Ivy, Yehuda
Yehuda, son of Miriam and Mordecai, was born on April 15, 1947 in Safed, And completed his studies in the state elementary school in Safed and at the agricultural school in Nahalal. As the son of one of the Haganah and Palmach activists and as a descendant of a family that lived for five generations in Safed, Judah absorbed the love of the country in general and the love of the Galilee in particular. He coordinated the activities of the Gadna in his high school and always stood at the center of all social activity. He also liked to travel through the Galilee and knew the paths and paths of the Upper Galilee. Yehuda was drafted into the Israel Defense Forces in mid-November 1965 and was assigned to the Armored Corps, where he served as a senior armored corps officer and graduated with honors from the tank commanders. The battles of the War of Attrition and the IDF’s actions in Samu’a, Karamah, and the northern front. He was modest and hardly talked about the time in the army, but his friends praised and praised his courage, his devotion to the mission and his excellence in training and battle. In all courses he was an outstanding trainee; As a guide and commander of a tank, he took care of his apprentices and soldiers in extremely difficult field conditions, and his staff was always the first and most outstanding in the unit. But although he was an excellent fighter and veteran fighter, he did not stop stressing that he preferred the tractor on the tank. Judah loved the land and the work of the land. He studied, read and was interested in everything related to agriculture. He fulfilled his dream when he and his family established a home and farm in Yesod Hama’ala. The house was surrounded by trees and flowers, and the agricultural market flourished; And there he wanted to teach his children to the values on which he was raised – values that were the essence of his life: the love of the land and the earth, the love of nature and agriculture in the Galilee. He always missed the family and the home, the farm at Yesod Hama’ala, Safed and the Galilee. He was a wonderful family man, a loving and caring husband and a good and dedicated father, whose life with him and his walks and fun with him were an unforgettable experience for his family. During the Yom Kippur War, Yehuda was commander of one of the first tanks to enter the Golan Heights in order to stop the Syrian onslaught. He fought valiantly in the harsh, bloody battles. Near the Jordan estuary, his tank was hit and he was wounded in the head and arms, replaced a tank, refused to be sent back to medical treatment and joined another tank he commanded later on. He was hit and killed by a direct hit in his tank at a battle near Hoshenia on the 8th of Tishrei 5734 (October 8, 1973) and was brought to eternal rest in the cemetery in Safed. He left behind a wife and two children. After his fall, he was promoted to the rank of sergeant. in a letter of condolence to the bereaved family, his commander wrote that Judah’s leadership and dedication, his courage and his devotion to the mission were worthy of note and that he was the living spirit of the unit. His commanders and soldiers respected him. Words in his memory and lines for the image of Yehuda were published in the book “in memory”, published in Safed, in memory of the city’s fallen
