Avni, Yaakov

The eldest son of Ronit and Matityahu. Was born on January 6, 1982 in London, the capital of England. Brother to Daniel, Shimrit, Bat-El and Hila. Until the age of nine, he studied at the Chabad school in Stanford Hill, London, and after the family immigrated to Israel, he began studying at the Noam School in Kiryat Ata, where he first joined the Ezra youth movement and later joined the Bnei Akiva religious youth movement Yaakov was a sports and basketball addict, and was a member of the basketball team of his school, and won several medals, and took an active part in the home soccer team. He was an avid fan of the Arsenal football team, Room decorated with pictures and posters, shirts and scarves of his beloved team. The vacancies his hours spent helping others. He volunteered for fundraising events on behalf of organizations and worked with the Zahav (road safety) prevent accidents. The many songs he wrote to his girlfriend, Miri, attested to the sensitive and poetic side of his soul. Jacob was a serious guy who weighed every word he uttered. He fulfilled the mitzvah of honoring parents with all his might and never sat on his father’s chair. He took care of his parents and did not burden them with unnecessary requests, and was closely related to his brothers and sisters. Yaakov enlisted in the IDF in November 2000, volunteered for the Golani Brigade and was assigned to the ‘Raven’ unit, where he was an investor, volunteered for a sniper course, and successfully completed Operation Defensive Shield, in which he joined another unit without a sniper. On March 1, 2002, Yaakov was killed during an operation in Judea and Samaria by a Palestinian sniper. He was brought to eternal rest in the military section of the Kiryat Ata cemetery. Survived by his parents, brother and three sisters. Jacob was twenty years old when he fell. After his fall, he was promoted to sergeant. His parents dedicated a Torah scroll to his memory, and the “Kehillat Yaakov” Beit Midrash was dedicated to the Beit Yosef Yeshiva, where Jacob studied. In the synagogue where he used to pray, Kehillat Shuvu Banim, he dedicated his memorial to the Holy Temple. A tree was also planted in memory of Yaakov in the Jerusalem hills by the Hod ve-Hadar community – the Masorti Movement.