Sorrias, Raphael Rafi

Ben Jenny and Nissim. Born in Ra’anana on October 5, 1975, Rafi studied at the Bartov Elementary School in Ra’anana, continued in the Rimon junior high school and graduated from the Ostrovsky High School in the real world. He was a member of the Hanoar Haoved Vehalomed youth movement in his city for a short period of time, but preferred basketball games in the framework of Maccabi Raanana, Tennis games and activities in the city’s aviation department, and when he was in eighth grade he began to surf the waves and was enthusiastic about water skiing, and at the age of sixteen he issued a motorcycle license During his high school years, he began organizing parties and even earning money from occasional jobs. “A party publicist” was nicknamed the best friends he had spent with him from elementary school until his dying day. This is how his friend, Tomer, describes him: “When he arrived, without warning, dressed in a tip, smiling to the sky – always happy with life, there are never complaints.” “It was impossible to stop him, this unrest and the desire to live life or live the moment, without knocking, as you used to say, you simply did not have any competitors.” As an only child, Rafi was not drafted into a combat unit. When this fact became clear to him, he became angry, cried and rebelled, and did not let go until his parents accepted him and signed their consent to his service in a combat unit. At the beginning of December 1993, Rafi was drafted into the IDF and volunteered for the parachuting Nahal Brigade. After completing basic training, he was placed in the school for infantry brigade commanders, where he served for about a year, and his last position was a company sergeant, and during one of his vacations, Rafi fulfilled his dream and took a diving course in Eilat together with his girlfriend Lilach. On Saturday, 29 Av 5755 (29.7.1995), Rafi traveled with all the guys to dive at the beach on Kibbutz Sdot Yam. At the end of the dive Rafi found his death, when an engine-boat hit his head. He was twenty years old when he fell. He was laid to rest in the military cemetery in Ra’anana. Survived by his parents. In a letter of consolation to the bereaved family, Chief of Staff Amnon Lipkin-Shahak wrote: “Raphael was described by his commanders as a responsible, very dedicated soldier who performed his job to the satisfaction of his commanders in a remarkable manner and in appreciation. He was also a favorite of all the soldiers in the industry. “His commander wrote:” Rafi always did his best and even more. Ehud was on his friends, industrious, energetic and motivated to do and contribute. He always spoke about the day when he would finish his service and be able to fulfill his ambitions, see the world and experience as many experiences as possible. His commanders and friends loved him, the way he played his role and the positive atmosphere he created around him. His untimely death is a terrible loss to all of us. I know that there is no consolation for Ben’s death. There is no pain as deep and deep as the pain of parents burying their son, their only one. “From the poem” Raphael, “written and composed by Manny Beger in memory of Rafi:” touching the sky / . You are twenty years old / star between stars / radiant in every picture / smile of angels. “Rafi’s parents published a disc in his memory containing the song” Raphael “.