Birnbaum, Yosef (“Yossi”)

Son of Dan and Eve. He was born on the 16th of Mershvan 5708 (8.11.1949) in Kibbutz Maoz Haim, the second son of the four sons of the family. The boys became a cohesive group, and Yossi was an example to his younger brothers and a friend of his older brother. Yossi studied at Kibbutz Maoz Hayim until the sixth grade, and in those years he became fond of nature and the landscape. In the early grades of the school he learned the names of the wild plants and birds of the Beit She’an Valley, and due to severe difficulties in learning to read and write, Yossi was forced to move to the special school at Givat Hayim Ihud for the seventh and eighth grades. Where he excelled in his strong desire to learn and in his serious efforts to overcome his difficulties. There he also gained self-confidence and became familiar with the value itself. In grades 9-11, Yossi studied at the agricultural school “Iron” in Hadera. He studied and worked diligently and was a very fond friend of his classmates and teachers. Yossi joined the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI). He was particularly interested in migratory waterbirds. In the twelfth grade, he returned to study at home, in order to reestablish contact with the farm, with his classmates, and with the branch he wanted to work in. At that time he called the cowshed and when the members of the agriculture were drafted for the Six Day War, the 17- And after a day’s work in the cowshed Yossi used to go to the cemetery for watering and grooming, in order to maintain his handsome and respectful appearance.In the fall of that year Yossi joined the “boys” group at Kibbutz Eyal In spite of his close ties to his home in Maoz Haim and his family, he saw a need to help reinforce a young kibbutz that is fighting Existence. Kibbutz Eyal year of service ends at the time raised core members. Yossi was drafted with the core members in May 1968, during the War of Attrition, and volunteered to serve in one of the elite units. In the army, Yossi reached the fullest of his talents and virtues. As usual, he overcame courage and stubbornness over the difficulties of basic training, intensive courses and intensive operational activity. He was especially prominent in his developed sense of justice and did not accept the burden of his or his friends, and fought uncompromisingly for his correction. He continued to be interested in what was going on in his home and in his farm. On most vacations at home, he did not get a rest from the effort to shell the Suez Canal, because he had to look for refuge in the shelter for hours on end. But his spirit was always uplifting. He never lost his good humor and his interest in the social and economic problems of his home on the kibbutz did not stop. At the same time, he aspired to advance in the army. Yossi was supposed to go to an officer’s course in April 1970, but a month earlier, on March 14, 1970, Fell in an IDF raid on the western bank of the Suez Canal and was brought to eternal rest in the cemetery of Kibbutz Maoz Hayyim. His name was engraved on a memorial plaque in the memorial garden at Kibbutz Maoz Haim.