Yakir, Yoav

Yoav, son of Masha and Abraham, was born on February 2, 1951 in Kfar Ruppin, He attended elementary school in a group and later completed high school studies at the children’s school in Neve Eitan. Yoav was a diligent student, responsible and dedicated. He was gifted with many talents and his teacher testified that there was hardly any field he did not excel in – both in humanism and in the real professions. He especially loved Hebrew literature and poetry and even wrote poems and songs. He was a sports fan and excelled in long runs and soccer, and was part of the kibbutz soccer team. He was also a member of the youth group of the Union of Groups and Kibbutzim (“HaNoar HaOved”) and served as a counselor in the “HaNoar Haoved” nest in Beit Shean. Yoav was a very friendly guy and loved everything. Although he stood out in society, he did not patronize his friends. On the contrary, he treated each person kindly and cordially. If necessary, he knew how to protect his comrades and stand by them. He liked to play and amuse himself – he sometimes appeared, with great success, as an entertainer and singer at various events in the kibbutz – but he nevertheless excelled in a serious relationship to the problems of society and the state. He usually devoted his free time to reading, and from the age of fourteen, he ran a diary. In his diary were the prominent lines of his personality: clarity of thought and wealth of expression, analytical ability and poetic soul, maturity and depth, affection for others and love of the people and the land. These were also prominent in letters, which he wrote frequently when he did military service. He was a loyal son and devoted to his parents and loved the family meetings in their room. With all his heart he was connected to his family, both to relatives and to distant relatives.
Yoav was drafted into the Israel Defense Forces in late 1969 and volunteered for the IAF after completing his basic training course, but left the course about a year later, after completing a course for electronic equipment operators in the Israel Air Force. He served as a combat soldier and was appointed commander of the Centurion tank, after completing an officer’s course and an officer training course, and was appointed commander of a unit in the unit Armored Corps, which served in the Golan Heights and signed for a year of compulsory service and was supposed to be released at the end of October 1973 – less than a year And a few weeks after the outbreak of the Yom Kippur War, Yoav was killed on the Golan Heights On the day of Yom Kippur, 10 October 1973, Yoav was wounded and killed on the spot, Saki. He was brought to eternal rest at the cemetery in Kfar Ruppin. Survived by his father, mother and two brothers. After his fall, he was promoted to Lieutenant.