Yoel, son of Chaya and Yaakov, was born on March 19, 1954 in Tel Aviv. From the early days of his childhood, he was educated in Torah and Judaism, studied at the religious elementary school “Moriah” and when he was thirteen he even prayed as a chazan. He was also a member of the Bnei Akiva youth movement, and he was very fond of his family, especially his little sister, although his parents also paid close attention to him. He liked the school, loved to learn and read a lot, and according to his parents’ testimony, “since he was born he was happy and a good smile was always on his face “His father told him:” Yoel was born on Shushan Purim, and perhaps it was the joy of the holiday that made its mark on him. Since his youth and throughout his life he has always been happy and satisfied. His little sister cared like a father for his daughter, so did the rest of the family. He was alert and aroused his surroundings, perhaps because of this people stuck to him – young and old alike. “His friends said: “The hospitality was very characteristic of Yoel and his family. If friends wanted to study together, or to gather together, they always knew that the address was with him.” Yoel was also characterized by jokes. For every occasion he had a joke. He was always in a good mood. He loved to read the Torah, and whenever he needed a reader, he volunteered for it. The cantor of the class was also the one who organized the afternoon prayers in the class. Respect for father and mother characterized him until a later age. Unlike his teenage friends, what his parents said was holy. In class he was a member of the decoration committee and made sure the room looked nice. He had the most beautiful works in painting, and participated in an exhibition held by the Moriah School. In general Yoel was observant. He was the only one who kept the Shema every day. Yoel was drafted into the IDF in mid-August 1972 and assigned to the Armored Corps. As part of his service, he underwent a tank training course, a tank driver course and a tank commander course. Throughout his service, he kept strictly the commandments of the Torah, and as usual – even in the army, despite the arduous training, he was always happy and satisfied. Yoel really volunteered for the Armored Corps, and he always admired his cousin, the songwriter, and wanted to be like him, and that was one of the reasons he wanted to join the Armored Corps. In the war both of them were killed – first cousin Meir Glickman, and then Yoel. He was perhaps the only armored officer who was always pleased with the soldiers, despite the hard work. He liked to disassemble instruments, out of interest. Once, when he was on alert and he was a driver, he sat in the turret and began to dismantle the dishes there “to learn,” as he said. In the army, too, his characteristic social characteristics were revealed. He was not only a tankist, but a “symbol of religion” of the guys, who organized every prayer a minyan, a reading of the Torah and so forth. In the evenings he would go into the dining room and prepare sandwiches for the guys “to have something to eat at night.” The Yom Kippur War found him and his unit on the southern front. After the braking battles of the early days, he was one of the only members of his company to leave. On October 14 he fought all day and changed tanks. When his tank was hit he was in shock. Since he was the driver of the tank, he remained alone, because the rest of the crew fled. After being surrounded by Egyptian soldiers for half a day, he woke up, went up to the turret and began to talk on the radio. One officer directed him by the sun to the unit’s location, and indeed managed to get out with the tank. When his name arrived, he was astonished at his command, and he did not believe he had survived, and once again a new team was organized for him. On October 15, 1973, the unit was organized to cross the canal. In a break into the “Chinese farm” his tank was hit and Yoel fell. He was brought to rest in the military section of Kiryat Shaul. Survived by his parents and sister. After his fall, he was promoted to sergeant. In a letter of condolence to the bereaved family, Defense Minister Moshe Dayan wrote: “Yoel was a devoted soldier and an excellent friend. “Yoel stuck to his position by showing courage and recognition of the mission that he had filled.” Yoel continued his service with us, recognizing Yoel’s integrity and the love of others that is inherent in him. In memory of his classmate, Yitzhak Saadia, published a booklet containing friends’ comments on their image.
