Yom HaZikaron – Remembrance Day – Personal Experiences and Inspiration

Every year, one siren — just a sound without words — stirs up so many feelings for so many people. On Memorial Day, an entire nation stops everything at 8 p.m., and stands in silence, needing no words. After all, when you are an Israeli citizen, you understand at a very young age that with their deaths, the 23,477 fallen soldiers killed in Israel’s many wars have given us life. Literally.

In the passing year, since the last Memorial Day, 68 people were added to the list of fallen soldiers and victims of terrorism, and another 59 wounded veterans who died this year were also recognized as fallen IDF soldiers. The number of bereaved families in Israel stands at 16,307, of them 9,442 bereaved parents, 4,917 bereaved widows and 1,948 orphans under the age of 30.

On Tuesday evening, at 7:25 p.m., flags will be lowered to half mast. A minute-long siren will be sounded across the country at 8 p.m. indicating the start of the annual day of mourning, and the annual remembrance ceremony will begin at the Western Wall. On Wednesday morning, a two-minute siren will sound at 11:00 a.m., followed by remembrance ceremonies across Israel.

The main ceremony at the Western Wall will be attended by President Reuven Rivlin, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot, Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat and a host of bereaved families. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a number of cabinet ministers will host the national memorial service for fallen soldiers and victims of terrorism at the Mount Herzl cemetery on Wednesday morning.

At 7:45 p.m. Wednesday, a torch lighting ceremony on Mount Herzl will mark the end of Memorial Day and the beginning of Israel’s 68th Independence Day — a national day of celebration.

The Defense Ministry issued a statement saying that the ministry’s department responsible for commemoration and remembrance was expecting more than 1.5 million Israelis to visit the military cemeteries throughout Memorial Day. Over the course of the day, three items will be placed on the graves of every fallen soldier: a memorial candle, flowers and an Israeli flag adorned with a black ribbon and a flame.

During the course of the day, the Defense Ministry will make hundreds of buses and shuttles available to Israelis who wish to visit the military cemeteries across the country. Hundreds of water bottles will be distributed to bereaved families and the general public at the entrance to the cemeteries. More than a hundred ambulances will be stationed at the cemeteries and more than 20,000 chairs will be dispersed across the grounds — a chair next to each grave.

Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon lit a virtual candle on Monday in memory of the 23,447 fallen on the ministry’s online remembrance site.

“May we be worthy of their sacrifice and may we be wise enough to follow their path while adhering to our values as a society and as a people,” Ya’alon wrote in their honor.

The Defense Ministry’s Izkor website allows internet users to light virtual candles in memory of the fallen, write a personal note and share it with friends on social media.

President Rivlin met on Monday with the management of the veterans’ memorial organization Yad Labanim, which represents Israel’s bereaved families. Rivlin told members of bereaved families, “I am your soldier. Every year we pray that the circle of bereavement will not grow, and this year, like every year, my heart broke as I met the dozens of families that joined the circle after all.”

The president added that “these are the sons and daughters of all of us that were taken, but you have paid the dearest price.”

Rivlin praised Yad Labanim for its work and said that “this organization helps us accept the bitter truth.”

Yad Labanim Chairman Eli Ben Shem, himself a bereaved father, thanked Rivlin for the remarks and said, “We thank you for hosting us here. We do not take it for granted. You and your wife have done so much for bereaved families this year, not just on Memorial Day. We are grateful for your dedication to resolving every issue we have raised.”

Ben Shem noted that Yad Labanim has 65 chapters across the country, operating to assist bereaved families with a variety of issues.

Aryeh Muallem, head of the Defense Ministry’s Familes and Commemoration Department, said at the meeting that “the stronger the pain becomes, the more we are required to remember. Giving is like a wheel. You, the people of Yad Labanim, are the embodiment of the phrase, ‘Love thy neighbor as thyself.’ I have no doubt that you will be rewarded for everything you have done over the years.”