Azoulay, Yehuda

Bennett and Albert. He was born on December 29, 1967 in Or Akiva. Yehuda was the fifth son in a family of eight, and although he had only a “good place in the middle” between his brothers and sisters, he received a special treat from his mother. He studied for eight years at the Etzion Religious State School in his hometown and then continued his studies at the Tachkemoni School in Hadera and in Ort in Pardesiya. At the age of seventeen before enlisting, he took a military driving course. He also studied electrical engineering and car smears at a military base near Netanya. Upon his enlistment in August 1984, he was stationed in the Armored Corps and served as a driver in Eilat. Yehuda was a sociable, good-hearted and clever fellow, full of joie de vivre, and thanks to these qualities, he became fond of everything. He had a good friend, whom he loved very much and was preparing to marry after the compulsory service. On June 14, 1985, Yehuda was in his home in Or Akiva and in the evening he went on foot with a group of friends to the holiday village of ‘Empress’ to spend the evening there. When they were on their way, a private car suddenly appeared and critically wounded Yehuda, who was walking with his friends on the road. According to the testimony of one of them, Yehuda noticed the approaching car first and pushed his close friend to the side of the road so that he would not be hurt, and so he was injured himself. The efforts of the doctors at the nearby Hillel Yaffe Hospital to save his life failed. He fell during his service and was laid to rest in the military section of the cemetery in Or Akiva. He was nineteen when he died. Survived by his parents and seven brothers and sisters – Ora, Clarisse, Yaffa, Edna, Shimon, Yitzhak and Yoram. His commander wrote to his family: “Yehuda felt good in the unit and this satisfaction was expressed in the effort he invested in his work, when he helped the soldiers in the company where he served. Yehuda’s name was immortalized in a Torah library that was put into the Rashbi and Rabbi Akiva synagogue in Or Akiva