Bornstein, Reuven

Reuven, son of Rina and Itamar, was born on January 14, 1942 in Givat Brenner, and attended elementary school and high school in the kibbutz. Afterward, he studied at the agricultural seminary in Tel Hai for two years. He was a diligent student, alert and intelligent. According to his teacher in the class, he was a brilliant student but didnt have to work hard because things it was easy for him. He devoted his hours to free reading, which enabled him to record his feelings and expand his spiritual horizons. When he was eight years old, he was bitten by a snake and was limping lightly on one foot. Because of the way he walked, he was nicknamed “horse” among his friends. Since he was ambitious, with great physical fitness and great endurance, he wanted to prove to everyone that despite his limp he could achieve great achievements. In swimming competitions he was crowned “Southern Champion”. He was a parachutist, flying light planes, diving, swimming and running. He was a cheerful, playful, friendly boy, a good and devoted son to his parents, who treated them with respect, appreciation and affection. He loved the land very much and knew how to carry out any agricultural work with dedication and diligence. Reuven was drafted into the IDF at the beginning of November 1960. At first he was told that because of a physical defect he could not be assigned to a combat unit but rather to one of the auxiliary services, and this was a heavy blow that he could not bear. , A course on infantry officers, a course for infantry officers, a course for air-support officers, and a platoon commander’s course, and his commander in the officers’ course told him that he was a man of principles who could fight stubbornly and argue heatedly to prove the justice of his views. To a unit of Druze, and soon his subordinates created an atmosphere of readiness and a sense of trust towards him, despite the differences in attitudes and perception, he did everything possible And in the Six Day War fought for the liberation of Jerusalem and was one of the first to climb the Temple Mount, for which he was awarded the “Six Day War” and the “Operational Service Certificate.” After he married He established his home in Kibbutz Dafna in 1970. He volunteered to serve in the regular army in 1970. At first he was an operations officer in one of the units in the north of the country, and later moved to Abu-Rhodes, and soon became fond of the local soldiers. Many for the welfare of its subordinates and for the welfare of the Bedouin residents of the area. He assisted in a medical experiment with a new drug for the treatment of eye disease, which was widespread among Bedouins, and passed through local Arab encampments and persuaded them to receive the cure. Indeed, in many cases the condition improved and the vision improved. Reuven fell during the rescue of employees of the oil company that were captured at night – the Egyptian commando attack on the 7th of Tishrei 5740 (7.10.1973), near Abu-Rhodes and was brought to rest at the cemetery in Dafna. He left behind a wife and two sons, a mother, a brother and a sister. In a letter of condolence to the bereaved family, his commander wrote: “Reuven was a soldier and a courageous officer, with great energy, who was never deterred by the danger and the battle.” In his honor certificate, he wrote: “Reuven saw his service as a mission and bore it with devotion and love, and devoted himself to increasing the strength of the IDF and cultivating its spirit.” His kibbutz published a pamphlet in his memory a few weeks after the fall, .