Corporal Noam Abramowitz

Daughter of Adva and Yossi
Sister of Ofri, Yiftach and Yuval

Noam is the eldest daughter of Adva and Yossi. She moved to Germany with her parents at the age of one month, where they lived for a year. After they returned to Israel, she was enrolled in a kindergarten in Rehovot, and then moved to Givat Brenner, which became the family’s permanent residence.

From a very young age, Noam was blessed with a charismatic nature that enchanted the other children. Her high school years were characterized by an active social life. She was a youth movement instructor and had two serious romantic relationships.
After graduating from high school and before she joined the IDF, Noam enrolled in the Beeri Preparatory School. That school’s yearbook noted that she would one day be Israel’s prime minister. This was an indication of the considerable regard in which she was held by her friends, and her unique gift for leadership.

Noam joined the IDF on August 1, 2023.

Her family wrote the following about the day of her enlistment:
“On the day she enlisted, she arrived at the base with a glowing smile on her face, and a deep desire to contribute as much as she could.” Being a surveillance soldier was not her dream role, but she knew it was important and that she was fighting for a great cause. She fell in love with her role within two days of boot camp. She understood its deep significance and the importance of protecting Israel’s borders. She developed an intense devotion to the role within the span of a week. because of that, she wanted to serve in the Gaza Sector (Nachal Oz). Why there, Noam?” Because that’s the most important sector. This is the most important sector and that’s where I will contribute the most.” Out of 148 soldiers, her Company Commander appointed her Assistant Platoon Commander. She began and ended every class, prepared teaching materials for her company and humbly and bravely led an entire company.”

On October 4, 2023, Adva – Noam’s mother – came back early from a family trip to Rhodes to attend Noam’s course graduation ceremony. She drove Noam to her base at Nachal Oz on the following Thursday. Noam was filled with enthusiasm and was eager to become thoroughly acquainted with the sector. On Friday, October 6, 2023 – a day before the terrorist attack – Noam successfully completed her certification exam.

On October 7, 2023 (Saturday morning), the base was put on alert because of rocket and mortar fire. Noam and her team members were unarmed, and they could only wait – scared and helpless – inside their shelters. In her last minutes, once she realized that she would not make it out alive, Noam wrote her goodbyes in her family’s WhatsApp group. She shared her fears with her family, and told them that she loves them.

Noam was murdered during the terrorist attack, but had remained missing until October 10, 2023. Her parents learned of her death on that terrible day.

Noam’s family wanted to give a description of her character.

This is what they said:
“When Noam was born, her name was born with her.” She was a quiet and curious girl with big, blue, observant eyes. Some people are just born remarkable. Singular in their beauty, presence and ability to lead. Noam was like that from the moment she was born. She brought light to the whole world. That light was powerful, blinding, and relentless. It was always accompanied by a big smile that one reserves to their closest and dearest friends. She is the eldest daughter of Adva and Yossi.

They had moved to Germany when she was only a month old. Even the Germans were impressed. Those big eyes, that captivating smile, and that bewildering beauty. This repeated itself during her kindergarten years in Rehovot, where her leadership skills were already apparent. This continued at Givat Brenner, where she joined a group of friends who were the kindergarten’s “leaders”.
Her younger brothers – Ofri, Yiftach and Yuval – saw their big sister as a role model. Their parents did everything they could to make sure that their children stay close. Their relationship with their siblings was very important to them, and they always invested a lot of thought in their shared activities. They wanted them to be strongly united, to tell jokes about their parents, and to be deeply connected to each other. It worked.

By the time Noam reached high school, she had amassed a massive amount of friends, cultivated a vibrant social life, accumulated a host of pupils, and had two major romantic relationships. Every experience with her was intense and powerful in a way that’s difficult to explain with words. She never had a dull moment. She kept moving from place to place, from one pursuit to the other, and was always the glue that kept everything together. She would never give up on what mattered. Her family was always at the top of her priorities, including her siblings, parents, grandparents, cousins, uncles and aunts, followed by her friends and other circles.

After graduating from high school, Noam enrolled in the Beeri Prep School. That school’s yearbook noted that she would one day become Ben-Gurion and Israel’s prime minister. She was an outstanding leader and a force of attraction that only became more powerful over the years.

Noam was born wise. She was highly opinionated from a very young age, and had unique views about clothes, food, ethics, Israeli politics and society, gender and geopolitics, and interpersonal relationships. She did not shy away from conflicts, had to deal with more than a few herself, and was never afraid to do so. Because she had her own way. A way that always incorporated learning and listening. She would argue with her teachers profusely and make her case with passion.
Whenever she encountered any injustice, she moved mountains to resolve it. She would not let go until she achieved her goal. Because she knew. She just knew. She believed in her way. And she always did so with a mischievous smile. A young girl and a woman. Her friends called her “Angelina Jolie.” They even wrote that name on her Girl Scout hat. But she was even more beautiful.

Noam had two catch-phrases: (1) “You got yourself!” (2) It’s okay to be imperfect. You’re allowed to be visibly vulnerable. You are stronger than you think.
Noam was a woman in every sense of the word. She was never ashamed of her body. She was never ashamed of her opinions. She never thought that women deserve less. She always dared to do what her heart instructed her to do. She was a strong and brave woman and a natural-born leader. And there was something else about her... Because she knew that she was born that way and that she never had to work hard to get what some girls and women worked a lifetime for, she knew she had an obligation to help others. She spread her mantras and helped boost the self-confidence of her fellow women.”

"Yoav, the Director of Beeri Preparatory School, in which Noam had enrolled before she joined the IDF, wrote the following in her memory 30 days after her death.

