Tikva center of the Students’ Project at Derech Ami is named in her memory.
Yehudit Mikulitzky (Petziner) was born in the town of Ostrów Mazowiecka in Poland. Her father, Reb Avraham Petziner, was one of the leaders of the Gur Hasidic community in the town.
She immigrated to the Land of Israel in early 1939, under the quota of immigration certificates issued by the British Mandate, through an allocation of Agudat Yisrael granted because of her father’s standing (together with two of her sisters), and so she was saved from the fate of her family, who remained behind and perished in the Holocaust. She built a home in the city of Netanya with her husband Yosef, and they had three daughters and a son. Although the household was always under financial strain and they lived very modestly, the home was full of joy and giving. She hosted families who had immigrated from Russia and volunteered regularly at a food station for soldiers. She always made a point of being on the giving side, and of doing so with a smile.
The Ariel center of the Students’ Project at Derech Ami is named in their memory.
Michael, son of Reb Menachem Mendel and Esther z”l, was born in Rădăuți, Romania. A man of integrity, upright and God-fearing, a man of work and of action in the service of the community. Fanny Tzipora, daughter of Reb Zvi and Ruth z”l, was born in Storojineț, Romania, a woman of wisdom and nobility of spirit. With wisdom she built her home: a home of kindness and of walking humbly, a home of love and devotion, a home that was all giving.
The Be’er Sheva center of the Students’ Project at Derech Ami is named in her memory.
Israela Neveh, née Vanunu, was born in Morocco in 1954. Her parents, Avraham and Rachel z”l, raised their children on Zionism, love of humanity and love of the Land of Israel, and immigrated to Israel.
Israela married Chanan, whose parents were among the founders of the religious kibbutz Ein Tzurim, where they built a wonderful family that continues her path on the kibbutz to this day. Israela devoted much of her life to advancing people with disabilities in society, and had the privilege of conceiving, founding and serving as the first director of the “Aleh Negev” rehabilitation village for people with disabilities. We are certain that Israela would have been proud of the work of Derech Ami, which brings young people in Israel closer to the very values she was raised on: love of the Land, action on behalf of others, and the union of spiritual strength with practical deeds.
The Be’er Sheva center of the Students’ Project at Derech Ami is named in his memory.
Natan David Hershkovitz z”l was born on the 25th of Adar II 5705 in Feldafing, Germany, to Ida and Yaakov Yitzhak Hershkovitz z”l, their only son.
Natan immigrated to the Land of Israel in 1950 at the age of two, and a year later contracted polio. Natan founded two synagogues in Israel named “Achva VeRe’ut” (in Bnei Brak and in Elkana), and for most of his years served as a leading gabbai at the synagogue in the community of Elkana. He worked for 47 years at Bank Mizrahi, in a range of positions and on the workers’ committee. Natan passed away on the 8th of Menachem Av 5780 at the age of 72, leaving four children and sixteen grandchildren. He was a man of kindness and modesty, who took care to raise his children on Zionism, Torah and labor, and who always saw the good in every person and in every situation. May his memory be blessed.
The learning and the work of our students are dedicated to the elevation of their souls. Over time, further names of dear ones who have passed away will be added to this wall.