This week, our daily kavanot will honor the memories of just some of the men, women, and children killed by Hamas in last week’s horrific attacks.
Zichronam livracha—May their memories be forever a blessing.
Tamar Kedem-Siman Tov and her husband Yonatan lived in Nir Oz, a kibbutz near the border of Gaza. On Friday, October 6, the population of the kibbutz was around 400 people.
The NY Post described Tamar as “a community activist and women’s rights activist, who recently campaigned to become head of the Eshkol Regional Council.” Her social media profile indicates she works at the foundation for Encouraging Initiatives in Education and that she had been a program leader for the Cadets for Municipal service, an initiative that aimed to train local leaders in Israel’s rural communities. Yonatan worked on the kibbutz as an operations manager and wheat grower.
Before her campaign, Tamar served as an advisor to the ministry of the interior on regional issues. She was formerly the director of the Bikurim Youth Village for Excellence in Art and Music, a boarding school for at-risk youth. Those who knew her said they always knew she would change the world.
On Saturday morning, October 7, Tamar and Yonatan rushed into the bunker with their twin six year-old daughters Shachar and Arbel, and their four year-old son Omer. They texted friends in Sydney, Australia to say: “Hi guys, we got into the shelter in our house, we’re all going okay.”
Hamas terrorists broke into the safe room and slaughtered all five members of the Kedem family. According to official reports, one-quarter of the residents of Nir Oz are either dead or confirmed missing.
May their memories be for a blessing.
Rabbi David Woznica
