After Thirty Years

Last Thursday and Friday were two very special and significant days. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the outbreak of two major wars in Israel's history, the Six Day War and the first Lebanon war. The latter is of particular poignancy because Pat's son Greg (Gidon), an Israeli soldier, fell in battle on the third day of that conflict.

Thursday afternoon and evening there was a special ceremony marking that anniversary at Latrun, at Israel's Armored Corps Museum. It is there that ceremonies are held when Israeli young men and women complete basic military training. This time however, the ceremony was different. It was a time for reunion and remembering. Members of the Division in which Greg served, gathered, first in small groups to greet each other, recall events, and remember fallen comrades. Families of fallen soldiers, held in particular high regard, were also invited. For some of the men, it was the first time in thirty years that they had seen each other.

Pat and I and Amos, a very close friend from Kibbutz Gazit, where Greg had found a place for himself here in Israel attended the ceremony. Several men came and connected with Pat after all these years. We heard stories and details that led up to the tragic events in which Greg was killed. She met the jeep driver who had taken her to Lebanon, in the midst of war to see where Greg had fallen. There was a bulletin board which displayed the pictures of the men in Greg's unit who had fallen. Then we all gathered as the company commander told something personal about each one of the men, and presented a memorial plaque to each family. The evening concluded with a larger gathering at which the Chief of Staff of the Army spoke and where, once again, the fallen soldiers were remembered. After thirty years it was time to recall the efforts of these men with pride and dignity.

Friday Pat and I drove to Kibbutz Gazit, where Greg is buried, to mark the anniversary of his death. We have done this each year, when in Israel. This was the 30th anniversary. This year three of the men, including the company commander, who had been at the ceremony the previous evening, joined friends from the kibbutz to reflect and remember Greg. He has now been dead longer than he was alive!

Israel was a very special place for Greg. He came here for a year after high school on a program called Etgar. Kibbutz Gazit, at the foot of Mt. Tabor, became his new home. He fell in love with the country and with his group leader on the program; came back, ultimately, to the kibbutz, and ended up giving his life for this country. He left his love for Israel to his mother. Pat came here on sabbatical, came here to spend the year of mourning in a country that knows so much about death and grief, and we have come each year to be part of this vibrant, challenging, sometimes rough at the edges society. It has a way of growing on one!

This is our last post for this trip. We have not written all that often, but hopefully you have gained something from our postings. Shalom,

Frank