He wrote as follows:
“I’m trying to find the words, and my words fail me.
I will begin with the story of how I got to know Noam.
It began with Noam’s application form, which she filled out about two years ago.
It was one of the most remarkable applications I had ever had the pleasure of reading. It was abundantly clear why Noam wanted to join the Preparatory School: she was driven by extraordinary commitment to her causes.

You see, in today’s world, even in the world of preparatory schools and at Beeri Prep School, it’s still hard to find such highly motivated people.
But Noam was such a person. She didn’t do that just to impress. It was genuine. It’s who she was. Her dedication and values were the driver of everything she did.
As she walked in the room, and throughout that day, I could see in her eyes that she was searching. I saw how serious and confident she was, and her commitment to her ideals was evident. Her commitment to both ideals and to taking action. It was the perfect combination.
When I asked her during that interview two years ago what and who she wanted to be, she answered, “I want to become Israel’s prime minister.” I had similar aspirations at her age, and it was at that moment that I realized Noam will be one of my pupils.

Noam was a strong woman, and a leading representative of a new generation of young, dominant, assertive and inspiring women. Noa genuinely believe that she could become Chief Justice, which is what she told us when we visited the Supreme Court.

One last story:
Noam and I weren’t “friends.” We didn’t have heart-to-heart conversations and we never told jokes to each other on a regular basis. But in a way our connection was much deeper than that of two friends. We were partners. And that’s saying a lot.
At the end of the year, as I gave a final talk to my pupils, Noam told me that I played a vital role in shaping her opinions about left-wing Zionism, and that I made meaningful contributions to her worldview and self-image.
She never knew how much those words stayed with me.
It’s not every day that you get a student who’s in it for the long haul. But Noam was like that.
She came to this world to take action.

After the 1936-1939 Riots, otherwise known as the “Great Arab Revolt,” Berl Katzenelson, whose Hebrew name was Beeri (after whom the School is named), wrote the following:
"We’re a generation of sieges and fortresses, of men and women who refused to retreat or surrender, who never left anyone behind, a generation of builders and conquerors, who shaped the world for its sons and daughters and grandchildren, who brought new immigrants to our shores to work and protect our people, this generation can proudly say to Joseph Trumpeldor and Aharon Sher, “we did not shame you.” Your legacy remains. We were forced into this struggle, a struggle we embraced and rose to. We fought not one Battle of Tel Hai, but many across the country.

Our goal now is to win, and, after the dust settles, we will once again build and settle, plant and sow. Because we have no other land.
Thank you, Noam, on behalf of the people of Israel and Israeli society.
I apologize, on behalf of the people of Israel, its leaders and commanders, for your premature departure. You left us before you met your true calling as Israel’s Prime Minister or Chief Justice, or anything else you may have dreamt of becoming.
This grief will stay with us forever.
On behalf of the school’s teachers, students and alumni, Adva and Yosi, and the rest of your family, we offer our deepest sympathies.
We are here to stay, and we will always be here."

On January 30, 2024, Channel 11 ran an article about the special connection between Noam’s family and musicians Yonatan and Shiri Artzi, which developed after her death. This connection led to a song that Artzi wrote in Noam’s memory. The article.

Noam’s friends commemorated her in a video. In the video, they talk about small and special moments that they had shared with Noam. For example, one of her friends mentioned how she used to tidy up her room whenever she came to visit. Another story related to how Noam dedicated time to doing push ups while she was on leave during her boot camp days, which were intended to help her distinguish herself at the camp, and how that inspired her friends. The video.

Hili Trooper (MK and educator) published a Facebook post on February 10, 2024 in Noam’s memory.

He wrote as follows:
Noam Avramoich, may her memory be a blessing, who was killed at Nachal Oz, had wanted to become Prime Minister. She really did.
As children, we all dreamt of becoming police officers, firefighters or soldiers, but she wanted to become Prime Minister.
Noam always kept true to her dream. Her high school yearbook includes a section titled “Where will you be in 10 years.” Noam’s answer was “Prime Minister.”
Sadly, this will never happen. I think we would have all benefited from that.
At Beeri School (in the year that preceded her enlistment), she even “formed a government.” Even though Noam and I didn’t know each other, I had the honor of serving as a “minister” in her government.
On October 7, her parents managed to speak with her before she died.
Noam told them how scared she was, about the horror that she and her friends faced. They could hear rockets whistling and exploding, Hamas terrorists crying “Allahu Akbar,” and Noam’s final words: “I’ll always love you.” And then she became silent forever.
Since Noam’s death, Adva (Noam’s mother) has been writing about her grief. She wrote the following:
“A bereaved parent has a hole in their soul. a huge chasm. That’s all I can say. What else can I say? It’s not a wound because wounds heal. I have a hole in my soul. And I need to find a way to live with it.
It’s a love-shaped hole. Love that you physically lose. It’s the person I gave birth to, it’s who I constantly hugged and kissed, and with whom I shared so many magical moments. Gone in an instant. In the blink of an eye.
If you try really hard, you sometimes manage to repress how violent her death was. It doesn’t always work. It keeps resurfacing.
When you love your children (as parents do), then that hole stays with you forever. Just like no love is greater than the love for one’s children, there is no greater pit of despair. I have to try to live with that knowledge.
As I sat with her parents (Yosi and Adva), I fully realize how Noam grew up to become the unique young woman she was, and how she left such a special mark in her short life on every person she interacted with.
Yosi and Adva shared their wish to commemorate her. They’re still discussing the details, by they know that it had to draw upon the deep values that informed Noam’s life.
They want her to be remembered by her most cherished values: kindness, respect, and altruism. To follow in Noam’s footsteps. It’s what this country needs.
I wish we could all be like her.
May her memory be a blessing.”