Shamka, Shimon

Shimon, son of Zachia and David, was born on January 18, 1951, in Moshav Shachar near Safed. As a child, his family moved to the permanent residence of Dalton, also near Safed. At the beginning of March 1972, when he completed compulsory service, he returned to his work as a truck driver, and then met his girlfriend Dalia, who was six years his junior. The parents on both sides wanted a quick wedding, despite Dalia’s young age. The court approved the early marriage, and the two married. At first they lived in the parents’ home, but after that Shimon managed to buy them a nice apartment, in which they barely had time to live. In the Yom Kippur War he served as a tank commander on the southern front. On October 18, 1973, his unit was already in the West Bank of the Canal. In the battles over the Abu Sultan camps, he was hit and killed. He was brought to eternal rest in the Safed cemetery, leaving behind a wife, parents, five brothers and three sisters. After his fall, he was promoted to sergeant.