Tzarfaty, Raphael (Rafi)
Raphael (Rafi), son of Rosa and Asher, was born on May 24, 1938 in Iderna, Turkey, and immigrated to Israel with his family in 1949. He completed his elementary studies at the “Ami Asaf” When they immigrated to Israel, the family lived in tents in the transit camp, and even after they moved to Moshav Burgata, they lived there in difficult conditions, where Rafi’s family was one of the first in the moshav, As a child, Rafi was always curious, alert and interested in everything, but due to the low level of studies in his school, his curiosity was not satisfied, so when he completed his elementary studies, He was forced to stay in the moshav and began to work on a tractor in the foothills, and since he loved manual labor from his childhood, he found great satisfaction in the work of the land. He had forgotten his other hobbies: he loved ball games and was one of the founders of the moshav soccer team, and he also liked to hang out, he always had plans and he tried not to lose anything because he believed that a person should have the best of his life. In time he became a strong, cheerful man whose face showed joy and joy. He was healthy and strong, but inside he was gentle and emotional. He always had friends, and he knew how to be liked by everyone. He loved his friends, used to tell them about his experiences and tried to help them in every way he could. He was prominent in society and was always among the organizers of parties and trips. Besides, he was an excellent dancer and in every wedding or party he always stood at the center of joy. Rafael was drafted into the IDF at the end of April 1956 and assigned to the Armored Corps, where he served as a Sherman tank driver and participated in the “Sinai Campaign” which took place immediately upon his conscription. After completing his regular service, he was assigned to a reserve unit and was called for periods of active reserve duty, and he also participated in the Six-Day War and in various IDF operations . He loved the reserve periods in particular, because he found them an opportunity to meet with his friends for service, and even rest, because his work was very difficult. After he was released from the army, Rafi returned to Moshav Burgata and continued to work on the tractor, first working as an independent with three partners in the fields and around the moshav, and later he managed to establish a private farm with his brother. He spent most of his time working with his wife and children on nature walks and visits to various places throughout the country, and during the Yom Kippur War Rafi took part in the battles against the Syrians in the Golan Heights. Tishrei 5740 (October 12, 1973) Rafi fought in the battalion commander’s tank in the Tel-Saki area. The tank was hit, and in the fire Haifa Rafi fired at his wounded comrades who jumped out of the tank – friends whose lives were saved thanks to him. Rafi himself was hit by a bullet in the head and killed. He was laid to rest in the military cemetery in Netanya. He left behind a wife and three children – Yosef, Asher and Shoshana, parents, brothers and sisters. After his fall, he was promoted to sergeant. A memorial list was published in a pamphlet in memory of the fallen in the newspaper Yediot HaEtzek of Emek Hefer.
