Staff Sergeant Yehonatan Yitzchak Samo, a soldier in the Paratroopers Brigade from Carmei Tzur, fell in battle with the Hamas terrorist organization in the Gaza Strip earlier this month. Sgt. Samo's family decided to donate his organs.
Sgt. Samo's heart was donated to a 46-year-old man and his eyes to a 36-year-old man, both at Beilinson Medical Center, where doctors fought for days to save him before he succumbed to his injuries. His liver was donated to a 51-year-old man at Ichilov Medical Center, while one of his liver lobes was donated to an 8-month-old baby at Schneider Children's Hospital. His kidney was donated to a 10-year-old bot, also at Schneider Children's Hospital. His other kidney was donated to a 50-year-old man at Hadassah Medical Center.
The family said in a statement: "Yehonatan was the eldest son of his parents Ayelet and Moshe, and a brother to Bari, Lavi, Tamar, and Ahinoam. He had big beautiful eyes and a captivating smile. He never complained about difficulties."
"As a teenager, he was a counselor at the Bnei Akiva movement and volunteered in many places. He participated in academic programs for outstanding students. He studied at the "Neva Shmuel" yeshiva in the settlement of Efrat and then went on to the 'Aderet' pre-military academy in Kfar Silver, which has both religious and secular students. In preparation for the army, he chose intelligence but insisted on doing significant time as a soldier in the Paratroopers Brigade, like his uncles and cousins who have representatives in various IDF units.
"During the war, he had the command and control role of the company commander and fought with the first forces [to enter Gaza]. Yehonatan signed an organ donor card on his own initiative. His mother found the card and asked him about it. He replied: 'Yes. I signed it a long time ago.' There was no hesitation at all about whether to donate his organs. That was who Yehonatan was. He did everything with a smile out of understanding, commitment and a desire to help. The fact that a part of him will continue to live and help others... there is nothing more uplifting than that. Thanks to his example, many others signed organ donation cards during the shiva period, and more will do so," the family stated.
