Norbert (Nahum) Serota was born on March 14, 1951, in the United States to Morton and Rose Serota. He grew up in Oceanside, New York, where he attended elementary school and high school. In the high school orchestra, he served as first violinist and was an avid reader. In 1971, he made aliyah to Israel.
In November of that year, Norbert volunteered for the IDF. After successfully completing a medic’s course, he was assigned to a mobile artillery unit. He completed his term of service just two days before the outbreak of the Yom Kippur War. Although he had planned to visit his family in the United States, he immediately rejoined his unit in the Golan Heights. On October 8, 1973, he was killed by a mortar explosion. He was buried in the Mount Herzl Military Cemetery in Jerusalem.
When his parents came to Israel for the burial and shivah, veteran AACI members Mike and Hanna Bargteil opened their home to them. In gratitude, the Serota family left a $500 check with the Bargteils. This became the basis of the Jerusalem Region Scholarship Fund. To date, over a million dollars have been distributed to needy children and siblings of fallen soldiers in Jerusalem’s school system through this fund, which is now valued at $500,000.
** The information on this page is part of the 'Yizkor' commemoration project by the Ministry of Defense / the 'La'ad' website by the National Insurance Institute, in memory of the fallen. We strive for accuracy and apologize for any errors. For corrections or comments, please contact us here: https://aaciremembers.org/contact-us/ **
