Michael, son of Tzila and Yehiel Freiberg, was born on May 19, 1950, in Haifa, where he studied at the Maale Hacarmel Elementary School and at the Beit Chinuch high school in Haifa. He was always willing to help others and to give gifts, encouragement and advice, and Michael liked to take care of plants and nature lovers in general and therefore traveled extensively throughout the country. In everything he did, he was evident in his qualities: seriousness, courtesy, conscientiousness, elegance and good manners. And from the early years he was eager to study biology and chemistry, and during the two years of studies at the Technion, he took on many more professions than was necessary, and wrote papers on the subject of Egyptian-Czech and Egyptian- He was a member of the Scouts movement in Haifa, and in the course of the years he took a course for group leaders and each year he taught at the movement’s summer camps in the kibbutzim. He was an outstanding athlete and in the high school he was awarded a short-distance running certificate. He also participated in basketball competitions at the high school and at the Technion. Michael devoted much of his time to music and from the age of ten to fourteen he studied cello at the Donia Weizman conservatory in Haifa. Even after he had to stop playing, due to the heavy load of his studies, he continued to participate regularly in poetry evenings. He was very humorous and despite his serious attitude to life he was always cheerful, and many remember him as the spirit of life among the students who nicknamed him “Mickey”. More than once, problems and arguments will be resolved with great success, by playing a good joke or a good word at moments of tension. Michael was a devoted son to his parents and a model husband to his wife and flooded with signs of love and endless warmth and always was worried, relaxing, loving, helping, dispensing compliments and Lutheran. Michael was drafted into the Israel Defense Forces in mid-August 1968 and assigned to the Artillery Corps, and after completing basic training and officer training, he was sent to the Artillery Officers Course. He was later assigned to an artillery unit with the rank of lieutenant. During the War of Attrition, he fought in the area of the Suez Canal, and several times he escaped from mortal danger. The commander of the unit said about him: “If I wanted to summarize in a short sentence its qualities, as was revealed in the War of Attrition, I would say that Michael was gentle and kind, a noble trait that not everyone is blessed with. “Micha’s most outstanding personal qualities were: politeness and gentleness in behavior and speech, in addition to responsibility and a great ability to carry out things quietly, and with efficiency. During his service, he always tried to take care of his parents and her family and did his best to calm them down, in letters or by phone, day or night. On October 12, 1973, Michael fought with his unit in the northern sector of Sinai and was killed in an air attack. He was laid to rest in the military cemetery in Haifa. In a letter of condolence to the bereaved family, his commander wrote: “Michael was an officer with knowledge, independent, efficient, devoted and beloved.” His friend-in-chief wrote: “Every mission assigned to Micha, good or bad, would have been performed in the best possible way and without any complaint. During a previous service period, he volunteered to replace almost all the officers on vacation, even though it was not part of his job. “His parents published a pamphlet in his memory, which included the words of friends and relatives about his character:” He had good qualities: seriousness, quiet, peace of mind, maturity. “Micha was aware of the problems of each of his fellow students and naturally appealed to him for help and advice, since he was” the father of everyone. ” He knew how to make the gray routine more interesting and cheerful thanks to his personality, which successfully combined intelligent judgment and thought-ability with plenty of joy and age. “” When I remember Mecca, I remember his smile and laughter; He was the “father” of the course and everyone was always gathered around him. “” Together with the laughter and the smile, Micha’s eyes grew out of seriousness and the tremendous desire to know: “In memory of him, the” Keren Lieutenant Michael Harel-Freiberg ” was established. And its purpose is to distribute scholarships to underprivileged students from large families. In 1976, five thousand Israeli pounds were distributed to five students. In 1977, six thousand Israeli pounds were distributed in twelve scholarships, from funds donated by family members, residents of the city and institutions.
