Simcha Harlow was born on February 12, 1967 in the state of Maine to Naomi (Carolyn) and Akiva (Terry) and converted with the rest of his family. Simcha made aliya with his family in 1982. He studied at the Gan Yavne Boarding School while his family settled in the Neve Yaakov neighborhood of Jerusalem.
Simcha was drafted in October 1985 and served first in the Givati Brigade and then as an army driver. On October 11, 1987 he fell while in service and was buried on Har Herzl in Jerusalem.