Ganot, Udi

Ben Ruth Wetzler-Bezalel. He was born on May 8, 1980 in Tiberias. When he was two, his sister Meital was born, and two years later the family moved to Upper Nazareth, where he grew up and was educated. He studied at the Atzmon Elementary School and at the Alon High School, where he studied with great pleasure in the field of communication. Was connected to the cameras naturally, as if they were organs of his body. Udi was a very sensitive boy to the environment, helped and supported friends and strove to integrate exceptional children into ordinary society. All his life he was surrounded by friends and had an amazing ability to integrate – in a moment he was a friend of everyone, worried, sharing and supportive as needed. From an early age he played basketball and belonged to the Hapoel team. He was very fond of reading and considered a book worm, and even during basic training and intensive training he found time to read. At home he liked to help, and to surprise him with special meals for his family and friends. A charming, optimistic and joyful man who loved to live and exhaust every moment. Udi enlisted in compulsory service in July 1999 and volunteered for the Paratroopers Brigade. He aspired to go to officers’ training and reach greatness, and he did fit in very well. The commander of the company writes: “Udi, I remember our first conversation in which you expressed your strong desire to be an officer, and I was very happy that I was facing a serious, motivated person who was willing to sacrifice himself for the others. Who demonstrated your stubbornness, your dedication and your strong desire to serve as a fighter in the Paratroopers Brigade … “After his military service he planned to continue his studies, but all his plans were cut short. On December 25, 1999, Udi was killed in a traffic accident and he is nineteen years old. He was laid to rest at the military cemetery in Nazareth Illit. Survived by his parents and sister. His friend Nir writes: “We miss you at every meeting of the guys, your laughter – still rolling in the background, remembering the experiences – but sad without you … The movies we took and played together – there was not a single moment without laughter and entertainment … the food you liked to eat and cook. “Megal, Udi’s sister, dedicated an exhibition of paintings to his memory, as a final project in high school. She writes: “… the disaster that struck me in the first third of the school year in the eleventh grade. My only brother I loved so much was that I had a brother, a friend, a father, and all the rest … As someone who could not digest the loss, I began to focus on painting as therapy, which gave me a little expression of the unbearable pain. The work process took place spontaneously without knowing where it would lead … In my opinion, the series of pictures from 11th grade until today expresses the terrible tragedy … Udi, when I present the exhibition to your memory, sad, painful and longing I hope that the rare qualities you have You are an angel in white, and you are really good up there, as you told me in a dream … “