Koestler, Zvi (Zvika)

Son of Moshe and Devorah. He was born on the 27th of Adar 1, March 8, 1948 in Haifa. His father, Moshe, was enlisted in the ranks of the Haganah, and lay wounded in Beit Borochov, on Mount Carmel. When the family moved to Carmel, Zvi studied at the David Yellin School. When he was ten and a half, Zvi was admitted to the Reali School for the fifth grade. He could not bear injustice and provocation to the weak, and always came to their aid. He then went to the Zichron Yosef School where he completed his studies. After, he went to study in Kfar Galim, in a boarding school. He would absorb everything he learned. He learned to play the guitar and accordion. Zvi liked to sing, and when he went to summer camps, he took an active part in cultural and entertainment activities. He was happy to fulfill any role he took upon himself. He was loved by the simple and modest people, and sometimes he brought them home to host them with a warm heart. He simply loved man, just as he loved nature. He was drafted into the IDF in February 1966. He sustained a minor injury to his leg. When he came home to recover from his wound, and the recovery process was prolonged, he could not wait. In the Six Day War, Zvi was among the fighters at the outskirts of Gaza, and returned to his parents without a scratch. Once, at the end of one of his last vacations, he prepared a “suitcase for the road,” a suitcase filled with books, to read in his spare time. But during a patrol to discover mines in the vicinity of Jericho, the commander and his comrades heard that visible terrorists were on their way. A battle ensued, in which Zvi was injured, and on the following day, on the 11th of Tishrei, October 3, 1968, he died of his wounds. He was laid to rest in the military cemetery in Haifa. It is interesting to note that, in the early hours of the day of his departure for the Yom Kippur holiday, Zvi managed to visit the synagogue in Jericho, before leaving. He said, “If it is impossible to be with the family on Yom Kippur because of his military role, I will at least do something symbolic on this day, that is different from all other days of the year.” Not everyone in the half-tracks visited the synagogue, but everyone decided to fast. Zvi’s father put a sum of 100,000 lirot for the opening of Milk Bar, in the name of his paratrooper son and that his comrades-in-arms would use. They donated 12,000 lirot a year, to a welfare fund for the paratroopers, named after Zvi. His parents also published a book in memory of Zvi, written by his mother.