Yehoshua and Ruth Levi

Yehoshua Levi was born in the city of Ludush, Transylvania (Romania) on July 15, 1925, as the sixth of the 7 children of Bezalel and Eta. His family was Chassidic Ultra-Orthodox and his father was a “shoichet”, a ritual slaughterer. He had a “cheder” and public school education, leaving home at 14 to work for his uncle in his family business, in order to support the family.

During WW2 he found work in a hospital outside of the ghetto he was then living in. When he returned in the evening, he would bring medications for the residents of the ghetto. One day the Nazis caught him and he was sentenced to death. A doctor bribed the guards and he was freed in the nearby forest. He then found his way to Palestine, via foot, train and boat, with help from the Hagana, arriving in 1944. After recovering from typhus, Yehoshua joined the Palmach/Hagana and was in the army through the War of Independence, the Sinai War of 1956, and the Six-Day War.

Ruth Levi (nee Zonis) was born in Otek, Besarabia (Romania) on March 18, 1931, as the youngest of the 4 children of Avraham and Risa. Ruth’s father was the Jewish vice-mayor of the town as most of the inhabitants were Jewish. Ruth’s was a student in the “Tarbut” system, which was based on the Zionist/secular ideology of A.D. Gordon, thus learning Hebrew and Hebrew literature as a young girl. During WW2, Ruth and her parents were forced to live in a labour camp in Ukraine. In 1947 the three of them made Aliyah and settled in Kfar Saba, and Ruth joined Aliyat Hanoar in Kibbutz Degania Aleph. After the War of Independence, she studied to be a teacher, working with new immigrants.

Ruth and Yehoshua met after the War of Independence, married in 1950 and had their beloved son, Uri, in 1952. The family lived in Kfar Saba, Yehoshua worked as a plumber, diamond polisher, and as a hospital aide until he retired. Both Yehoshua and Ruth were committed Labour Zionists and raised their son to understand the importance of a Jewish homeland and economic justice.

Sadly, Ruth’s health was compromised due to her experiences in WW2 and she passed away in March 2005. Yehoshua passed in October 2009.

Ruth and Yehoshua are lovingly remembered by their son, Uri, their daughter-in-law, Leah, and their 3 precious grandchildren, Ayal, Tamar, and Adam. May their memory be for a blessing!