Son of Chaim and Hadassah. He was born on the 19th of Av, August 12, 1941, in Petrovsk, Russia. His father was conscripted in the war effort against Nazi Germany. In 1948, he immigrated with his parents to Israel, and settled in Haifa. He attended the “Merkaz” elementary school. In ninth grade, he attended the Bialik Gymnasium, where he excelled in his studies in the biological track. It is worth noting, that death was already in his hands, when he was in the eleventh grade. When he left with his squad, for the training of the Gadna-Hacarmel, he was hit by a poisonous snake. Menachem loved to help others and to encourage his friends. It was his love to help each person that later attracted him to study medicine. When he was drafted into the IDF, he was stationed in the Medical Corps, where he served for about a year as a combat medic. He reached the academic reserve and studied medicine, at the Hebrew University Medical School. In his studies, he stood out for his talents, his easy grasp and his extra diligence. He also showed excellent social relations and, above all, his great modesty. He married in 1963, and, in 1966, his only son was born. During the Six-Day War, he spent days and nights working at Rambam Hospital. Since then, his reputation had flourished among doctors, his professional friends, and the compassionate nurses, and the patients he treated. At the beginning of 1968, Menachem completed his medical studies and was called to the IDF, in order to complete his regular service. He was in charge of both the commanders and the patients. As a doctor, he arrived at a Nachal parachute camp in the Galilee. In those days, he took care of Carmiel, as a doctor at the clinic. To this day, it can be heard from local residents: “We had a good doctor, who was also a good man. Menachem participated in operational activities, and did not leave the battalion commanders and soldiers. He contributed a great deal to the entire battalion, especially in the moments of anxiety that accompany every operational activity. He worked hard to obtain a doctorate, while taking a special interest in surgical cardiology, in which he aspired to specialize. He set out special methods in which he treated patients with respect, a scientific attitude, with a father’s feeling. His commanders in the IDF assessed him, not only for his ability as a physician, but as a person who took care of various tasks in the camp. Menachem’s interests were many and varied, and he would treat every matter with a highly supervised maturity, for he had a sharp intellect. As a doctor, he voluntarily accompanied his unit in dozens of combat operations, until the end. On the 3rd of Shvat, January 22, 1969, while rushing to the camp to treat a number of patients who were lying in the hospital room, he fell while carrying out his duties. The booklet “Bakom Yisrael”, which was published by the Bialik Gymnasium in Haifa, in memory of its teachers and students, who fell in Israel’s wars, brought its history and several pages to its memory.
