27
ZIM MAGAZINE
among youth and adolescents. Revital was chosen for the lead
role, and passed on the play’s powerful message to parents
and students. Her striving for, and nurturing of, excellence
became Revital’s defining trait. In high school, she specialized
in biology and excelled in her studies year after year. At some
award ceremonies, Revital was
accompanied only by her mom
Linda and her siblings Shirley
and Eliav, as her father was far
away at sea. During her high
school years, she volunteered
with Magen David Adom (like
the Red Cross) , passed the
training courses, and developed
a love for the medical field. Even
as a girl, she guided trainees and
passed adult first aid courses.
Revital applied to join a medical reserve unit, and when
that did not work out she enlisted in the regular army, with
the hope that she could study medicine later. However, the
“seed” of excellence, the dedication to the cause, and her
will to be the best student guided her path to the future. From
the moment she enlisted, Revital demonstrated values of
responsibility, discipline, friendship, reliability, and a sense
of purpose, as well as professionalism, courage, morality,
and setting a personal example.
Revital advanced in the army, and along the way she always
said, ‘this is just the start’. Little Revital, shy and timid,
suddenly became famous – publicity chased her sometimes
without her knowledge – superlative headlines for the retiring
and shy Revital! Modest, unassuming Revital continued
to advance as though nothing had happened. To us – her
parents Linda and Shimon, and her siblings Shirley and Eliav
– Revital continued to be our sensitive and beloved child,
just as she ever was. This is Major Revital, commander of
the Iron Dome battalion.
is decorated with ZIM
ships from her voyages
with her family, who
accompanied Shimon
when he went to sea.
When she was called
up to the army, she was
given a bag decorated
with ZIM’s seven Stars of David, and on every Independence
Day, ZIM sent her a gift and a greeting.
According to Shimon, “Whenever I would return to shore
after a long voyage, I remember first seeing Revital, hiding
behind her mother Linda’s skirts, and peeking out at me
with one eye. For two or three days, she wouldn’t come
near me, until she had gotten used to me, and then all of
a sudden the connection and love between us blossomed.
During my shore leave, I would take her to kindergarten
every day, and bring her home again with a little gift. Her
friends from kindergarten were jealous, and once they asked
her, “Revital, doesn’t your Daddy go to work?” The first letter
with a stamp that Revital ever sent, she sent to me, to the
ship, and in it she wrote simply, “Hello Daddy”. Revital,
who had a quiet and modest personality, excelled at school
from a young age, and was good at expressing herself both in
writing and orally,. In ZIM’s 1996 magazine, I wrote about the
reactions of those onboard a ship on the high seas to Rabin’s
assassination. I received a fax with a poem about the pain
caused by his murder: “Reading the fax in real-time I was
almost in tears, because a little girl was able to express the
feeling of sadness and pain in the simplest words.” That little
girl was Revital.
Revital took part
in an acting class,
and performed in
front of the kids
in her elementary
school and in plays
for the parents of
older kids on the
topic of violence
Revital always said, ‘this is just the
start’. Little Revital, shy and timid,
suddenly became famous.
